Here are the details: Every Thursday, starting today, until the end of August, we will release this update via  our website, Facebook, and Twitter.  Keeners can also request the update in email form by emailing Stephanie.williams@best.bc.ca to get on this coveted list. And of course you can continue to visit our Calendar to get the ‘big picture’ of all the events we will be at over the summer and fall.

Don’t forget that we’re at every Whitecaps home game, and every Trout Lake and Kitsilano Vancouver Farmers Market this year!

We are always looking for new volunteers, so if you are interested in getting involved in a fun activity with a great bunch of people go here.

Throughout the weekend Beth was fortunate to get to know delegates from across western Canada and to learn about what sustainable transportation looked like in their cities, towns, and villages –as you can guess each community was very different from the next.

The weekend was filled to the brim with lectures, transit tours, sponsor speeches, and workshops. Time was also allotted for the Canadian Urban Transit Authority’s 2013 Group Project, which saw groups of nine delegates working together to produce an innovative idea that encouraged sustainable travel within cities across Canada.

Among Beth’s favorite workshop sessions were “Transit and Accessibility” and “Linking Transit and Active Transportation.” Both session were hands on and required delegates to immerse themselves in specific policies or environments – such as wearing goggles to get a realistic idea of how it might feel to travel with Glaucoma, or assigning certain delegates to ride in wheelchairs or with walkers so they were more aware of the inaccessibility of even “accessible” transit services. Even a simple bus trip to a transfer station in a wheelchair or with a visual impairment was a struggle for every delegate and an exercise they would learn from and consider when writing new transit plans, designing transfer stations, and creating policies related to all forms of transportation.

Beth’s CUTA 2013 Group was fortunate to be led by Peggy Hunt (Manager, Government and Stakeholder Relations, TransLink) who encouraged collaboration amongst the predominantly Vancouver-based group.

Overall, the weekend brought together bright young leaders who are sure to make a difference in Canada’s urban centres in the very near future.

Beth would like to thank the organizers and sponsors for their support– it was a great pleasure to be a part of this event.

Over the past year Living Streets grew by leaps and bounds and we realized it was high time we had a logo that expresses the lively, innovative, fun feeling of the program. Thank you to our amazing volunteer, Kent Hu, a student at Emily Carr for creating this great design!

Trout Lake runs from 9:00am-2:00pm every Saturday, from May 11 to October 19, and is located at John Hendry Park in the parking lot. We will be set up just west of the parking lot, on the lovely grass. Kitsilano Market runs from 10:00am-2:00pm in the parking lot of the Kitsilano Community Centre, and you can find us right off 10th Ave bikeway at the north end of the parking lot.

We would love to see you there, and we’d also love it if you want to help out! We’re looking for volunteers for both markets, to join our super star team! Contact stephanie.williams@best.bc.ca to sign up!

And if you would like to volunteer for the markets, or any other event, sign up for our upcoming training event on Monday, May 6 at 6:00pm at the Granville Island Picnic Pavilion. Sign up here:

http://www.doodle.com/kg5wmtcb986m3vb3

Three cheers for sustainable food and sustainable transportation!

Download the brief it at  http://www.activelivingresearch.org/dailybiketravel

Where do you come in?  Glad you asked! Connect with us and help us generate ideas; seriously, it’s going to be a lot of work (no pun intended)!  At the end of the month, we’ll give away a Super Sustainable Commuter Prize Pack to our favourite suggestion (yes, this will be totally based on our judgement and possibly biased).

The average round-trip commute time in BC is 60 minutes, and in Metro Vancouver is a whooping 67 minutes.  That’s a lot of time.  What do you do during that time?  Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• Catch up on office gossip in your carpool ride
• Prepare for your Monday morning meeting (these are the worst!) on the train
• Listen to (sorry, accidently overhear) your fellow bus riders’ conversation about their wild weekend
• Peddle away calories and not feel guilty about not having a gym membership
• Make plans for the weekend (even if it’s still Monday)
• Zone out (do you think transit yoga will take off?)

Make your commute time, time well spent.  Challenge yourself.  Challenge your team.

For more information on how you and your workplace can participate in this year’s Commuter Challenge contact Stephanie Williams at 604 669 2860, stephanie.williams@best.bc.ca.

First up is the Earth Day Parade on April 20 at Grandview Park.  The Youth for Climate Justice Now are hosting a Parade down Commercial Drive, to be followed by a Celebration in Grandview Park.  These students are already making a difference, so come down and support them.  And of course, if you’re riding your bike, you can find us at the bottom of the park (East) in the multi-use sports court.

The students and parents of Laura Secord Elementary having celebrating Earth Day for a while now, but this is our first time partnering up!  On April 24 we’ll be providing our services for the student body to help them be sustainable.  Should be fun!

And finally on April 27 the City of Surrey is hosting a huge Party for the Planet, so huge it’s the biggest celebration for Earth Day in the Province!  We’re stoked to join the fun once again!  Find us at 102 Ave and City Parkway, at Surrey City Central.  And for those of you more into walking, we’ve teamed up with BEST’s Living Streets program to offer some great resources and information about getting around in Surrey.

You can also find us at Gate F on the second level of BC Place for two Whitecaps games (April 13 and 27) and for the Vancouver Sun Run on April 21.  Whether you’re participating or cheering, we’ll be happy to support you by keeping your bike safe and sound.

For more information on these and other Bicycle Valet events keep an eye on our calendar — it’s being updated all the time!

If you would like more information about how you can have The Bicycle Valet at your event contact Bicycle Valet manager Stephanie Williams, 604 669 2860, stephanie.williams@best.bc.ca.

Between September and December 2012 more than 750 hours were spent by dedicated volunteers – completing street audits, deciphering results, and creating beautiful Living Streets maps that communicated participants’ concerns. These hours resulted in hundreds of insights that provided information to Surrey municipal officials.

Overall, Living Streets participants recorded valuable data that will be used by the City of Surrey transportation team as a tool for making change happen within their communities. At the final event members from each group that participated in Living Streets were able to share their results, voice their concerns, give positive feedback, and learn from municipal officials.

Living Streets would like to thank all our wonderful volunteers and participants in the process. We are already planning for next year – if you would like to be involved contact Beth Hurford at beth.hurford@best.bc.ca, 604 669 2860.

We would also like to thank RBC Foundation, the City of Surrey, and the financial support of the Province of British Columbia. And a big thank you as well to Camino for supplying such excellent prizes for our participants!

It’s going to be another busy season at The Bicycle Valet. We are pleased to announce that we will be offering our service at the Vancouver Whitecaps FC games, which kicks off our season on March 2. We’ve already got events booked through to October. Keep track of where we will be by regularly checking our full calendar of events and keep an eye out for our new email updates.

If you would like to have The Bicycle Valet at your event we would be happy to provide you with a free quote.

Recommendations will be made by Living Streets participants who completed audits and would like to share their concerns, ideas, and compliments first hand!

Anyone open to sharing their perspectives and ideas is invited to attend. We look forward to seeing you there!

So save this date: March 13, 2013, 6-8pm, Surrey City Centre Library. Food, drinks, and prizes included!

For more information and to RSVP, please contact Beth Hurford at 604 669 2860 or beth.hurford@best.bc.ca.