Coming Soon – Bikeability for Ontario

The Share the Road Cycling Coalition (Share the Road) together with partners across the province is working to launch an exciting new cycling skills education
program in Ontario.

Built in partnership with the team from the UK’s worldleading Bikeability program, this initiative will help children develop healthy habits for life, strengthen
mental wellbeing, and build the foundation for safer roads and safer motorists.

With pilots launching in three Ontario municipalities, and with plans to scale these pilot models provincially, we are mobilizing to bring a proven, evidence-based cycling education model to Ontario.

Bikeability Ontario is a new provincial cyclingskills education program inspired by the UK’s highly successful Bikeability program — an initiative that has trained 5 million children since 2007, and transformed how communities think about mobility, safety, and healthy living.

We are bringing this proven model to Ontario through a partnership with UK-based Bikeability Trust. Our other partner organizations include Ontario Cycling, the YMCA, CAA South Central Ontario, the Ontario Provincial Police, Parks and Recreation Ontario and staff and partners in our three pilot municipalities.

The Coalition will manage and govern the development and the launch of the Bikeability for Ontario program given its knowledge, skills, ability and network. Our goal is simple: give every child in Ontario the skills and confidence to ride a bike safely and in the process enhance the capacity of future drivers.

Bikeability Ontario — Why Now
Ontario has made meaningful progress in cycling infrastructure and road safety over the past two decades. Yet one critical gap remains: children and families do not have consistent, affordable access to highquality cyclingskills education. At a time when youth physical activity is declining, road safety concerns are rising, and municipalities are working to shift transportation behaviour, the need for a proven, scalable cyclingeducation program has never been clearer.

Bikeability Ontario will fill that gap.

Modelled on the UK’s national Bikeability program — which has trained more than 5 million children since 2007 — Bikeability Ontario will give people of all ages the skills, confidence, and safety knowledge they need to move through their communities independently and safely. With support from Bikeability UK, Ontario now has the opportunity to bring a world-class, evidence-based program to schools and communities across the province.

Why Bikeability Matters — The Evidence

Healthy Habits for Life
Cycling is one of the most accessible forms of physical activity. Children who learn to ride safely at a young age are significantly more likely to stay active throughout adolescence and adulthood. Bikeability builds lifelong habits that support physical health, mental wellbeing, and resilience.

Independence and Confidence
Learning to ride safely gives children a sense of autonomy that few other activities can match. Bikeability teaches realworld navigation, decisionmaking, and
problemsolving — skills that strengthen confidence both on and off the bike.

Better, Safer Drivers in the Future
International research shows that children who receive cyclingskills education become more attentive, empathetic, and safer drivers as adults. Bikeability teaches:

• Road awareness
• Hazard perception
• Predictive thinking
• Respect for vulnerable road users

Countries with longstanding cyclingeducation programs — including the UK, Denmark, and the Netherlands — consistently produce drivers who are more aware of cyclists and pedestrians and who cause fewer collisions.

Bikeability is not just a cycling program. It is a roadsafety program that benefits everyone.

Why Now — The Opportunity for Ontario
Ontario is at a pivotal moment. Municipalities are investing in active transportation, schools are seeking evidence-based physical activity programs, and
communities are calling for safer streets. Yet without structured cycling skills education, children and families are left without the tools they need to ride safely — and future drivers miss the early learning that shapes lifelong road behaviour.

Launching Bikeability will:

• Advance affordability and equality of access. Cycling is one of the most affordable, efficient forms of transportation. Bikeability ensures that children and adults across Ontario, regardless of income or geography, can learn to ride confidently and safely.
• Address the number one barrier to cycling: fear. Polling consistently shows that the top reason people choose not to ride is that they are too afraid — afraid of traffic, afraid of navigating streets, afraid of not having the skills they need. As Ontario communities continue to invest in cycling infrastructure, cyclingskills education becomes an essential complement. Bikeability helps people gain the confidence, competence, and realworld skills that make cycling a viable, everyday transportation option with significant health, environmental, and community benefits.
• Support provincial collaboration and standards. We are working with the Ministry of Transportation to create Provincial Standards for cyclingskills education, mirroring the UK’s national standards. This will give parents, educators, and municipalities confidence that instruction is consistent, evidence-based, and delivered by trained, accredited instructors.
• Build an allages curriculum. While children are a critical focus, Bikeability Ontario will offer programming for all ages — supporting youth, adults, newcomers, seniors, and anyone seeking safe, healthy, independent mobility.
• Be led by a strong provincial coalition. Bikeability Ontario is being led by the Share the Road Cycling Coalition, working with a broad coalition of partners — municipalities, roadsafety leaders, law enforcement, and community organizations with deep expertise in curriculum development, program delivery, and instructor training. This collaborative model ensures that Bikeability is grounded in best practice, supported by experts, and ready for provincewide scaleup.
• Strengthen Vision Zero and community safety goals. Early Roadsafety education reduces collisions, improves driver awareness, and supports municipal commitments to safer streets.
• Lay the foundation for provincewide expansion with standards, curriculum, and instructor training in place, Ontario can build a sustainable, longterm cyclingeducation system.

 

Where We Begin
Bikeability Ontario will launch with three pilot communities that are part of our Bicycle Friendly Community program. All are committed to safer streets, active
transportation, and youth wellbeing. We’ll be announcing these communities this fall as they finalize their local outreach and approach.

Their work will focus on:

• Training instructors
• Developing curriculum that can be delivered in community centres and schools
• Build local partnerships
• Collect evaluation data
• Prepare for provincewide expansion

 

The Path Forward
Bikeability Ontario represents a generational opportunity: to give people of all ages the skills and confidence they’ll carry for life, to strengthen community safety, and to build a culture of active, healthy mobility across the province.

Support the Launch of Bikeability Ontario
The Share the Road Cycling Coalition is a registered charity, and our work depends on the generosity of donors and funders who believe in safer streets, healthier communities, and opportunities for every child to thrive.

The development of Bikeability Ontario — the curriculum, instructor training, standards, partnerships, and pilot programs — is only possible through the support of people and organizations who share this vision.

By donating today, you can make an important difference in the life of a child who will benefit from the work we are doing right now: creating safe, supportive, and confidence building cyclingskills education for children of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities.

Your contribution will help us build the essential foundations of Bikeability Ontario — from curriculum development to instructor training to community partnerships — ensuring that children across the province can access high quality cycling education for years to come.

Your support will help us bring a proven, internationally recognized program to Ontario and give children the skills, independence, and healthy habits they’ll carry for life. Together, we can build safer roads, stronger communities, and a healthier future for the next generation.

To support the development and launch of Bikeability Ontario, please donate here.

This fall, we’ll be sharing more information about this new all ages cyclingskills education program, modelled on the UK’s national Bikeability standards and adapted for Ontario. Stay tuned for updates as we move toward a formal announcement in Fall 2026.

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