At a glance
Key takeaways
- A non-biker's point of view of the cycling features at OC Transpo.
- Cycling and transit are more interconnected than most people realize.
- The Rack & Roll program is user-friendly, and accessible year-round.
- Stations include important cyclist-friendly design features.
Everyone has a hobby.Some people love sports, others enjoy cooking, and some are all about cycling. I am more of a reader myself, the kind of person who would pick a book over a bike ride any day.
When I joined my new team at OC Transpo and found out I would be writing for The Next Stop Blog, I was excited! But when my first assignment landed on my desk and the topic was cycling, I froze. What could a non-cyclist like me possibly say?
So, I grabbed my pen and notepad, stepped outside, and decided to learn from the world around me.
Redefining what a commute can look like
It was a gloomy morning in April, the kind of damp and gray day you would expect bikes to stay tucked away at home. But cyclists were everywhere. I saw riders in business suits, riders pedaling on sleek high-end bikes, and others wobbling along on bikes clearly too small for them.
But the real surprise came when I reached the station and noticed how easily bikes were woven into the transit routine. Commuters rolled in from every direction.
They used the enlarged accessibility faregate to walk their bikes through.
They parked their bikes with ease using the designated sheltered bicycle parking.
They boarded onto trains or buses as if switching modes of travel was the most normal thing in the world.
The first thing that stood out to me was that some rolled their bikes straight onto the O-Train with the same easy confidence as carrying a backpack. On Line 1, riders would walk their bikes toward the very first door of the first car, where the Cooperative Seating area has space for bikes.
On Lines 2 and 4, things were even simpler: no special door, no marked zone. Cyclists just boarded through any door on any train and blended in with other passengers as if the system had been designed around them from the start.
Discovering bike-on-bus travel
That same ease carried over to the buses pulling in and out of the station, many of them arriving with bicycles on their front racks. This is known as the Rack & Roll Program. What’s especially cool about this program is that all buses are equipped with a bike rack, and it runs year-round, perfect for anyone bold enough to bike throughout Ottawa winters.
I could not help but think that if I were trying this for the first time, I would be nervous. That's when I remembered that OC Transpo has not one, but two Rack & Roll practice bike racks across the city. They move to different locations throughout the year so more people can try them out.
To get the full experience, I borrowed a friend’s bike for a few hours and went to the practice rack located outside the Ron Kolbus Lakeside Centre at Britannia Beach and gave it a try. I was surprised by how easy it was!
Not only did the practice rack use the same bike rack model installed on our buses, but it also had clear step-by-step instructions with pictures. After a few tries, I felt like I was on my way to being a pro.
Where bikes and transit move as one
On my way back home, I made one last discovery. As I approached the staircase to get to the train platform level, it struck me that cyclists have to rely on the elevator during their commute. How inconvenient, I thought. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a cyclist guiding their bike down the stairs using a narrow groove built right into the steps.
“I didn’t know you could walk your bike down like that” I said, genuinely impressed.
“Yeah, these bike ramps are super practical,” the cyclist replied.
I watched them glide down with no effort. What I thought was a design problem was actually a smart feature I had never noticed. It made me wonder how many other small details help cyclists every day.
Curious, I pulled out my phone and started searching. Before I knew it, I had fallen into a rabbit hole of cycling-and-transit features. I learned about the BikeSecure program for safe storage, repair stations for quick fixes, bike paths that connect right to transit stations, and even a Travel Planner made for bike-and-ride trips.
The more I learned, the more obvious it became that cycling and transit isn’t just about bikes and buses.It is a whole ecosystem of thoughtful details that quietly shape how people move through a city, and once you start noticing them, you see them everywhere.
It left me with a renewed appreciation not only for the cycling world, but also for the planners, advocates, and everyday commuters who make multimodal travel not just possible, but genuinely enjoyable.
If you want to learn more about all the cycling features at OC Transpo, visit Bikes on our Network.
