The Island of Montreal cycling network now encompasses over 500 kilometres of bikeways spread out across the City. The year 2009 was a major turning point for active transportation in the City of Montreal. Over a few short months, 50 kilometres of new bikeways were added to the network. In addition, the newly implemented BIXI bikesharing program, a veritable revolution in sustainable mobility, proved to be an instant success. Large numbers of cycling enthusiasts rented a bike from the fleet of 5,000 units from one of 400 stations located throughout the City. Already in the first year of operation, the BIXI Program had 10,000 subscribers and 100,000 daily users. This resounding success has caught the eye of municipal authorities across Europe, North America and beyond, as the BIXI Program is being used as a development model for similar active transportation initiatives in cities such as Boston, Minneapolis, London (Great-Britain) and Melbourne (Australia). The development of the 50 kilometres of new bikeways and the implementation of the BIXI Program required an investment of close to 30 million dollars in 2009. For the City of Montreal, this expenditure will without a doubt prove extremely profitable, given the many benefits it will generate, including improved quality of life for its citizens, a more equitable sharing of the road network among all types of users and the redefinition of public space to enhance sustainable mobility. This paper was originally published in French as Montreal au rythme de la mobilite durable avec le deploiement du BIXI et l'implantation de 50 kilometres de nouvelles voies cyclables en 2009 (see ITRD number F160277).(see ITRD number F160270). This project was nominated for the TAC 2009 Sustainable Urban Transportation Award. For the covering abstract of this conference see ITRD number E220308.
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