It is now easier for cyclists in the downtown to find places to safely park and lock their bicycles, with 34 new bike racks installed by the City of Cranbrook the past week – thanks to the inspiration and fundraising initiatives undertaken by the Cranbrook Sunrise Rotary Club earlier this year.

The bike racks complement existing and future city planning infrastructure designs, while promoting and supporting the increasing number of cyclists in the community. The new racks will also help eliminate bikes being parked haphazardly, locked up to parking meters and trees.

“This project was a great collaboration between the city and Sunrise Rotary Club of Cranbrook,” said Chris New, Director of Community Services. “Cycling path infrastructure is one of the highest requested items in our Parks and Recreation Master Plan, and this initiative supports the further development of cycling connectivity throughout our city.”

Sunrise Rotary co-chairs Glenn Dobie and Darryl Bishop, who spearheaded this community service project, praised city staff for their collaboration and for the installation of the bike racks.

This project would not have been possible without the generous financial support of sponsors and the various granting agencies including: Columbia Basin Trust, Cranbrook Community Foundation, the Regional District of East Kootenay, Canada 150 and Fab-Rite, which manufactured the racks and sponsored three of them. No tax dollars were put directly into the project. Public Works did assist with the project by doing the bike rack installation.

This initiative is an important component to the city’s overall community vibrancy plan which is designed to improve the walkability and accessibility of the city, while making it much more pedestrian and bicycle friendly. This is the first step in a much larger plan to develop and grow the city’s Bike Network Plan.

City of Cranbrook

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