My e-bike will be arriving soon. I ordered it in January, using money I had earned through some writing that I did through the lens of Sustainable Global Development Goal #13: Climate Action. You cannot write about climate change and action for four months and not feel the need to do something more about climate change.

Beyond beekeeping of course…

I have been reading and following “Car-Free mama” (carfreemama.ca) through her blog and Twitter account for the past year. It turns out that our paths crossed this past summer and that she lives nearby. I was able to contact her and get advice on her experience and bike details.

Years ago, my husband and I were considering an electric vehicle. We test drove one and liked the look of the Chevy Bolt. But, when the time came to make a purchase, the rebates for buying an EV were no longer available and the price tag was simply too high. So I leased a car (non-electrical, regular combustion). The end of this lease comes up this fall. And a decision will have to be made – can I go car free or should we buy out the lease?

My commute to school is 5km one way. A ten kilometre round trip. So why not just ride a regular bike? Well, there are some pretty major hills each way. I do not like arriving at work all sweaty. And often at the end of the day, I am physically tired. I am on my feet all day and average 10,000-16,000 steps in my role. I am in my late 40s and not in the best shape of my life.

So, I headed to the Bike Café. I fell in love with the e-bike the moment I started test-riding it. I rode it in “Eco-mode” in a parking lot on the lowest assist setting and it just felt like someone was giving you a boost. I put down a deposit and ordered an e-bike.

Another thing that I have been trying to do for a few years is move all of our regular appointments more local (hair, dentist, doctor, prescriptions etc.). So far, this has been going well, with the exception of one pretty disastrous haircut for the dog. It is my goal to do all of these things by bike (or by walking).

I’m lucky that my school is local. I have two bike routes that I can take to school. The first is an easy going ride through a park along some pathways and then through some neighbourhoods. Or I can take a shorter ride on the busier roads (and across a narrow bridge with no bike lanes). I think I will be taking the first option until my confidence grows. I might take option 1 to school, and option 2 on the way home (downhill over the bridge).

Admittedly, I have a healthy dose of fear. I am afraid of having a bike accident and getting injured. I am also scared that my bike will get stolen. We will have insurance and I will get a good lock. I am going to store my bike in the Library Learning Commons office during the school day. I know that students will see it through the windows and I know I will be answering a lot of questions about it. I look forward to that.

Imagining myself on this bike in the spring and summer is a bright spot for me right now. I purchased a few accessories – a seat for my 6 year old and good panniers. My two older daughters are working part-time this summer, so I imagine the 6 year old and I taking off with a towel and some packed lunch and searching out new parks and splash pads in all of the corners of the city. Running errands together. Riding to visit family members and friends.

However, imagining myself next November is where things get a bit murky. Will I be able to bike in cold weather? And snow? I do have a bus pass for when the weather is bad, but the LTC bus routes are not super convenient. It would take me 25-35 minutes to get to school. One option involves a bus stop very close to my house but a transfer and two buses. The other option involves a 15 minute walk and one bus. This is true both ways. The amount of total travel time is comparable to my bike ride. But the 9 minute drive to school would be very tempting if my car is still around…

Keep going, don’t look back, and if you have an idea, just do it; no one is going to wait for you or tell you what to do.

-Autumn Peltier

Another thing to consider is that one of my daughters is going to be eligible to get her driver’s licence a year from now. I think learning to drive would be easier in my smaller car rather than my husband’s eco-diesel truck. But perhaps that is a mindset that needs to change too. She bikes everywhere already. This past summer, she used the paths in London to get to lessons and volunteering at pools about 10 km from our house. When the weather is nice, one weekends, we take the bikes out from 10am to about 2pm. We have loved exploring the North and South branches of the “TVP” – the Thames Valley Parkway as a family. We figured out it would take our daughters 1h15 minutes to bike to their school (one way). My oldest wants to try it just for fun one day.

This is a small lifestyle change that I am going to try my best to commit to. And I don’t think it is going to be easy. At times, it is going to be inconvenient. But I hope that I will discover otherwise.

I will definitely have to update my progress and experiences on this blog. And now, I go back to dreaming about the wind in my hair as I fly along the London paths. I can almost smell the Thames River (smile)… see the dogs playing at the dog park, catch a glimpse of the osprey pair on their perch, hear my daughter’s echo through the tunnel past the Terry Fox Parkway & the cries of “on your left” as we weave through pedestrians to the Forks and under bridges until we get to the quiet of the South Branch where there is less traffic, and nothing but green and the sound of water on rocks of the river and birdsongs…

Greta Thunberg and Autumn Peltier have been quoted throughout this blog. Their voices both haunt and inspire me. Both of these young women are so courageous and have been so vulnerable – showing their frustration in the form of tears or a shaky passionate voices on very public stages. I hear the alarm bells they are ringing. I want to be a small part of the crowd taking action inspired by them.

Earth Day is approaching. Is there a lifestyle change you can commit to? Whose voices do you listen to when it comes to climate change and protecting the environment?

Featured Photo by James Lewis on Unsplash