Raymond Farger forges ahead in his bike, fearless of winter

For several years now, Mr. Farger has been commuting to work this way twelve months of the year. In the summer, he rides along the shed of the Champlain Bridge and makes it all the way from his house on McGill Street in Longueuil to L'Île-des-Soeurs. It takes him approximately an hour to travel the entire distance but he finds that the ride is very pleasant, especially when the weather is nice.

In winter, he cheats a little by using two bicycles. The first bike takes him from his house to the Longueuil subway station where he padlocks the bike to a post for the day. He then takes the subway to the Berri-UQAM station and then onwards to the LaSalle metro where his second bicycle is waiting for him to take him to the island. His total tour is approximately 45 minutes - much less time than majority of drivers must spend to cross the same distance.

Obviously, Mr. Farger does not use expensive bicycles to leave near metro stations, unguarded. There are times where his bike gets stolen or has to be repaired because of damages caused by hooligans. They deflate tires, put graffiti, or leave scratches. These incidents, however, do not discourage him; when a bicycle is damaged beyond repair, he simply buys another used one for a few tens of dollars.

Mr. Farger works in the meat section at the Provigo supermarket of L'Île-des-Soeurs and never complains about his commuting. “All you need is to dress appropriately to protect yourself from the water, especially when the bike path follows the road and it’s raining hard”, he explained.

Besides, he’s not the only one who cycles to work whether it’s winter or summer. For those who work early in the morning or on weekends, it is often the only means of going to the island when a car is not available. For them, the real challenge is not snow or rain, or even the vandals. The real problem is the bad condition of certain segments of the bike path. They are usually cleared very early in the morning but, for some time now the ongoing construction work at the entry point of the island has caused considerable deterioration to certain parts of the path. One goes over trenches that are intended for the installation of pipes, and when they are not repaired, they can cause accidents for cyclists who must pass them. Mr. Farger added that he seldom bothers watching out for construction work when it is being carried out on bike paths during the winter.

Another problem which island-bound cyclists experience if they’re coming from the mainland is a section of approximately 200 meters which has not been lit for several months now owing to defective street lamps. This particular section is located at the north-west end of L'Île-des-Soeurs Bridge in a little wooded part which is very dark especially in winter. Mr. Farger confirmed that he has complained to Verdun Borough but has not been successful.

In any case, ecologists cannot blame Mr. Farger for contributing to the increase in greenhouse effects. His experience shows that it would be sufficient for concerned officials to lend a bit more support in making the bicycle a means of transport that is more appropriate for a great number of people twelve months a year.