Andre Riopel pedals to change peoples' perspective

As a teen, Andre Riopel followed his father's advice to put his excessive energy to use being productive and, for the past 50 or so years, he's done just that.

Riopel, a local advocate for human-powered transportation, has been involved in the creation of the John Rowswell Hub Trail since it was just a twinkle in the eye of the Sault Trails Advocacy Committee, Sault Cycling Club and other supporters.

Way back in 2006, on Saturday, Sept. 30 at 11:45 a.m., to be specific, the Hub Trail first officially opened. Now, it is a 25-km network of trails and work still continues on it. 

"Now our goal is to look for micro-trails," Riopel said. 

Those would be 'short-cuts' as he called them, leading from residential neighbourhoods to nearby places people in those neighbourhoods tend to visit frequently, like schools.

Riopel says that kids would prefer to ride their bikes to school if it were easier than taking a bus and parents would be okay with it if they were reassured that it would be safe for their kids and that's the key to positive change.

"Parents are more likely to get into (or back into) cycling because their kids ask them to come along than they would be if I told them to," he added.

That's his goal. More human-powered transportation, fewer motorized vehicles.

Why would anyone want this?

Riopel is circumspect. For him, the benefits are many. Reduced carbon emissions, reduced costs to the city and taxpayers, increased mental and physical health of individuals and communities, and mediation of climate change effects are the primary areas of potential impact but he knows not everyone is going to be willing to embrace a car-free lifestyle or even reduced reliance on motorized transport.

Rather than try to change the minds of people who are set in their ways, he prefers to devote his time and energy to the younger generation, saying they tend to be more open to healthier lifestyles, mitigating climate change and enjoying life outside together with their friends and families.

To that end, he has been involved in Sault Cycling projects to build pump tracks and to make cycling both safer and more convenient for people in the Sault. The pump track in Esposito Park opened in 2016 and work on a year-round gravity park is ongoing on Finn Hill.

These and other projects in the Sault are aimed at giving young people, especially, more opportunities to get on their bikes and ride in hopes that they will cultivate a lifelong love of human-powered transportation.

This would go a long way to reversing urban landscapes' traditionally car-centric design, he said.

At the very least, Riopel says he would like to see the playing field equalized and cycling incentivized by making it more convenient, he said.

"Right now, 30 to 40 per cent of people don't drive," he said. "But everyone is paying for parking."

Big box stores like Walmart and building owners embed the cost of parking lot construction and maintenance in the prices of their products, rents and leases. Riopel would like to see these separated out so people can see the real costs of operating a motorized vehicle. 

The recently retired physiotherapist also says the cost of motor vehicle collisions to communities cannot be ignored. He says the majority of the people he helped in his practice were recovering from injuries sustained in motor vehicle crashes, had missed work because of them and required medical care. 

He is also working with the city to look at parking reforms that would support and encourage more human-powered and public transit, putting fewer motorized vehicles on the road.

This would happen through parking reforms such as changing the bylaw from dictating the minimum number of parking spots required for a new building to dictating the maximum allowable spots and requiring sheltered, secure parking for a minimum number of bicycles.

But, for him, cycling is almost his exclusive and year-round mode of transportation because of the mental, physical and emotional benefits he derives from it.

"It changes your whole point of view," he said. "You see so much."

He talks about seeing animals, smelling the fresh air and taking in beautiful scenery on his rides between his Case Road residence and work at all times of the year.

"I can still do it (at 64) because I've done it all my life. It keeps me lean and healthy."

Riopel also serves on a number of local boards and committees all with the intent of promoting non-motorized transportation, healthier people, communities and climate.

He is the advocacy director for the Sault Cycling Club, a member of the Sault Trails Advocacy Committee (STAC) representing the Sault Cycling Club, the local Environmental Sustainability Committee and he was appointed by city council to the Environmental Sustainability Committee.

He is also the recipient of Algoma Public Health's inaugural Public Health Champion Award in 2018.

To help convince people to spend less money on gas, get more exercise, be healthier, socialize more and get where they need to go on bikes, he opened Vélorution in 2006 and was steadfast in his commitment to reducing the square footage of asphalt around the bike and ski shop.

He was successful in his bid to reduce the number of required parking spots at the business and city council started to look more closely at greening zoning bylaws. 

City staff has also come on board, creating the Sault's Active Transit Master Plan, approved by city council, and Riopel says there are more than a few staffers in the city who actively advocate for safe, convenient human-powered transportation and how those can be incorporated into the official plan. He says to watch for some possible changes in the way people are taxed. 

The most important thing for any activist to remember, he says, is to try to stay positive. 

"Anyone can see my passion all the time but the self-preservation comes from sticking to the positive," he said. 

Activists burn out because they try to fight every fight but he chooses to educate, promote positively, focus on his successes instead of setbacks and to not take things personally.

It's important to remember that opposition is to an idea, not a person, he adds. 

"You have to remember that they're sitting in a different place than you," he said. "If I can just get them to change their perspective, get them out of their cars and to go for a bike ride, then they see things differently."