An East Side man who recently appealed to the public for help in launching a bike share program for addicts was overwhelmed by the response.
“It was better than I ever imagined,” Jonathan Orr told the Courier last week. “It was incredible. I received 28 donated bikes and I expected them to be cast-offs with missing parts, but that wasn’t the case.”
Orr was inspired to start the program for addicts living in the Downtown Eastside after using a bike to help with his own recovery three years ago. It was then he took an old Raleigh 10-speed to Our Community Bikes, a repair shop, bicycle-recycling depot and education workspace on Main Street.
“I brought my old bike to them and they showed me how to fix it,” said Orr. “It’s become my silent sponsor. When I’m feeling anxious or jammed-in I ride my bike. It makes me happy and gives me a sense of peace.”
Orr added there’s a lot of science backing the thought that exercise can help in early recovery, which is one of the reasons he’s excited to get the micro-community bike share program off the ground. His belief is so strong he created a group, dubbed Spoke Songs, dedicated to promoting cycling for its healing qualities.
Orr’s plan is to get 15 of the bikes completely road worthy by mid-April and then launch the project with some guided rides once or twice a month in partnership with the PHS Drug Users Resource Centre. Along the way, Orr plans to share his personal experiences in using cycling as part of his recovery. His goal is to eventually offer weekly rides with a focus on encouraging drug users and the hard-to-house to join in.
“I want to build gradually and include people who don’t naturally have an opportunity to ride,” said Orr. He added many marginalized residents of the Downtown Eastside have had access to a bike in the past, but often used them during activities such as bottle picking or even while committing a crime. “I want them to consider a bike ride as a nice experience,” said Orr. “I just want to get them out on a bike ride on a nice day.”
Orr said the PHS Community Services Society is also supporting his efforts by offering space to store the bikes. Orr added he’ll find a way to continue the program even if PHS is no longer able to assist. As reported in the Courier earlier this month, B.C. Housing has raised concerns about the society’s spending practices and is conducting an audit.
The bike-share program officially kicked off last month with a party at the Interurban Art Gallery at 1 East Hastings St. in the Downtown Eastside, which also coincided with the second anniversary of Spoke Songs. Orr organized the celebration so it would also work as the drop-off location for donated bikes. He said over the course of the evening, members from “all walks off life” dropped by with bikes to donate, including an older woman who admitted she’d never been to the Downtown Eastside prior to that night.
“She didn’t stay, but she dropped off a really nice bike,” said Orr, who added another woman came by with a bike that had belonged to her dad. “He had passed away,” said Orr. “It was an old proper road bike he used to ride around Vancouver Island. I was really touched.”
