SHIFT is an exciting initiative in Yellowknife aimed at encouraging residents to embrace a healthier, more sustainable lifestyle by using bicycles for their daily commutes and errands. By joining SHIFT, you can contribute to a greener community and enjoy the numerous health benefits of cycling.
Becca and Adam Denley recently moved back to Yellowknife after living a few years in Denmark where they were amazed by the transformative impact of multimodal infrastructure. While there, they enjoyed biking to work and witnessing their children safely and independently navigate to school and extra curricular activities along protected bike lanes and paths. They realized that biking wasn't "recreation" for them, it was a sensible & efficient way to travel that came with a host of surprising benefits. Seeing all ages benefit from an active lifestyle inspired the Denleys to advocate for similar changes in Yellowknife. Their hope is to bring the same sense of freedom and community to Yellowknife!
"The registration and signup processes were smooth and easy. The volunteers were helpful, and I also got a helmet. Using the bike allowed me to experience the city of Yellowknife and appreciate its beauty more! The bike had a carrier that made even grocery runs more fun. By the time I returned my bike, I was completely convinced that I can depend on a bike as my only means of transportation most of the year, and I dare say all year round."
"It was one of my highlights of what I did with my children! I am not the most comfortable biking on the roads here in town. But I was able to gain more confidence when I got to use the borrowed bike. What I was most thankful is that I got to share this experience with my children!(One of my children who’s autistic was really happy for me to take him or pick up from school with the bike-it was just so wonderful)! Thanks to the amazing organizer and volunteers running this free bike program!"
"I have ridden many bikes but Anders rode like a dream. Stable, smooth, comfortable - ideal for long or short rides within the city. I absolutely loved the experience! What a wonderful initiative. I hope we can continue this and many more such programs to popularize biking and make all our cities bike accessible."
I had the great pleasure to rent a cargo bike from SHIFT during the summer of 2024 for a 2 week trial and I have to say it made life so much easier. We used the bike on several occasions to purchase groceries, we brought20 pound propane tanks to be filled and transported our 2 dogs.
One of the best moments was biking through Yellowknife and a car stopped beside us to tell us “I need to get one like these, so friends won’t ask for my truck again” I still laugh about this today.
"I highly recommend borrowing a bike from the SHIFT Program. It’s a steal of a deal. Where else can you borrow a high quality E bike for 2 weeks free with all the accessories you will need?! You will get to try out your bike with instructions at Sombe Ke Park and take a spin around the nearby trails until you feel comfortable enough to ride home. I fell in love with Freya almost immediately! I rode Freya everyday for 2 weeks wherever I was going. I hardly used the car or the bus at all."
"We borrowed Eske and took her daily from Old Town to NJ Macpherson School to downtown, and then back again. Anyone along our route would have heard the kids yelling "turbo mode" or "hi!!!!" from the bucket. It was a total blast and made zipping around town fun and easy. Thank you!!"
"I borrowed Gry over the summer and it was amazing. Three kids or solo, this thing was a joy to ride, handled well and the kids loved it! Definitely will be buying a cargo bike in the future!"
"It was getting harder and harder to fit kids, snowsuits and all 'stuff' of day to day in our current system. We signed up immediately. The learning curve was quick, and we were off to everywhere. Packing up into the cargo bike was SO EASY. We 'bike pooled' with friends to daycamp and whizzed around town happily. We're back to seriously considering a cargo bike and the trial has made a big difference in our perspective on it as a useful tool!"
The SHIFT initiative has been made possible by the GNWT's 2024 Healthy Choices Fund and is a project under the NWT Recreation and Parks Association. This project is completely volunteer-based. This annual summer endeavor is intended to help citizens of the Northwest Territories to embrace a more active way of moving around their community and realize significant health, financial, and environmental benefits. Special thanks to our below partners!
Take a look at the leading research, influential initiatives and relevant resources related to our program!
