This network (BUM-BUM) promotes the benefits of active transportation and aims to make it accessible to as many Montrealers as possible. In our view, community bike shops (CBSs) are essential to achieving this goal.
We work to ensure that the network of CBSs is:
- Accessible, meaning free or low-cost, and adapted to the varying physical or psychological capacities of the people who use it.
- Inclusive, meaning open to and mindful of the well-being of people of all identities, backgrounds, cultures, social classes, migratory statuses, and familiarity with bike mechanics.
- Participatory, meaning it encourages users' involvement in the shop's organization and administration.
- Distributed outside the central neighborhoods and in a spatially equitable manner across Montreal.
We also believe that CBSs have a role that goes beyond mechanics or just access to active transportation. For many people, they are places where one can build self-confidence, socialize, meet people, and have fun!
We also consider CBSs as central to the ecological movement because they encourage practices critical to developing a more circular economy, and promote ecological means of mobility and general community empowerment.