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Robert "Bicycle Bob" Silverman (30 November 1933 – 20 February 2022) was a Canadian cycling activist in Montreal.

Biography

Silverman grew up in the Snowdon neighborhood of Montreal and attended the High School of Montreal and Sir George Williams University. At the age of 25, with the financial help of his father, he opened a bookstore on Stanley Street. A Trotskyist, he had no incentive for profit and often gave books away to customers, driving him into bankruptcy.

While studying in France in 1969, Silverman discovered great enjoyment from cycling. Encouraged by his wife, Edith, he rode his bicycle to his French lessons. Upon his return to Montreal in 1970, he purchased a second-hand bicycle during an era in which cycling in the city was rare. In 1975, he co-founded the group Le Monde à bicyclette [fr] to fight for better bicycle safety in Montreal. In 1977, he attempted to organize an international cycling foundation, saying "Cyclists of all countries, unite. You have nothing to lose but your chains! Let's build International Cycling". He proposed the creation of a multilingual library and an international liaison bulletin.

The reforms he campaigned for included bike lanes, allowing cyclists to take bicycles onto the Montreal Metro (subway), and providing a way for cyclists to cross the bridges over the St. Lawrence River.

Silverman died in Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts on 20 February 2022, at the age of 88.

References

1. Scott, Marian (21 February 2022). "'Bicycle Bob' Silverman, a father of Montreal's vélorution, dies at 88". Montreal Gazette. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
2. Laforge, Monique (15 November 2017). "Robert Silverman, quand la « cyclofrustration » mène à l'action". Mémoires des Montréalais (in French). Retrieved 22 February 2022.
3. Sherman, Robert B. (12 October 1976). "Bicycle Bob Silverman rides for change". Montreal Gazette. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
4. Béland, Gabriel (2 June 2017). "Ils en ont fait, du chemin..." La Presse (in French). Retrieved 22 February 2022.
5. Laforge, Monique (12 December 2016). "Le Monde à Bicyclette : vive la vélorution!". Mémoires des Montréalais (in French). Retrieved 22 February 2022.
6. Bernard, Pablo (June 2015). "Naissance et évolution de la lutte cyclo-militante à Montréal et à Paris (1972-2004)". Dépôt Universitaire de Mémoires Après Soutenance (in French): 231.
7. Fitterman, Lisa (13 March 2022). "Activist Robert Silverman helped claim spa ce for bicycles on Montreal's streets". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
8. "Montreal mourns 'cycling pioneer' who pushed for bike paths in a time when there were none". CBC News (in French). 21 February 2022. Retrieved 22 February 2022.

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