You Never Bike Alone

Synopsis

You Never Bike Alone looks at how cyclists are creating critical mass in Vancouver, Canada, and changing the face of the city. It is the story of how a social movement grows and the people behind it. The cycling phenomenon known as Critical Mass is a reclamation of public space that started in San Francisco in the early 1990s and spread by the internet throughout the world. On a set day, at the end of every month, cyclists and other self-propelled people ride en masse through city streets. You Never Bike Alone charts the development of these mass rides in Vancouver from the early protest rides to highlight dangerous bridge crossings, to the giant, celebratory Critical Mass rides of subsequent years that became renowned for their party spirit, attracting all types of cyclists. Drawing on footage shot over the course of a decade, it asks whether cycle activists are succeeding in their goals. Through interviews with motorists "stuck in traffic," cyclists of all backgrounds, and local politicians, some of whom ride on the Mass themselves, it asks whether Critical Mass and similarly styled rides are winning hearts and minds.