Our sincere congratulations to the 2021 recipient, as well as to the organizations that submitted nominations. They have clearly demonstrated the vitality of trail development in Quebec, as well as the seriousness of the organizations involved.
«We at Parc de la rivière Gentilly are delighted to be able to welcome this counting equipment, and look forward to working with Eco-compteur to make the most of the data collected. As cycling continues to grow, better assessing trail ridership will enable us to adapt our trail development and maintenance strategies, revise our safety plan, plan our footbridge project, evaluate whether or not to accept electric bikes and much more!»
Chantale Bédard, General Manager
The purse, worth 7500 $, includes:
- Advice on starting up and developing a counting program and how to get the most out of your data
- The loan of two (2) PYRO-Box people counters for a period of 3 months (July to September 2021). The meters will be delivered in June.
- Assistance from Eco-Compteur experts for equipment installation in June
- Support for meter calibration
- Training in meter use
- Access to counting data on the Eco-Visio online data analysis platform
Why traffic data?
For mountain bike trail managers, it is essential to have good data on the use of their network, whatever its size. Collecting data on trail use is an essential tool for developing, maintaining, justifying and understanding trail use.
Discrete, automated counters provide a 24/7 stream of data to highlight daily, monthly and annual trends, inform managers to guide future trail development, justify infrastructure expenditure and much more. From Bentonville (Arkansas) to Rotorua (New Zealand), the world's top mountain bike destinations rely on count data to make sure their future counts.
Why rely on mountain bike trails? See the list of benefits
Last year's trail bursary recipients
2020 grant - Eco-Counter
Vélo2Max de Saint-Félicien
2019 Scholarship - presented by MEC
Club de plein air de Saint-Donat
2019 Scholarship - presented by MEC
Sherbrooke Trails
Scholarship 2018 - presented by MEC
Rawdon Townships Tour (TDCR)
Visit Vélo Québec Trail Grant 2018 was used to create a section between the trails the Cape and Tinsco on the grounds of the Rawdon Golf Club. This section is essential to enable less experienced mountain bikers to avoid the singletrack of the Tinsco, and continue on the TDCR network.
Approximately 800 m in length, the new section features 8 hairpin bends, numerous rollers and berms (banked bends) that provide a thrilling ride, and three footbridges of varying widths. An interesting feature is that, while the berms have steep walls and tight turns, the slopes are moderately steep, providing a pleasant trail for less-experienced mountain bikers while offering a fine challenge for experts. What's more, the rollers are well designed and positioned, making the trail easy to climb. From the moment it opened, the trail has been a hit with cyclists, and is now one of the TDCR's star sections.
During construction
During construction
Scholarship 2018 - presented by MEC
Norcycle Cycling Club (Sept-Îles)
The work carried out thanks to the Vélo Québec Trail Grant 2018 have made it possible to bypass a problematic area that is often flooded and impassable, known as the The Bayous.
Maintenance of the long wooden bridge (known as the floating bridge) that was bathed in water was laborious. What's more, drainage in this area was less than optimal, making the area after the bridge often muddy. The large rocks that had been placed there to improve the trail several years ago had disappeared beneath the surface.
The aim of the work was to build a safer, more diversified bypass trail, including an ascent, a section incorporating a wooden module, and a descent.
The work was mainly carried out on September 22, 29 and 30, 2018. Many volunteers lent a hand on these three days. Between 10 and 15 people took part each day in improving the trail network.
Before the work
During construction
After the work