Quebecers recognize themselves in the Route verte. They pedal it. They're proud of it. They're attached to it. And with good reason: the national network now totals 5075 km, crossing 16 administrative regions, 81 MRCs and 382 municipalities. This makes it the longest cycling itinerary in North America, and the international media regularly extol its beauty and the pleasures of riding it, the most famous being National Geographic, which, back in May 2009 in its Journeys of a Lifetime guide, headlined its article The Route verte: Best biking trail in the world!
The idea for Route verte dates back to the late 80s, when Vélo Québec, inspired by European and American routes, drew up what would become the Plan du Québec cyclable et des corridors verts de l'an 2000, a document presented at the Conférence Vélo Mondiale, held in Montreal in September 1992.
In 1994, Vélo Québec submitted the Route verte concept to the Quebec government. The idea was accepted, and in 1995, the Ministère des Transports and the Secrétariat à la jeunesse entrusted coordination of the project to Vélo Québec, which was to work with the regions to establish the final route. The plan was for a 4,000 km network, with a ten-year timeframe for completion. The official inauguration finally took place on August 10, 2007 in Quebec City, followed in September 2008 by the announcement of a second phase of development, involving an additional 1,000 km. The 5000 km milestone is reached in 2012.
In November 2014, despite all the success of Route verte and the economic and social spin-offs it generates, notably via the Bienvenue cyclistes! settlement network, the Quebec government, as part of the fiscal pact, decided to abolish its maintenance program, valued at 2.8 M$ annually. Vélo Québec immediately asked the government to reconsider its position, and from then on the Sauvons NOTRE Route verte campaign was organized, a major citizen mobilization that would last nearly a year and a half across Quebec, including a petition put forward by Équiterre and signed by 48,000 people. In March 2016, the government finally announced its intention to reinvest in the maintenance and upgrading of Route verte. Certainly, this whole period of instability will have allowed Quebecers to demonstrate just how attached they were to their Route verte. A fine demonstration of solidarity!
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Today, more than 20 years after its inception, the Route verte remains an open and highly stimulating project. Vélo Québec is working to bring certain aging sections up to standard, to complete the network - some 300 km long - and to improve the user experience in terms of safety, comfort, signage and services. In short, the future lies in development and improvement. All this with the invaluable and unfailing support of some 1,000 regional partners. We have every reason to be proud of this national jewel!
