News roundup: July 22, 2025

Here’s the latest in walking, biking, and transit news for Waterloo Region for the last week and a half. Subscribe to get updates delivered directly to your inbox! You can also follow us on Bluesky and Instagram.

What’s happening

• REPRESENT: Apply to fill a vacant Region of Waterloo Council seat for Kitchener, with application deadline of August 1 (Region of Waterloo, The Record)
• FEEDBACK: The City of Kitchener has a follow-up survey open until August 4 on rules allowing up to 3 additional dwelling units (ADUs) on most lots
• ATTEND: The Region of Waterloo is hosting three lectures over the next three Tuesdays on climate change and policy at the Waterloo Region Museum

Walking, biking, and streets

• Wellesley Township is starting work on a transportation and mobility master plan - follow their EngageWR page for updates when they start community engagement in the fall
• The Record: Waterloo Region argues secrecy preserves safety, won’t release more details on speed cameras
• The Record (opinion): New roundabout in Kitchener won’t be safe for pedestrians
• The Record: Kitchener startup mapping city for future autonomous shuttles
• Kitchener councillor Dave Schnider and Regional councillor Matt Rodrigues share an update on Instagram about a new multi-use path on Fairway Road by Chicopee Hills Public School
• City of Kitchener project to add stormwater pond at Meadowlane Park in Forest Heights will include new paved trails near a proposed future trail crossing of Highway 7/8 (The Record)
• Cambridge Today: New pedestrian crossing signal going live on Grand Avenue
• CBC (video): Kitchener bike rescue group helping people ‘arrive happy’ on 2 wheels
• The Record: Police looking to return bicycles recovered from Kitchener ‘chop shop’
• CTV: Bike theft leads police to inert grenade at the University of Waterloo

Transit

• Grand River Transit now allows people to buy day passes and group passes through the GRT Pay and Transit apps (GRT)
• Cambridge Today (letter): Councillor urges investment in accessible transit through LRT extension (Letter from Cambridge Ward 5 councillor Sheri Roberts)
• Cambridge Today (letter): Downtown needs a boost: Why the LRT will bring energy, investment, and people to Galt (Letter from Cambridge Ward 4 councillor Ross Earnshaw)
• GRT had an issue with its fare system lasting over a day, affecting some fare vending machines and fare card use (The Record)
• Railway Gazette: GO Transit grapples with fleet uncertainty

The shape of our cities

• The Record: Housing crisis deepens as slowdown points to an ‘abject failure’. Halfway through 2025, Waterloo Region is on track to add the fewest new homes in more than a decade
• The Record: Aircraft safety behind region’s OLT appeal of Kitchener zoning plan
• The Record: Region of Waterloo withdraws OLT appeal involving development around airport
• CTV News: Plan to add three more high-rise towers to Barrel Yards in Waterloo
• The Record: In site after site, developers asking to exceed Waterloo’s 30-storey height limit
• The Record: Kitchener looking for feedback on additional units, tiny homes
• The Record: Strong-mayor powers behind unexpected overhaul of Cambridge leadership
• The Record: Cambridge townhouse plan revised after neighbourhood pushback. Developer cuts unit count, adds more green space and moves garbage underground in updated plan for project on St. Andrews Street in Galt
• CityNews: Significant hurdles for 28-storey tower proposed in Cambridge
• Woolwich Township is holding a formal public meeting today for a residential subdivision on the north side of St. Jacobs, bounded by King St N, Hawkesville Road, and the railway. The 29 hectare site would include ~200-400 homes of varying types and a large retained woodlot, and requires most of the lands changed from a Prime Agricultural Area designation (Woolwich Township agenda)
• Woolwich Township is also holding a public meeting for a large industrial subdivision off Scotch Line Road adjacent to the existing employment lands in Elmira. The 55 hectare property would include 11 industrial blocks and would need to be rezoned from agricultural zoning (Woolwich Township agenda)

Elsewhere

• Not Just Bikes (YouTube): Trams are Great! So why are the Streetcars SO BAD!?
• Guelph Today: New ‘bicycle mayor’ aims to boost cycling in Guelph
• Global News: ‘Denied and obfuscated’: Ford government forced to release Eglinton LRT, Ontario Line emails