Ghost Bike

Location: University Avenue at Richmond
Date photo taken: 3 July 2013

This white bicycle is a memorial to Mike Rankin, a veteran courier in his fifties who was killed in a collision with a taxi at this intersection in 2012. The front handlebar bears a small sign with Rankin's name and details.

The ghost bike memorial phenomenon is thought to have started in St. Louis, Missouri in 2003 when someone observing a bike-car collision placed a white bike on the spot with a sign reading "Cyclist struck here". Noticing that the bike had an effect on drivers, other bikes were installed throughout the city and the idea spread. While normally installed as tributes to cyclists killed by cars, a ghost bike in honour of Jack Layton can also be seen outside his former office on Broadview.