A new design for an e-bike storage facility — developed by engineering and architecture students at the University of Toronto — could help mitigate the impact of fires in battery-powered e-bikes and e-scooters.
The project is the latest in a long line of successful collaborations facilitated by Engineering Strategies and Practice (ESP), a first-year course that connects engineering students with real clients to design solutions to complex challenges.
Toronto Fire Services is a long-standing partner of ESP. Over the past several years, they have brought forward a number of projects related to the fire hazards posed by lithium-ion batteries. The technology powers everything from smartphones to electric vehicles, but remains largely unregulated in Canada.
Jim Chisholm, a fire protection engineer with Toronto Fire Services, has worked with student teams on over a dozen projects since 2016.
“Lithium-ion batteries are a relatively new technology, and it’s growing exponentially,” says Chisholm.
“But for things like e-bikes and scooters, there’s nothing saying batteries made without any certification in another country can’t come into Canada. And within the country, there’s nothing saying that somebody can’t produce a battery that has no certification either,” he says.
“It’s a bit like the Wild West.”
This lack of regulation has led to real-world consequences. Fires caused by faulty or damaged batteries are notoriously difficult to extinguish and can be devastating in residential or commercial settings.
Recognizing this, ESP students have pitched in to explore innovative solutions.
Victor Todorov, a student in the John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape and Design, was a part of a cross-disciplinary team composed of architecture and engineering students. Their project focused on the design of a secure storage pavilion for e-bikes and scooters on U of T’s St. George campus.
“Working with lithium-ion battery-powered vehicles, safety was a key consideration; maintaining proper storage, temperatures, docking and charging were all central to the design,” says Todorov.
“We also had to consider what preventive measures to take in the instance of a fire or explosion. For example, constructing the pavilion’s main walls — which face the nearby Robarts Library — out of reinforced concrete was a choice made to protect the building, as well as contain the fire in the event of a battery flare up.”
Another past ESP project that Chisholm had been involved in saw the design of a model e-bike store, which was prompted by a deadly fire in a New York City bike shop.
The team proposed a layout that separated key functions — retail, battery storage, repairs, and disposal — into distinct zones, helping to contain fires and reduce the risk to surrounding areas.
“Safety is the fundamental underpinning of any engineering project. As engineers, this should be our first consideration,” Chisholm says.
“One of the things I see working with students in ESP is that they come to a real understanding that these are issues that affect real people.
“They came up with a really thoughtful layout. It wasn’t just about fire suppression — it was about prevention, containment and practical usability. They were really thinking holistically.”
As lithium-ion batteries continue to proliferate, the need for thoughtful, safety-first engineering becomes more urgent. U of T engineering students are contributing to this push through ESP.
“ESP exposes students to the reality that engineering is about people right at the outset of their degree,” Chisholm says. “They’re applying their knowledge and getting valuable experience solving real problems.”
“Their reports go into our knowledge bank. They help us ask better questions, propose smarter strategies and sometimes even influence future regulations,” he says.
“The work that the ESP teams are doing is pathfinding. A lot of the issues they’re dealing with have shown possible gaps in regulations that may need to be addressed.”
