As a commuter cyclist living…

As a commuter cyclist living in Toronto, I have major concerns regarding this proposal. I think it is a major waste of resources and time, and that it is simply ridiculous. Driving in this city may be "annoying," but cycling in this city often doesn't even feel safe, and it seems incredibly obvious that safety should be valued above convenience. As well, all evidence suggests that adding more traffic lanes does not necessarily result in a decrease in congestion. If we really want to fight gridlock, we should be investing in public transit so that people have options besides driving. From a sustainability perspective, the future of our planet does literally depend on deprioritizing single occupant motor vehicle use.

Hearing that Doug Ford is offering to bankroll the REMOVAL of bike lanes when we are literally in the midst of a housing crisis is simply infuriating. Furthermore, it has been proved over and over that every ridiculous claim he has made about the issues bike lanes cause is completely false: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/doug-ford-toronto-bike-lanes-1.7…
Bike lanes do not affect emergency vehicle travel times. They have not made it more difficult to access hospitals. They do, however, make it possible for me to travel safely, sustainably, and actively throughout our city.

It's already hard enough for our city to implement new cycling infrastructure, especially in areas outside of the downtown core where road safety is an even more present issue. As far as I know, 6 cyclists have been killed on our streets this year alone - it is disheartening and incredibly frustrating to see the people who are supposed to have our best interests at heart ignoring this in the name of convenience for car owners.