I own a greeting card and…

I own a greeting card and gift store called TOWN. We are located on Bloor Street West, near the corner of Brock Avenue. The proposal in Bill 212, The Reducing Gridlock, Saving You Time Act, 2024, to remove bikes lanes on major thoroughfares, especially Bloor Street, is very concerning to me. Minister Sarkaria’s statements that bike lanes are bad for small businesses are especially disheartening. The Bloor bike lane has been great for my business. Please leave it where it is.

At least a third of my customers use the Bloor bike lane, probably more. Many of these customers use the bike lane year-round. In fact, the bike lane attracts people to my business. Since the Bloor bike lane was installed, more people spontaneously visit the store during their daily commute. Customers have mentioned that they noticed the store from the bike lane, and it was easy for them to pull over and run in and grab a card or whatever else they need. If bike traffic is diverted away from Bloor Street, my business will suffer.

We now have a Bike Share depot directly in front of the store, which I am thrilled about. It allows a whole other section of the population to see and become aware of our store. This includes many tourists who use Bike Share to get around the city. The Bloor bike lane makes it easier, not harder, for more people to come to my store in more different ways.

The Bloor bike lanes sometimes cause small inconveniences, but they are worth it. Deliveries to the store can be more difficult, and couriers might have to walk an extra block or two, but they figure it out. Some customers complain about a lack of parking, but this has always been true. I had two retail stores on Danforth Avenue, between Broadview Avenue and Chester Avenue, from 1987 to 2006, before the bike lanes were installed, and parking was an issue then too. More lanes of traffic will bring more cars, and parking will only get worse. The only way to free up parking is to enable fewer people to drive.

As a lifelong resident of downtown Toronto, I believe in livable cities that don’t rely solely on cars to move from one place to the other. It is so much easier and safer to drive when bikes (and now e-bikes and scooters) have their own lane. The feedback I have received when TOWN has publicly supported bike lanes in the past has been nothing but positive. It actually brought people into the store once they heard of our support. Real support for small businesses like mine means supporting the Bloor bike lane.