The proposed removal of bike…

The proposed removal of bike lanes on behalf of more car lanes will NOT ease the congestion. However, since the capacity of a single bike lane outcompetes that of a single car lane, the bike lanes have the potential to relieve congestion by effectively reducing the number of cars.

Toronto is seeing a small cycling population due to a very limited cycling infrastructure. Measuring the effectiveness of bicycle lanes when the city has a few disconnected bicycle lanes is a totally unreasonable approach. For cycling to be an attractive alternative to driving, a continuous addition of safer bicycle lanes and a cohesive cycling network is required.

The effectiveness of bicycle lanes in easing traffic congestion can be seen in New York City. The city has been implementing bicycle lanes for nearly two decades. According to their report, the addition of the bicycle lanes reduced the vehicle travel time, desmonstrating the positive effects of the bicycle lanes on the traffic management. In addition, the bicycle lanes resulted in a decreased numer of pedestrian/cyclist crashes with injury.

Hence, a wider implementation of the bicycle lanes throughout our cities will ease the traffic congestion and increase pedestrian and cyclist safety.