I totally oppose Bill 212…

I totally oppose Bill 212. Bike lanes are hugely important for numerous reasons.. They save lives, have physical health benefits for the general population by promoting active transport, and have far-reaching health benefits by mitigating greenhouse gas emissions (with the climate crisis being named as the largest health threat of the 21st century). By justifying the decision to stymie bike lanes on the basis of congestion concerns, the Ontario Government is laying bare that it values an increased travel time of between 2-5 minutes on roads like Bloor St. over the benefits to human health and human life. In my opinion, this is a horrifying position, and one that is not widely held among Ontarians (and certainly not amongst physicians as evidenced by the 120 signatories on an open letter to the government). Moreover, other jurisdictions, such as Copenhagen and New York City, that have expanded bike lane networks have found that over a period of just several years the bike lanes ultimately led to decreased congestion and travel times. Municipalities in Ontario need the opportunity to expand their networks to prove that this is a more sustainable healthier way to reduce congestion rather than preventing development or - worse - ripping up bike lanes which will result only in death and morbidity rather than long-term congestion gains.