The Ontario Government's…

The Ontario Government's proposal to impose provincial approval on municipal bike lanes is an absurd overreach and a blatant attempt to maintain car dominance at the expense of common sense. This policy, under the guise of "fighting gridlock," is nothing more than a regressive, car-centric agenda that ignores the real needs of growing urban centers like Toronto.

In modern cities, cars are the problem, not the solution. Urban spaces are suffocating under the sheer volume of vehicles. Single-occupancy cars take up a ridiculous amount of space, sitting idle 95% of the time while clogging our streets the rest. And yet, instead of embracing the obvious need to shift away from this outdated model, this proposal doubles down on preserving the inefficient status quo.

Forcing municipalities to beg the province for permission to replace car lanes with bike lanes is not only bureaucratic nonsense—it's an insult to the intelligence of local governments. Cities know their streets and their people far better than provincial politicians chasing votes in the suburbs. Bike lanes, public transit, and micromobility aren't optional luxuries—they are essential tools to unclog city streets, improve safety, and allow people to get where they need to go without sitting in endless traffic.

The requirement to collect data and submit reports on existing bike lanes is nothing more than a thinly veiled attempt to slow down progress. This unnecessary red tape serves no purpose other than to obstruct municipalities from making decisions that are in the best interest of their residents. It’s a clear case of the province trying to micromanage cities with no regard for the actual challenges they face.

And let’s not kid ourselves—building more highways like Highway 413 isn’t going to solve anything. It’s just going to fuel more urban sprawl, more congestion, and more dependency on cars. The only people who benefit from this policy are the car manufacturers and developers who profit from endless road expansion. The rest of us are left with gridlocked streets, pollution, and a city that’s becoming increasingly impossible to navigate.

This proposal isn’t just out of touch—it’s a dangerous step backward. If Ontario is serious about addressing gridlock, the province should be encouraging more bike lanes, not throwing obstacles in their way. This kind of regressive thinking has no place in a modern city that wants to move forward, not remain stuck in traffic.