I am woman in my late 20s…

I am woman in my late 20s and I have lived in Toronto for three years now. I would definitely consider moving if these bike lanes were taken out. Biking is by the far the fastest, cheapest, and most reliable way to get around the city. I used to live around Lansdowne and College and without the Bloor bike lane, it would have taken me twice as long to get to work (year round) or see friends in other parts of the city. There are only arterial roads in that part of the city so it’s not possible to navigate on side roads. I even owned a car for most of the last three years but driving anywhere except in the middle of the night would reliably make me late because of all the unexpected delays. Even when I had to go North of the 401, it was less stressful to bike there than drive. The subway is also not as reliable as biking and it’s so expensive! For hundreds of dollars a year on the subway, I could instead buy and maintain a nice bike and get everywhere faster. I’ve now moved to Yonge and Davisville and there is literally no way for me to get to work without the Yonge bike lane, which I use year round. Because Mount Pleasant and Bayview are such high traffic streets, the cemetery means there are no side streets, and the subway is so slow north of Yonge, I would probably just use a lane of traffic on Yonge to bike in if the bike lanes were removed. Also, part of the space taken from car lanes on Yonge has now been allocated for patio seating. Will the province also remove all this outdoor seating space on Yonge? I would really consider leaving the city if these bike lanes were removed. I don’t have time or money to go to the gym after work, so if I was forced to spend over two hours commuting every day, my lifestyle would be way less active and it would cost be hundreds of dollars a month for the subway. And as my husband and I think of having kids in the city, we’re discussing things like where we could raise kids where they could safely bike to see friends and bike to school, so they don’t have to be dependent on us driving them everywhere.