Bill 212 is a ridiculous…

Bill 212 is a ridiculous bill by our provincial government that plays into current culture wars by attacking bike lanes and cyclists. all studies show that bike lanes reduce minor and critical injuries for cyclists and pedestrians, do not cause more traffic, and help to increase business along roads they are installed on (a study showed that the number of transactions on debit machines along bloor street increased after bike lanes were installed). as a cyclist in toronto, protected bike lanes are crucial to how i travel in the city, especially on major roads. they are far safer than cycling in a busy lane of traffic or on side streets, and so much more pleasant as well. in a time when cyclist deaths are on the rise in toronto, it is a slap in the face by the government to literally ignore the studies behind cycling infrastructure, and make up their own facts, which makes it clear the only people they care about are car driving suburbanites (ie their voter base). Also, this bill makes no sense as bike lanes are a municipal responsibility, not provincial, so it would be encroaching on municipalities rights to provide what their citizens wants in favour of what the provincial government wants to satisfy their base and get elected again. we see other cities like montreal, new york, and paris greatly increase their cycling infrastructure, which has been met by praise by their citizens, as in the future micro mobility in cities becomes more important, as it gives people more options beyond using crumbling public transit infrastructure or just driving (which is of course a horrible for the environment, not that our government cares about that). So it would be a complete backwards step for this bill to be passed, which seems to be what our incompetent provincial government wants.