The bike lanes on Bloor…

The bike lanes on Bloor street should not be removed. They are an intrinsic part of our neighborhoods and a way for families who live in and around the area to get around without adding more cars on the street.

Furthermore, returning to the four lanes on bloor steeet will not increase traffic flow. Instead it’ll increase the amount of slowdowns as people attempt to weave in and out of parked cars, and turning cars.

Acceptable alternatives: We should first consider removing street parking at all hours of the day, or expanding the sidewalks to include a raised bike lane, before outright removing them. It’s understandable that we want to keep the flow going and these are two options that guarantee it.

A more expensive but much needed alternative: more cross town transit. Going from high park to union is an hour by transit. This should be a short 15m ride in a diagonal line below high park .

Ultimately, around High Park there are no viable alternatives for a bike lane route at this distance from the lake without adding an unreasonable (and thus never taken) detour to DuPont or Lakeshore. This forces people to take a massive detour so that cars in the area can save a minute or two in their day.

And finally, the traffic around high park is sometimes busy but it is never gridlock. Cyclists safely move up and down the street, cars manage to move forward at a reasonable pace in a dense residential/commercial area, and everyone in the neighborhood is happy.