I disagree with Bill 212 in…

I disagree with Bill 212 in its entirety for several reasons. Firstly, provincial approval for municipal decisions regarding transportation planning is a gross overstep of government. The provincial government should have absolutely no say in the municipal planning of cities.

Secondly, the removal of bike lanes has several environmental, safety, and equity-based impacts. From an environmental standpoint, the removal of bike corridors eliminates an easy route for active transportation and could easily encourage more people who currently bike to take cars. This would not improve congestion in any manner and could increase emissions. Increasing infrastructure for vehicles is unsustainable, expensive, non-resilient urban design, particularly in the GTA which has recently experienced high population growth.

This bill clearly disregards the safety of cyclists as well. Protected bike lanes are incredible infrastructure for both cyclists and drivers because they separate the two groups on the road, resulting in fewer interactions where an accident could occur. Cyclists bear the burden of injuries from these interactions in every case, and this bill is promoting harm to this vulnerable group.

From this standpoint, it is clear that this bill has an equity-based impact as removing these lanes will disproportionately affect those who cannot afford cars, further widening transportation equity gaps.