Comment
The Ford government once again is making policy decisions that are not based on the evidence but on 'common sense' that is based on ideology and outdated thinking. Further considering how the majority Ford government has regularly used the ERO comment period as a merely procedural step and not as an honest part of the process to judge whether there is public support or not, I have little faith comments will be considered meaningfully. The Ford government has publicly signalled that no evidence would sway them from their policy decision, and today we heard from the government that they are moving forward with bike lane removal regardless of public opposition, and legitimate jurisdictional concerns of the municipal government.
Nonetheless, here are the facts as found by a study by the Bloor Annex BIA on the effect of bike lanes on Bloor...the very same street that Ford says bikes are causing congestion and hurting economic outcomes.
EVIDENCE-BASED HIGHLIGHTS: (Source – Bloor Annex BIA)
• Monthly customer spending and number of customers in the Bloor Annex increased after bike lanes were installed
• Retail vacancies in the Bloor Annex have not changed in eight years since bike lane installation
• Road safety for all users has improved since the installation of bike lanes resulting in fewer fatalities and better road safety outcomes for all road users
• No evidence of increased emergency response times due to bike lanes said chiefs of Toronto Paramedics and Toronto Fire to city’s Infrastructure & Environment
• Putting bike lanes on residential streets would have an extreme negative impact on street parking for residents
• Bike lanes reduce congestion
BY THE NUMBERS:
• 1 million: approximate number of cyclists who rode the Bloor Street bike lanes between Avenue Road and Shaw Street between February 2018 and February 2019
• 8,000: number of cyclists per day that Bloor Annex BIA believes currently use the Bloor bike lanes today
• 9 years: number of years that Bloor Annex bike lanes have been part of complete street renewal
Submitted November 1, 2024 6:04 PM
Comment on
Bill 212 - Reducing Gridlock, Saving You Time Act, 2024 - Framework for bike lanes that require removal of a traffic lane.
ERO number
019-9266
Comment ID
110240
Commenting on behalf of
Comment status