I have lived in the GTA my…

I have lived in the GTA my whole life. Since the year 2000 I have seen that traffic was becoming a growing issue and that we are the fastest growing major region in North America. As a result I have studied traffic solutions from around the world. Premier Ford's plan to rip out bike lanes is misguided.

Creating alternatives for residents to move around the region using modes other than cars is especially important in the central city. We are currently experiencing grid lock during rush our and even on weekends. Ontario is investing in public transportation more than any other region with exceptional projects such as GO expansion and Ontario Line. Creating a network for bikers is an important piece of providing transit riders with last mile transportation options that don't rely on cars within the central city. Bike tracks on main corridors such as Bloor, Yonge, Eglinton (once complete) and University are the backbone of the bike network, which compliments existing high order transit such as Line 2 and Line 1 of the TTC's subway network.

I can understand the traffic concerns of those in the inner suburbs, when a lane of bike lanes is under used and their traffic times have increased, such as those in Etobicoke along Bloor west. However, from High Park through to Greektown (if not further east), this bike track has growing ridership and more importantly takes cars off the road.

The removal of bike tracks does not plan for a future that involves more people in the region than there already are. Any city the size of ours has substantially more public transit and in many cases a complete and separate from traffic bike network. The numbers in Toronto of cyclists are growing, especially along the corridor's that have bike tracks. Many of the neighbourhoods around Bloor have 10% of residents biking as their primary commuting mode. This number is increasing.

How are you going to improve gridlock if you do not provide alternatives. A real alternative is a complete network of separated bike lanes, of which Yonge and Bloor form a back bone. Furthermore, this keeps bikers safe without forcing them into sharing the road with traffic.

Please don't spend millions to make the city worse, from a Toronto resident who drives to work every day.