As a resident of Bloor West…

As a resident of Bloor West Village in Toronto, I oppose this proposal for the following personal reasons:

1) Safety. In particular on Bloor St. W., the changes to the road to accommodate bike lanes has improved safety for all road users - including pedestrians, cyclists and drivers. Before bike lanes drivers had too much road space and were using Bloor as a highway, travelling at high rates of speed through my residential neighbourhood of Bloor West Village. I was nervous crossing Bloor St. as a pedestrian with my children. The bike lanes have had the effect of calming traffic and reducing their speed. I feel safer now on Bloor St. as a pedestrian.

2) Car travel times haven't changed that much. I regularly travel by car along Bloor westward through Etobicoke and, although traffic does get backed up at lights, it moves. My commuting times westward are not much different than they were pre-bike lanes. Note that when I need to travel downtown and I'm not biking, I usually take the Bloor subway line. I know that (car) traffic in the central part of Toronto is horrible due to volume and the many infrastructure projects underway - so I avoid it by taking the TTC. If drivers on Bloor aren't happy with their commuting times, and they are able to, they should consider doing the same - it would be a benefit to everyone!

3) It's not going to change anything. My daughter plays competitive soccer so I'm constantly driving her and her teammates around the GTA to practices and games. And we are CONSTANTLY in traffic - on the 401, on Jane Street, on Lawrence, on Eglinton, on South Kingsway, on Kipling, on the 404, on the 400, on Lakeshore, on the Gardner, on the DVP, in Brampton, Milton, Mississauga, Etobicoke, Scarborough, Aurora, Markham, yes, and on Bloor too. It. Is. Infuriating. But bike lanes have very little to do with this, and while removing the Bloor bike lanes may reduce our driving time by a few minutes when we are travelling west on Bloor, I suspect the reduction will be short-lived, and it's not going to do anything to help our drive time on the other, longer segments of our commute. There are just too many drivers on our roads - we need to give people more options for getting where they need to go - i.e. better infrastructure, including transit - not take options away.

4) Cyclists Get in the Way of Drivers - as a driver, I prefer to have cyclists out of my way. When cyclists are commingled with traffic, they cause unexpected traffic slowdowns because cars all need to pass the cyclists. This is dangerous for both cyclists and drivers.

5) Removing a Transportation Option for me - the extension of the Bloor bike lanes westward into my neighbourhood has meant that I now bike places that I used to drive to. I feel safe enough to bike towards downtown for an appointment, I feel safe enough to bike to High Park with my kids. Previously, without the separated bike lanes, I would have driven my family where we needed to go rather than bike there. The bike lanes have done their job of turning a driver into a cyclist when possible - and it will do the same for others. Over time, this will get some drivers onto bikes, leaving more space on the road for people who have to drive. If the Bloor bike lanes go, I will be forced back into my car for some of the trips that I need to take eastward along Bloor.

6) Red Tape - the Premier has stated many times that he opposes red tape. This bill introduces red tape to all future road infrastructure projects. Why does the province need to get involved in municipal infrastructure decisions? It's adding layers of paper pushing, review, discussion and signoffs at 2 levels of government. Why?? The province should be focused on provincial initiatives like health care and education and highways (lots of traffic there that needs to be dealt with!). A good premier should delegate, not ADD red tape to the already inefficient tendencies of government.

7) Lack of Data Analysis in Decision - I am an actuary by profession and regularly do statistical analysis as part of my job. I see statistics being floated around that only 1.2% of people bike to work vs. 70% of cars. Where is this statistic from? I've looked but haven't been able to find the source. What year of study? Toronto statistics from 2022 suggest 2% commute by bike and 60% by car. But taking a Toronto-wide statistic is flawed in itself when the majority of commuters in this statistic are coming from outside of central Toronto, where there is very little to no bike infrastructure - how could people outside of central Toronto commute to work if there aren't bike lanes for them to commute on? Further, why are only commuters being taken into consideration - what about people, including children, who bike to school? What about people who bike to activities or social events or for errands? I don't respect a decision that isn't based on proper, data-driven, and forward-looking analysis.

8) Waste of Taxpayer Dollars - this is a rash response to infrastructure that is barely a year old. The roll-out of the western section of the Bloor bike lanes was completed very recently. It is such a colossal waste of taxpayer dollars to rip this out without giving residents, commuters, and the city a chance to adapt and make it work. Let the city try to implement changes that will get traffic on Bloor West moving a bit faster - they have ideas, they are willing to work with the province, what is the harm in letting them try?! Let's move forward, not backward! Let's not waste the taxpayers' money!!