I am writing to STRONGLY…

I am writing to STRONGLY OPPOSE this legislation, which is not evidence-based. This bill falsely attributes bike lanes as the cause of car traffic congestion, and not the main contributor in Toronto, which is construction.

I have been an all-season, all-weather cyclist in Toronto for over a decade. Like many people living in the city, car ownership is not affordable or desirable to me. When I occasionally need to make a trip by carshare, I much prefer to drive on streets where cyclists are safely separated from mixing with traffic. I had to overcome a lot of fear to start riding in the city, at a time when Rob Ford was ripping out some of the few bike lanes we had.

I ride carefully and defensively but I still have a lot of fear, because on streets where I have to mix with traffic, people drive dangerously, passing too closely and at high speeds. Some drivers seem oblivious and do not check on the right before changing lanes or making right turns, while some are deliberately threatening or aggressive. I have feared for my life because drivers who think cyclists do not belong on streets have tried to run me down or scare me. I frequently need to ride with my small dog in a backpack, and I am viscerally aware that any accident that I might survive would likely be fatal for her.

The data shows that traffic congestion is improved by getting people to take fewer trips by car, and more trips using public transit and active transportation. This bill ignores the basic facts of induced demand -- more car lanes will not reduce traffic, but they will make it more dangerous and deadly for vulnerable road users. This has already been the deadliest year for cyclists in about 2 decades.

Fewer car trips and more bike lanes make for healthier communities by decreasing noise pollution, improving air quality, and allowing people of all ages to safely exercise through active transportation like cycling and walking. Reduced emissions from fewer car trips help us meet our climate obligations. Bike lanes can provide a buffer between often narrow, crowded downtown sidewalks and high-speed car traffic, making it less stressful to be a pedestrian, especially when walking with children or dogs.

There is an economic incentive for businesses along main streets with bike lanes. The Bloor-Annex BIA recently released a statement saying monthly consumer spending has INCREASED since the installation of bike lanes, and removing them would be "disastrous" for area businesses. People are going to destinations on main streets, and relocating bike lanes to disjointed side streets will not serve the same purpose. Unlike main streets, side streets do not have bridges and infrastructure to cross natural barriers like rivers/ravines in the city.

This government has been sharing misleading data about the percentage of people who travel by car or bicycle. In the downtown core, a minority of people commute by car. A 2019 study showed that almost 70% of Torontonians are cyclists in some capacity. There is a high demand for BikeShare, with an estimated 6 million trips expected this year alone.

We need CONNECTED cycling networks in the city. The data shows here and around the world, that cycling trips vastly increase wherever bike lanes are installed. Deaths and injuries of vulnerable road users decrease greatly when there are fewer cars, and those cars drive at slower speeds.

If this government was serious about decreasing car traffic, they would reduce car dependency so that fewer people need to take trips by cars. Protected bike lane networks are one crucial way to reduce trips by car. It is absolutely nonsensical now and for our future needs as populations increase, to prevent cycling networks from being built and to remove current protected bike lanes.