I am a long-time resident of…

I am a long-time resident of Toronto and a regular cyclist. I have been glad that over the past several years, my transportation options in this city have included bike lanes allowing me to cycle quickly and safely over much of the city. I strongly oppose Bill 212 plans to limit and even remove bike lanes.

Cyclists want to be able to cycle safely on streets like Bloor or Yonge for the same reason as car drivers. These streets provide direct east-west or north-south links across the city. The Ministry of Transportation has casually stated that cyclists can easily use “side streets”, but if you look at a map of Toronto, streets that provide direct links are few. Cyclists would have to go far out of the way, zig-zagging from one street to another, adding to their commute time.

Bike lanes also save lives by allowing bikes and cars to safely share the road.

The City's data shows Toronto's emergency vehicle response times have not been adversely affected by bike lanes

There is no one easy solution to congestion in Toronto. It will require progress in many different areas:cars (such as better enforcement of traffic violations like “Blocking the Box” which slows traffic), public transit (such as properly funding the TTC and getting the Eglinton LRT operating), pedestrian space, and safe lanes for bicycles.

I urge the Ontario Government to look at a full response to transit improvement, rather than scapegoating bike lanes, and drop Bill 212.