I'm 67 years old and have…

I'm 67 years old and have lived and biked in downtown Toronto for 40 years. Biking, walking and TTC are my primary modes of transportation. I don't own a car and rent only when necessary. When I started riding here it often felt risky, but very slowly the biking infrastructure improved and more and more people started biking. Unfortunately the number of cars downtown skyrocketed and the frustration of getting across town has resulted in a lot of aggressive and dangerous driving. Last night on College at Ossington, where there is no bike lane, I was almost hit by a speeding van who pulled an incredibly risky stunt to pass a streetcar. I wear a helmet. I signal when I turn. I stop at streetlights to let car drivers know not all bikes ignore lights. The food delivery guys are generally a nuisance, but they use the lanes to do their job and people rely on them to do it quickly. I use bike lanes everytime I ride. I feel safe on them. Our 11 year old son rides with my wife and I and if there's no convenient bike lane we will change our destination. I've heard many of the businesses on Bloor feel they're a positive addition. The $48 million price tag of just removing them is an outrageous waste of our money. That should be put towards something we need - like helping address the homeless situation. We need to encourage people to bike more and the lanes do that. There are too many cars downtown. When we visit cities in Europe the relationship with bikes is so different. Please keep the lanes!!!