While I support the concept…

While I support the concept of dedicated bike lanes for safety reasons, I do not believe the decisions as to where they were placed and how many were erected were made with sensible judgment. The largest reason against their use for reliable commuting purposes is that bike lanes are not particularly helpful or welcoming for almost half a year (whether that be from snow, cold, or miserable). We do not enjoy the climate of Europe or most of the US (even NYC), where commuting using bikes as a regular form of transportation is much more realistic for many more months of the year. Therefore, finding solutions that can better utilize it over 12 months is a far more effective strategy. Safe, speedy, and reliable public transport that makes it quick and efficient to move around the city is the biggest issue this city faces in shuttling the most people for the 12 months of the year, and all our transportation resources should be focused on solving this major issue first and foremost (with the additional benefit of environmental considerations). I would also be curious if the increase in use is due to Uber vs. commuters or those who actually need to get from A to B. There are some major streets in our city that we just need to be able to go north/south, or east/west in a car (even parents with multiple children no longer enjoy the benefit of purely neighbourhood-focused activities) or on a bus. "If you build it, they will come" was taken to an extreme by the city, and the spillover effect of more cars in neighbours to make up the time, finding faster routes, is underappreciated. I am annoyed that it will cost money to rip it all out, and I particularly dislike the overreach of the provincial government, as it's a slippery slope. Still, these bike lanes should never have gone in on some major arteries. They should be looked at in the context of the overall strategy to deal with the unbearable traffic situation in the city and surrounding area, not just during rush hour but also at all times of the day. It's not only the bike lanes at fault for our traffic, but it also needs to be assessed more than just the hyper-locality of the city and for a much longer term than any level of government four years in power.