I object to the Ontario…

I object to the Ontario government proposal to be the ones to make decisions about bike lanes instead of municipalities who make decisions based on local research, consultations with their citizens and urban planners. As a dedicated cyclist, both for commuting and road riding for exercise and pleasure, I use bike lanes at least 5 days a week. They give me a great sense of safety and make me more visible to traffic. Having a full network of lanes both down main road arteries and across the city make using a bike for safe transportation possible. I am disturbed by the tenor of recent comments from the Premier saying bicyclists should be delegated to “secondary roads” and are the cause of traffic congestion. Traffic congestion is the result of urban planning practices that force communities to rely exclusively on private automobiles for transportation. Past experience all over the world shows that making more space for cars only attracts additional traffic (a phenomenon known as induced demand). Blaming bicyclists for congestion will not solve anything.