the proposed changes to the…

the proposed changes to the highway traffic act would restrict the ability of a municipality to regulate the flow of traffic within a neighbourhood in their town/city, which deprives local citizens of a right to be heard at the local level about movement of traffic in their community.

In a town as densely populated as Toronto (where I live, in the core at Sherbourne St & Bloor St East) this change to the highway traffic act, unfairly prioritizes one type of traffic over all the other surging types of traffic in my neighbourhood, at a time when we desperately need complete streets that deal with the reality that we have surging traffic of all types, and sometimes, on an urgent basis to respond to emerging issues as they arise.

Ample bike lanes and ample pedestrian walkways, together with transit helps to ensure that we are enabling the most traffic flow while also prioritizing motorways for emergency services etc. In order to further prioritize motorways for emergency services while prioritizing all traffic types, an increase and re-prioritizing of non-motorized traffic should be the focus. The proposed changes which blatantly prioritize motorized traffic do not take into account the needs of local residents, and appear unconstitutional or unfair which may give rise to a charter challenge (e.g. section 7 - security of person perhaps, if the prioritization of motor vehicle traffic at the municipal level, and the restriction of municipalities' ability to respond nimbly to traffic planning issues results in safety issues to the individual residents).