The bike lanes policy…

The bike lanes policy proposal would cause more harm than good. I am a cyclist and I can say that I feel a lot more safer with the bike lanes in place when I am riding my bike in the downtown core and in other parts of Toronto, such as going west into Etobicoke along the Bloor street bike lane or using the bike lanes in Scarborough. I grew up in the suburbs where I understand the need for a car for tasks as simple as running errands such as grocery shopping or visiting the postal office. But I also really appreciated the stretch of bike lanes that were installed along Sheppard right where I grew up and spent most of my life, in the Rouge River area. The bike lanes allowed me to remain separated and safe from drivers and unknowingly motivated me to bike more. I would love to be a life long biker and avoid using a car for as long as I possibly can and by being able to access and ride on bike lanes I will be able to do so. I understand that we need to make our neighbourhoods more accessible to meet basic and recreational needs but I also know that for those who are able to get around via biking, the bike lanes encourage bike use. This has tremendous benefits: it limits the emissions of harmful pollutants and greenhouse gases that would otherwise be emitted from the use of a car (or even taking transit); it reduces the number of cars on the road, and therefore decreases the level of motor traffic; it boosts my physical and mental health, and therefore reduces potential burden on the healthcare system and it provides me and others with an affordable transportation option during tough economic times, which means less stress on my wallet and mind on where my money is going. I know I am not alone when I say that bike lanes do more good than harm FOR EVERYBODY. Even is someone drives and does not bike at all, the bike lanes (especially the ones with protected barriers) help improve visibility of the bikers for the drivers, which reduces the risk of incidents between the two. I don't think that removing the three identified bike lanes downtown will reduce the number of bikers downtown drastically. I believe it will simply divert those bikers onto the road who will then bike either ahead of or behind the drivers, which I think will contribute to congestion even more, as bikers on the main road may slow down traffic even more. As a biker, I don't intend to bike less on the three targeted streets for bike lane removal, and that will increase my risk of getting into a car accident. People could really lose their lives as a result of this policy and that isn't something anyone/any governing body/any politician/ any human would want for anyone. I kindly implore you the government to re-consider it's stance on this proposal. I am disheartened by this proposal and hope and pray that the government will reconsider its stance on this (which I think may help the politicians secure more votes from their voter base during the next election cycle). Thank you very much for providing a forum to share this comment.

- A fellow Torontonian, biker and optimist for the future for all beings