It is thoroughly depressing…

It is thoroughly depressing in the year 2024 to read and hear government proposals that involve the ripping out of bike lanes in the supposed aim of "getting drivers where they need to go faster". The fact that this attitude is expressed in the legislature is astounding, and indicative of the car-first rather than people-first attitude of this government.

As background, I am British, lived in London (UK) from 2007 to 2021, but have lived in Ontario (Ottawa, then Toronto) since 2021.

During my time living in London, I watched provision of bike lanes go from almost nothing, to painted lanes on the side of the road, to fully fledged protected bike lanes on major thoroughfares and at major intersections. During rush hour (ie. the most important time of day to keep things moving), you will see more bicycles at major intersections than people in motor vehicles. This is in addition to London's large and well run public transport system. London itself is well behind other major European cities, which have all experimented with varying levels of building more roads, public transport, bike lanes etc. and have all reached the conclusion that the best way to keep EVERYONE moving, is to have a proper mix of active transport, public transport, and vehicle transport.

The way to reduce the traffic pressure in Toronto (which is what this bill appears to be aimed at), is not to rip out bike lanes, but in fact to add more properly protected bike lanes to make the use of a bike more appealing to those who may be concerned about mixing with general traffic, and to push ahead with further expansions to the rail and public transport network. A quick look at Toronto's subway map compared with London, Paris, New York etc. should be of great embarrassment to both the province, and the city itself.

If the province really feels the need to compel Toronto to do something with its streets, it is hilarious that the target is bike lanes, rather than on street parking. It is bizarre to ride my bike or drive my car down some of the main streets in Toronto, and have a lane on each side of the road used for the parking of cars. The capacity of many roads could be literally doubled overnight by forcing drivers of cars (including myself) to park in lots, rather than on street. But no, it's bike lanes that are the problem.

As an addendum, it is absurd that the Minister of Transportation, according to a newspaper opinion piece he wrote, apparently elects to drive from his home in Brampton to his office in Toronto, rather than use public transport. This is exactly the sort of behaviour that increases traffic pressure, and leads to nonsense government policy.

As an attachment, I leave a video posted to Reddit showing how much easier it is for bicycles to clear the way for an emergency vehicle, as opposed to cars.