To whom it may concern, I…

To whom it may concern,

I write to express my complete opposition to the recent decision to remove existing bike lanes across the province. I will specifically speak to my experience in Toronto where I am currently a medical student. Bike lanes are the fastest most convenient way of getting around the city, they help to reduce traffic overall, and they support the overall health of the city.

As part of my program, we rotate through different hospitals in Toronto. I own a car and live in close proximity to a subway station, and yet I choose to bike everyday. I use the bike lanes along Yonge and Bloor street twice a day to get to my rotations. Biking is the fastest way to get around the city. By bike, my commute is 27 minutes versus 59 minute by TTC (assuming that there are no traffic delays, emergency alarms, or trespassers on the platform-- which is a rarity), and 30-50 minutes by car depending on traffic (notably, my current hospital does not have sufficient parking to accommodate staff driving). Consequently, biking is the only practical option and I am not alone in that conclusion. Everyday, I see numerous people making use of these bike lanes on their daily commute. While the number of people biking will be reduced if bike infrastructure is removed, many people (including myself) will continue to bike the same route, taking up entire lanes. This will massively slow traffic and will frustrate drivers further. It is also incredibly unsafe for cyclists.

I hear the argument that traffic is a big problem across the province. Removing bike lanes in Toronto will not improve traffic, it will make it worse. The bike lanes in Toronto are heavily trafficked year-round. Removing these bike lanes will bring more people to the roads in cars or to the TTC, both of which are already at capacity. Increasing the number of lanes on a road will do nothing if you are also increasing the number of cars on the road. Moreover, you can expect that any lane added at the expense of a bike lane will be used for street parking. Look to any two lane street in the city and you will see traffic having to be diverted as delivery drivers and ubers sit idle in a lane. This is something that already frequently occurs in bike lanes illegally across the city. What is to stop them from doing the same in the new traffic lanes?

Finally, as a medical student, I think a lot about the health of our population. I see sick people struggling with cardiovascular disease, diabetes, neurocognitive challenges, and mental illness everyday. If you look at the guidelines for disease prevention across all of these health conditions, the one common recommendation is exercise. Guidelines recommend 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity per week. I meet those targets every week simply by cycling to work. In a province where our healthcare system in crumbling, we need to think about the long term health of our population. Offering safe ways for people to make healthy choices and get more regular exercise will ultimately improve the overall health of our population and reduce the burden on our healthcare system.

I truly hope you will consider this plea. The bike lanes in Toronto are part of what make it so magical. I appreciate that not every city in the province is designed in a way where bike lanes make sense, but in a city as densely populated as Toronto, infrastructure that supports alternative forms of transportation is critical.

Thank you for your consideration.