This bill not only does the…

This bill not only does the opposite of what it claims, but it does so at the cost of our environment, safety, and health. Both expediting Highway 413 and creating blockages to creating bike lanes suffer from the same issue around induced demand, a topic that has been modelled by traffic scientists and engineers for decades. Building out the highway and minimizing bike lanes only encourages greater car usage which, in turn increases gridlock. This is particularly given that of all of the transportation mechanisms available to us, cars have the highest cost in terms of space taken up per person. Investing in rapidly completing the provincial transit projects via Metrolinx would go a much longer way in helping to reduce gridlock. Also, by bypassing the environmental assessment required for Highway 413, we are risking a part of our land that we cannot get back. This is short-sighted and sets a dangerous precedent for other protected land, which all becomes more and more valuable to our ability to exist and stay healthy as climate change advances. I think this entire bill should be scrapped and that a new one, back by actual scientific evidence for reducing traffic congestion, should be proposed in its place.