I am commenting specifically…

I am commenting specifically on the following excerpt from the EBR posting: "The framework is proposed to require the province to remove sections of the Bloor Street, Yonge Street, and University Avenue bike lanes in the City of Toronto. Additional authorities to facilitate the removal of these lanes would also be included in the legislation including an exemption from the Environmental Assessment Act and the requirement for the City of Toronto to provide support to facilitate the removal of the bike lanes. "

The existing bike lanes on Bloor Street, Yonge Street and University Avenue were approved by a majority of Toronto City Council following a rigorous process of technical study and public consultation. There is no justification for the province to step in and require them to be removed and doing so is undemocratic and a violation of the City's and Council's autonomy.

The fact that the government is proposing to exempt this regulation from the Environmental Assessment Act demonstrates that the government knows the removal of these bike lanes would not meet the current requirements for assessing the impacts of the removal of the bike lanes.

The fact that the government is specifically targeting these bike lanes, without having conducted any sort of evaluation of them or any other bike lanes, demonstrates that the government is making a decision with no rational justification.

This proposal is prime example of government overreach. If the government truly believes that these bike lanes have an impact that requires provincial intervention, then the province should follow its own legislation under the Environmental Assessment Act, or at least follow the criteria it is proposing to introduce for evaluating bike lanes.

This proposal, the speed of it, and the targeting of it, would only be appropriate if there was an imminent threat to public health and safety. The reality is that removing the bike lanes is a threat to public health and safety.

Since the bike lanes were installed on Bloor Street between Runnymede and Aberfoyle, there are been ZERO serious or fatal collisions with motor vehicles. The number of vehicles speeding over the speed limit has been reduced. Emergency vehicle response times have gone up. Removing the bike lanes will reverse those improvements. People will be seriously injured and killed as a result of this government's actions.

Do not pass this regulation. Bloor will be on your hands.

And to the public servants who read this and help push it through, the blood is on your hands as well.