I am firmly opposed to the…

I am firmly opposed to the proposed legislation and it is a complete waste of time for the government to even be considering this Bill when there are real problems Ontarians are facing, such as lack of access to health care and chronic underfunding of public transit. I would like to point I do not live in Toronto and I am not a cyclist, so the loss of bike lanes in downtown Toronto has no effect on me.

Here are the reasons why it is terrible legislation:

(1) It ignores the research from actual international transportation experts who have studied bike lanes. Mr. Ford does not know better than experts simply because he was stuck in traffic one day. Cars are the ultimate cause of gridlock and there are simply too many cars in Toronto. Large cities like New York and London face similar issues. The solution is to reduce the number of cars by increasing the reliability and reach of public transit. Not blaming cyclists!

(2) Removing bike lanes will slow down traffic. I regularly travel on roads without bike lanes that I have to share with cyclists. Has Doug Ford ever experienced driving 80 km/hour around a bend and then realizing there is a cyclist at the edge of your lane? I have. It's dangerous for all of us. As a driver, you and every car behind you have to abruptly slow down quickly to the cyclists speed until you can all safely switch lanes since it is against the law to pass them without giving ample space. When the bikes are in their own bike lane, these sorts of random slowdowns do not happen.

(3) It is safer for everyone. Bikes are considered vehicles so they must be on the road. Ideally, cars, bikes and pedestrians would all have their own dedicated lanes on all major city roads, just like is done in cities like Paris and Amsterdam. Do you really want to be the government responsible for shaving 30 s off a commute at the expense of the safety and lives of cyclists? Is it really worth it? Of course not. As a parent, my children will one day be cycling on these roads, and I would feel much better if they were in bike lanes rather than on the roads!

(4) It discourages people from commuting by bicycle. I'm not a cyclist, but I wish I lived in a community where I could commute by bike. But there are no bike lanes, so I do not feel safe doing so, especially in this world of distracted drivers.