I was born and have always…

I was born and have always lived in Bloor West Village. It is a neighbourhood of families, many with strollers, and older people like myself. I walk and shop on Bloor Street, take public transportation - especially when going downtown - and ride my bike to get to other cycle paths. Now I stroll my grandson on Bloor Street. In these last few years one of my neighbours was hit by a car on Bloor Street at South Kingsway. With the installation of the bike path they have made this corner safer by making Mossom Road one way with no access from Bloor going west. Most drivers are pleasant and cautious of pedestrians and cyclists as they get used to the changes. I believe we need to move forward with bike paths and fewer cars to keep not just cyclists but also pedestrians safe, and also healthy as we cycle and walk! Bloor West has always been a busy shopping street, as is The Kingsway, and there were always cars parked which meant just one lane of traffic, so the bike lanes are not the problem. There is still parking with the bike lanes so parking was not taken away. More people live here now as we have 3 condos at South Kingsway, with at least two more going up, and most don't have enough parking spots. So those new residents will need safe walking streets, bike paths and good public transportation to travel from home. We need to give everyone time to understand how the roads and bike paths work! It is ridiculous to spend the time and money to build this path and then spend twice as much money to remove them. Finally, we live in a democracy and the communities were invited to meetings where decisions were made. Let's allow our democracy to work. As a parent, grandparent and retired teacher I do not want to tell my grandson and our young people that the bullies and their loud voices (and money?) win. Let's get Toronto walking, cycling and taking public transportation to have the Toronto we voted for and want!