The mis-named Bill 212…

The mis-named Bill 212 Reducing Gridlock, saving you time act is a terrible piece of legislation for 3 reasons (at least).

Decisions to change existing infrastructure should only be made if they are scientifically shown to actually accomplish their ends. From the studies that I have read about, removing bike lanes will make a minimal difference to moving traffic faster. If verifiable, transparent studies show something to the contrary then that can form a basis for a meaningful discussion.

Decisions about local traffic on local roads must be made locally, not provincially or federally. We must preserve the autonomy of locally elected officials to make decisions to meet the needs of their constituents, first and foremost.

Safety must override other considerations such as speed. Yes we all want to get places in a timely fashion but it must not be at the expense of people's safety. For example, lowering speed limits has consistently been shown to significantly increase everyone's safety. Bike lanes have also been shown to significantly increase safety, particularly for cyclists and pedestrians.

I also strongly object to the arbitrary way this bill has been introduced. If the Premier or members of his caucus feel that some of the bike lanes they encounter are under utilized I'm sure The Mayor Chow would take their call and have an honest and open discussion about it. The province should absolutely not be making broad, general policy that is unsupported by science, reduces safety and usurps the appropriate authority of local government.