City council approves 9km of new bike lanes in Toronto

Despite fierce debate over bike lanes in Toronto during the mayoral election campaign, city council is soldiering on with a plan to install nearly nine kilometres of new bikeways in the city.

On Wednesday, council approved five new projects that will bring bike lanes to more areas of Toronto.

The projects include:

Bloor Street West Complete Street Extension

• Bloor Street West from Runnymede Road to Resurrection Road

Bartlett-Havelock-Gladstone Cycling Connections

• Gladstone Avenue from Dundas Street to Peel Avenue

• A new traffic signal at Dufferin Street and Peel Avenue

Cabbagetown Cycling Connections

• Gerrard Street from Parliament Street to Sumach Street

• Sumach Street from Wellesley Avenue to Gerrard Street

• Sackville Street from Wellesley Avenue to Gerrard Street

• Winchester Street from Parliament Street to Ontario Street

• Ontario Street from Carlton Street to Aberdeen Avenue

Sheppard Avenue East Complete Street

• Sheppard Avenue East from Clairtrell Road to Leslie Avenue

Superior Avenue

• Superior Avenue from Lake Shore Boulevard West to Stanley Avenue

The city will also be improving existing bikeways on Dundas Street East in the two following segments:

• Hiltz Avenue to Alton Avenue

• Rhodes Avenue to Coxwell Avenue

In a news release, Deputy Mayor Jennifer McKelvie called expanding the city’s cycling network “the right thing to do.”

“There is a critical need for safe and connected bikeways in Toronto and I am thrilled that we are on track to meet council’s goal to deliver 100 kilometres of new bikeways by 2024,” she said in a written statement.

“Expanding cycling options is the right thing to do to ensure safer roads and more ways for people to move around our city.”

Bike lanes have become a hot topic for candidates in the mayoral byelection. Two of the seven top-polling candidates have promised to scale back bike lanes in Toronto if elected. Former police chief turned mayoral hopeful Mark Saunders vowed to rip up bike lanes on University Avenue and reverse the decision to make the Yonge Street bike lanes permanent pending a review. He also promised to deprioritize the Bloor Street West bike lane expansion and to “immediately suspend all bike lane expansions” until a new consultation process is created.

Candidate Anthony Furey has made similar promises to eliminate bike lanes on University Avenue and other major roads.

Both Saunders and Furey contend that bike lanes are a source of congestion in Toronto, a claim mayoral candidate Josh Matlow vehemently denies.

During a campaign stop in Scarborough last month, Matlow called the suggestion that bike lanes cause gridlock “stupid.”

“To ease congestion we need to improve transit and road safety so that everyone has more options to get around, whether that's by transit, cycling or walking,” his platform states.

-With files from CP24’s Josh Freeman