'Not a good use of taxpayers' dollar': Toronto mayor calls out province's plan to remove bike lanes
Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow is slamming the province's plan to unilaterally remove bike lanes along some of the city's major streets, calling it "arbitrary” while warning that it could ultimately make congestion worse.
The Doug Ford government tabled a bill last week that would force municipalities to ask for permission from the province first to install bike lanes when it would lead to the removal of a lane of vehicle traffic. On Thursday, the government added a new regulation to that proposed legislation which would allow it to remove sections of bike lanes along Bloor Street, Yonge Street, and University Avenue and restore them as lanes for vehicle traffic.
"We have to pass the legislation and it is our intention to move as quickly as possible," Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria told reporters on Friday morning.
"Look, Bloor, Yonge and University are some of the most travelled-upon streets, not just in Toronto, but in all of North America, so as a province, when we look at the city of Toronto, it's productivity and getting people to and from work, we need to improve that."
Speaking to reporters at an unrelated news conference on Friday, Chow expressed her opposition to the regulation and that the city is willing to negotiate and collaborate with the province.
"Ripping up our roads are going to be costly, make congestion worse and make it less safe for cyclists and drivers. The province's plan is arbitrary and not based on any evidence. It's not a good use of taxpayers' dollar," Chow told reporters at an unrelated news conference.
With respect to the bike lanes along the targeted streets in the province's proposal, Chow says they have undergone at least three to four years of study.
"Different councillors, a different mayor, different council, before the last municipal election, since the last municipal election, and the by-election have all said this is the way to go. So the evidence, obviously, is there.”
Toronto significantly expanded its bike lane infrastructure in recent years and currently has a plan to provide 100 kilometres of either new or upgraded bikeways by 2027. The city's long-term plan also looks to add 500 kilometres of new bike lanes along major corridors by 2041 – a goal that has almost been met halfway.
The Association of Municipalities has accused the Ford government of a "significant overreach" of power for its bike lane legislation.
On Friday, Chow noted planning bike lanes falls under a municipality's purview and not the province’s. Municipalities themselves, however, are effectively creatures of the province.
"If they really want to assist the City of Toronto, dealing with congestion, for example, can grant the approval of what the police and the city council have called for, which is to allow us to use webcam to stop those illegal blocking the box folks, so that we can charge them," Chow said.
"That will make a big difference, because there are any number of people that irresponsibly stop at no stopping sign, blocking the entire traffic. They've blocked the box and no one can go anywhere, it's completely paralyzed the entire intersection and nothing can move. Those are frustrating things."
With files from CTV News Toronto's Siobhan Morris and The Canadian Press
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
5 rescued after avalanche triggered north of Whistler, B.C. RCMP say
Emergency crews and heli-skiing staff helped rescue five people who were caught up in a backcountry avalanche north of Whistler, B.C., on Monday morning.
Quebec fugitive killed in Mexican resort town, RCMP say
RCMP are confirming that a fugitive, Mathieu Belanger, wanted by Quebec provincial police has died in Mexico, in what local media are calling a murder.
Bill Clinton hospitalized with a fever but in good spirits, spokesperson says
Former President Bill Clinton was admitted Monday to Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington after developing a fever.
Trump again calls to buy Greenland after eyeing Canada and the Panama Canal
First it was Canada, then the Panama Canal. Now, Donald Trump again wants Greenland. The president-elect is renewing unsuccessful calls he made during his first term for the U.S. to buy Greenland from Denmark, adding to the list of allied countries with which he's picking fights even before taking office.
UN investigative team says Syria's new authorities 'very receptive' to probe of Assad war crimes
The U.N. organization assisting in investigating the most serious crimes in Syria said Monday the country’s new authorities were “very receptive” to its request for cooperation during a just-concluded visit to Damascus, and it is preparing to deploy.
Pioneering Métis human rights advocate Muriel Stanley Venne dies at 87
Muriel Stanley Venne, a trail-blazing Métis woman known for her Indigenous rights advocacy, has died at 87.
King Charles ends royal warrants for Ben & Jerry's owner Unilever and Cadbury chocolatiers
King Charles III has ended royal warrants for Cadbury and Unilever, which owns brands including Marmite and Ben & Jerry’s, in a blow to the household names.
Man faces murder charges in death of woman who was lit on fire in New York City subway
A man is facing murder charges in New York City for allegedly setting a woman on fire inside a subway train and then watching her die after she was engulfed in flames, police said Monday.
Canada regulator sues Rogers for alleged misleading claims about data offering
Canada's antitrust regulator said on Monday it was suing Rogers Communications Inc, for allegedly misleading consumers about offering unlimited data under some phone plans.