Rage Against the (Ford) Machine

All right, folks! The worst-case scenario for Toronto's cycling community has come upon us! On Tuesday, Ontario Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria announced cities will be required to get provincial approval to put in bike lanes which remove traffic lanes. Cities would also need to provide data about bike lanes installed over the past five years which could put large parts of Bloor-Danforth, University, and Yonge at risk. On Thursday, Premier Doug Ford said, "We need to and will remove and replace existing bike lanes on primary roads that are bringing traffic in our cities to a standstill”. This has been motivated in part to his own distaste for the Bloor bike lanes in Etobicoke which was the subject of last night's town hall hosted by Councillor Amber Morley. You can read Jun's report here.

Premier Doug Ford calling for the removal of the Bloor bike lanes in Etobicoke on October 31, 2023 (CPAC)

East Don Trail and Leaside Bridge Ride

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! Hope you were able to enjoy the long weekend with lots of food, as well as some riding. With today being sunny and 10’C, I rode 25 kilometres to check out the progress along the East Don Trail, new cycle tracks along Ferrand, and improvements to the Leaside Bridge.

October 2024 Eglinton and Finch Check Ups

With Metrolinx refusing to provide an opening date for the Eglinton Crosstown LRT until three months from that time, the much-delayed transit line won’t be opening this year. The Finch West LRT celebrated a milestone recently with all stations and stops being completed, but also lacks an opening date and has even been subject to a recent lawsuit. But where do things stand with their respective bikeways? I did a couple of site checks this week after work to find out.

Dupont Complete Street Project

Apparently, a lot has happened for cycling in Toronto while I was on vacation in Uzbekistan. A complete street has been built on Eglinton from Avenue to Chaplin, a group ride from Willowdale to Downtown attracted 80 people, and the Ford government irresponsibly proposed restricting bike lane installations which remove traffic lanes. (Please sign Cycle Toronto's petition opposing this if you haven't already.) I was also informed about a complete street project happening on Dupont which the City is collecting feedback until Wednesday, October 30. Let's review what's being planned for Dupont, as well as some hotspots and background information.

Yet Another Cyclist Death in Etobicoke

As if this year wasn’t bad enough for Toronto’s cycling community with five cyclists killed as of July, news broke out that a 26-year-old female cyclist died today resulting from last Saturday's crash at Burnamthorpe just east of Kipling. This sixth cyclist death of 2024 also happens to be fifteen years to the day from when bike messenger Darcy Allan Sheppard was killed by then Ontario Attorney General Michael Bryant. Let’s look at the street’s current condition and what the City’s plans are for improving cycling in this part of Etobicoke.

August 2024 West End Site Checks

Over the past few months, the City of Toronto has been very busy installing new bike lanes across the city. Since I had the day off work and had some errands to run before going on vacation in two weeks, I checked out the Portland-Dan Leckie and West Parkdale cycling connections, as well as the progress of the Bloor and St. George protected intersection.

Delays, Delays, and More Delays!

Regardless of whether we get around by walking, cycling, transit, or driving, we can all agree that nothing frustrates us more than delays getting things built. We are also aware that Toronto City Council can push to accelerate certain projects as they see fit. We saw that with the ActiveTO bike lane roll out during the pandemic and last month’s approval of a motion to accelerate construction of a stretch of the Gardiner Expressway, so it gets completed by 2026 instead of 2027. Let’s review four active transportation projects that have been subject to ridiculously long delays which are unacceptable given the record number of cyclist deaths this year.