Happy Friday, everybody! If you live in Toronto, I need your help!
Further to last month’s blog post calling for an open streets campaign – which got subsequently picked up by CBC – the petition calling on Mayor Olivia Chow and City Council to bring back open streets programs to Toronto by 2026 has just been launched this morning. You can sign the petition here which I encourage you to please share widely with your fellow Torontonians. I also encourage you to e-mail Mayor Chow (mayor_chow@toronto.ca) and your city councillor to show your support if you haven’t already done so.
The following organizations have lent their support for this campaign as of the time of launching the petition:
- 8 80 Cities
- Community Bikeways (TCBC)
- Cycle Toronto
- Toronto Public Space Committee
- Walk Toronto
- Yonge4All
If you represent an organization and would like to support the campaign on its behalf, please reach out via e-mail. A full list of organizational supporters can be found here.
As a way to share ideas, reflect on open streets memories, and recruit volunteers to help plan outreach and other events, I created a Facebook group for this purpose.
One urbanist in particular – Gil Penalosa – has regularly promoted the open streets concept on his social media channels combining weekend car-free days in High Park, ActiveTO on Lake Shore West, and an expanded version of Open Streets TO along Bloor-Danforth and Yonge.
Candidate Chow said she'd do SUMMER STREETS: Bloor & Yonge, every Sunday, June, July, August, city funded. NOT bikes vs cars, no! It's: • Everyone included. • Walk, run, bike, chat, shop... • Equity. Sustainability. Fun. • Health & Happiness. #JustDoIt. Be the change.
— Gil Penalosa • 8 80 Cities & #Cities4Everyone (@penalosag.bsky.social) April 27, 2025 at 8:29 AM
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However, regularly sharing these ideas on social media on its own is not enough and there is a need to demonstrate community support; hence why this petition was formed. Since it’s very unlikely ActiveTO or OpenStreetsTO could be implemented in time for this summer, the petition used 2026 as a suggested timeframe. If somehow a 2025 implementation were to become possible, I’m certainly all ears! 😉 It’s also important to maintain flexibility at this time until a firm open streets plan can be brought to a City Council committee such as the Infrastructure and Environment Committee. At that point, I will for sure encourage you to e-mail the committee (and your councillor) with the relevant item number.
Another thing that will be worth keeping an eye open for is the Pedestrian Streets Policy & Guidelines which could serve as an opportunity to make open streets part of city policy. Toronto’s Accessibility Advisory Committee will be debating this item today and I will notify petition signers of any public consultations that come up from this policy proposal.
In conclusion, I encourage you to please sign and share the open streets petition, as well as keep your eyes open for any opportunities to get involved!
Signed up. Thank you Rob for the work you are doing. It was wonderful meeting you today at Bike Minds meeting.
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