The Ford government is promising to pay the cost of removing bike lanes from major city streets that fail to meet its unannounced criteria as it ploughs ahead with a plan to limit biking infrastructure and rip out some routes.
The government has been teasing its changes to bike lanes for a week, with Premier Doug Ford announcing recently that his party “will remove and replace existing bike lanes on primary roads that are bringing traffic in our cities to a standstill.”
Transport Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria confirmed Monday that bike lanes could be removed from some roads as part of a “reasonable” approach to transit planning in Toronto and across Ontario.
“Not everybody can use a bike to get around — these are some of our major arterial roads, whether it is Bloor, University or Yonge Street — people need to get to and from work,” Sarkaria said.
“What we don’t agree (with) and don’t think — ripping up Bloor Street and turning it into two lanes. I heard firsthand from almost 50 businesses, local residents that came out to the announcement, I’ve never seen enthusiasm like that before.”
The proposed law was tabled Monday, as part of the first day back for MPPs at Queen’s Park after an extended break.
During the day, the transportation minister’s office confirmed that, if bike lanes installed in the past five years are removed, provincial taxpayers will foot the bill.
“I think the real question is, what is the cost of not building?” Sarkaria said in response to a question about the price tag for the overall bike lanes policy.
The province has said it will decide whether or not to allow future biking infrastructure, and whether to remove some routes, based on as-yet-unspecific data cities and towns will have to send to Queen’s Park.
Sarkaria said Monday that increased congestion was an indicator of the fact the current approach is not working, while his office has referenced Toronto bike lane studies that excluded certain weather from their work as problematic. The province has said it wants to be sure new bike lanes don’t increase gridlock on streets they’re installed on.
The details of how applications will be assessed and by whom, however, remain unclear.
“We’ll work with our municipal partners, we’ll look through the system to establish that,” Sarkaria said. “As we work through this legislation, through the process, I think you’ll also see an opportunity for many of them to submit their concerns or submit what they think could be a good process.”
Sarkaria’s office has said regulations will be “completed over the coming months” and that they will include an outline of “data and submission requirements, timelines, approval criteria, and information sharing details.”
Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow, who oversees the Ontario city with the biggest bike lane plans, has said she doesn’t intend to change course.
“Mayor Chow is committed to the city’s cycling network plan recently adopted by council,” a spokesperson for the mayor previously told Global News. “She will continue to work with city council and the city’s planning staff to find opportunities for all modes of transportation, including bike lanes.”