Bike Lanes on Busy Streets – Time for a Big Rethink
Everyone should be proud of the progress Toronto has made in its bike lane expansion initiatives. Done right, bike lanes keep cyclists, motorists and pedestrians safely out of each other’s way, get more people using bikes and enhance our city’s liveability.
According to the findings from a recently completed poll by Discover-Navigator:
- A significant proportion of Toronto residents report being negatively affected by the increase in dedicated bike lanes in Toronto.
- The majority of residents want the next elected mayor to evaluate bike lanes every 2-3 years (84%) and remove them from major roads across the city (63%).
- Notably, most Torontonians are happy with bike lanes existing in the city but want them to have less of an impact on their daily commutes (66%).
We’re Not Against Cyclists or New Bike Lanes
Once a transportation issue, bike lanes have become an emotional and political one. An influential subset of bike lane proponents believe that all bike lanes are a net positive for the city, and that to believe otherwise is to be pro-car and anti-bike. This view is wrong and benefits nobody, especially cyclists who only want a safe and sustainable city-wide bike lane network.
Not All Bike Lanes Deliver as Advertised
Bike lanes that are well-thought and on less-congested roads encourage safe cycling. When done wrong, bike lanes increase traffic congestion while bringing new stresses to road users, residents and neighbourhoods. Ill-conceived bike lanes endanger cyclists and pedestrians. They hurt retailers and restaurants. They transform once-quiet residential streets into congested feeder routes between major thoroughfares, which themselves become gridlocked no-go zones.
We’re for a Data-Driven Toronto Bike Lane Vision
Keep Toronto Moving is a not-for-profit organization comprised of Torontonians who believe there are better ways for our city’s vehicles and bikes to coexist on our roads. We have proof that the city’s flawed collection and interpretation of road user data has compromised its bike lane vision and policies.
What’s the Problem Here?
The city currently leaves out vitally important road use data when justifying new bike lanes on arterial roads. For example, the city:
- Does not collect cycling data during winter months, when it rains, or during high heat events – times when far fewer cyclists are on the roads.
- Does not include data on how businesses are negatively affected by new bike lanes.
- Does not include data on accidents involving cyclists using the city’s more dangerous bike lanes.
The Facts
Toronto’s Congestion Made Worse by Badly Executed Bike Lanes
- Toronto is now ranked the 3rd most congested city in North America—and current ActiveTO proposals will only make it worse.
- In 2022, Torontonians lost an annual average of 118 hours of productive time while waiting in traffic. That’s almost five days per year.
- Our city is 30th on the list of the most congested cities in the world.
Emergency Vehicles are Stuck in Traffic Jams
EMS vehicle response times have increased as a result of congestion on key roads mandated for their efficient passage When an ambulance cannot rush a sick person to hospital, when a fire truck sits waiting for traffic to clear while a home burns, when police cannot respond rapidly to a crime, the safety of everyone is compromised.
Why is the City of Toronto Refusing to Collect and Share Key Data?
Despite repeated requests, the City of Toronto refuses to provide us the data they use to make decisions on bike lanes. Currently, there are NO clearly defined metrics that determine bike lane success. Many city councillors and bike lobbyists flatly reject any facts or information that doesn’t support their agendas, and they refuse demands to collect year-round, daily road usage data.
It’s Time for Data-Driven Bike Lanes that Work for Everyone
Unlike more temperate cities in the US, Europe, etc. that have robust bike lane networks in use year-round:
- Permanent bike lane installations along our major arteries do not make sense.
- We inhabit a city subject to harsh winters.
- A quick tour of Toronto streets and bike lanes after a snowstorm provides ample visual evidence of the futility of our current approach.
- Effective snow removal requires specialized equipment, adds costs, and all that snow needs to go somewhere.
Bike Lanes are vastly Underutilized by Cyclists in Winter
How many times have you sat unmoving in a traffic jam next to empty bike lanes that replaced well utilized vehicle lanes?
- Census Canada data shows only 1.4% of Toronto commuters are cyclists.
- 98.6% drive personal vehicles, carpool, take public transit or walk.
Bloor Street is a Congested Disaster
- According to the Bloor-Economic Impact Study, 94% of workers on Bloor Street either walk, use public transportation, or drive to work.
- Only 6% consider cycling as an option to commute to work and that’s when weather permits.
- Businesses that employ them are hurting, with merchants in the Bloor-Annex community citing a decrease in sales due to permanent bike lanes.
What We’re Doing
- Keep Toronto Moving supporters met with Mayor Tory to discuss concerns over dedicated bike lanes on Yonge Street in February 2023.
- Rally at City of Toronto Infrastructure and Environmental Committee to oppose the permanent installation of the Yonge Street bike lanes.
- Supporters have spoken out at the City of Toronto Infrastructure and Environmental Committee against the irrational implementation of Yonge Street bike lanes.
Initiatives
- Founded Keep Toronto Moving not-for-profit community organization to advance pro-common sense, pro-data and pro-transparency bike lane policies.
- Established online presence via Keep Toronto Moving website, Facebook page and petitions.
- Retained Discover by Navigator to complete a public opinion polling study. A total of 500 adult Torontonians participated in this online survey which was conducted between March 3 and 6, 2023.
- Given the lack of accurate and transparent data provided by the City of Toronto, Keep Toronto Moving will commission independent local studies of business owners and initiate transportation collection data on priority arterial streets.
- Currently there are no clear guidelines that define what a successful vs. unsuccessful bike lane pilot looks like. We are advocating for an independent review of bike lane policies which clearly define success metrics that warrant the permanent installation of existing and future bike lanes.
In The News
Torontonians are Speaking Out
- nowToronto: A Toronto group is calling on mayoral candidates to remove bike lanes on busy city streets
- Toronto Sun: POLL: Two-thirds of Torontonians want next mayor to move bike lanes off major roads
- blogTO: A group is campaigning to get rid of bike lanes on several major Toronto streets
- CBC: City committee endorses staff recommendation to make Yonge Street bike lanes permanent.
- Global News: Residents urge Toronto committee to not make Yonge Street bike lanes permanent.
- City News: Toronto committee to vote on making Midtown Yonge bike lanes permanent
- Toronto Sun: Bike Lame
- CTV News: This database shows what days and times Toronto traffic is at its worst.
- Globe and Mail: The “bikelash” is real: What the war between bikes and cars says about us.
- Toronto Sun: City Hall needs to put safety ahead of ideology on Yonge bike lanes.
Hot Spot Streets
Visit Special Interest Group, Cycle Toronto, to Clearly Understand What They Are Proposing in your Neighbourhood
City of Toronto Proposed Bike Lanes and Upcoming Changes to Existing Bike Lanes
- Bartlett-Havelock-Gladstone Cycling Connections
- Danforth/Kingston Complete Street
- College Street Upgrades
- Douro Street & Wellington Street Road Safety and Bikeway Improvements
- Eglinton Today Complete Street Project
- Bloor Street West Complete Street Extension
- Woodfield Road, Monarch Park Avenue and Knox
- Martin Grove Road Cycling Connections
- York University & Downsview Cycling Connections
Completed Installations
About Us
Who We Are What We’re Doing
We are a non-partisan organization that will not support, promote or oppose any candidate for office. Keep Toronto Moving is a volunteer-based, not-for-profit organization comprised of concerned citizens who believe there is a better way for bikes, vehicles and people to coexist within the City of Toronto. We have no employees and we do not represent any business or financial interest.
We Are Not Anti-Bike
We are pro-common sense, pro-data, pro-transparency. Our mandate is to persuade the decision-makers in our city to collect and interpret road use data fairly and openly, and to implement the results in a rational, sensible manner.
We Represent all Torontonians
We stand for cyclists, vehicle drivers (personal and professional), public transit users and workers, business owners, taxpayers and everyone who has been negatively impacted by poorly thought-out bike lane installations within our city.
Mission Statement
Keep Toronto Moving advocates for:
- A vision for the city’s bike lanes based on full, unbiased, year-round road use data.
- A commitment to review arterial bike lane efficacy and the impact on traffic flow, viability to local businesses and utilization on a two-three-year schedule.
- A bike lanes decision-making process free of political agendas, lobbyists, incomplete, misleading data and heavy-handed biased bureaucratic influences.
- The application of true data-based analyses combined with an open consultative approach that includes all Torontonians who use our roads.
Contact Us
Our Location
PO Box 72528
PRO Greenwin Square
Toronto, Ontario
M4W 3S9