Toronto’s planned bike lane removal would increase congestion, government docs show

Removing bike lanes from busy city streets will increase traffic congestion, according a Canadian government document leaked amid a furious row over urban infrastructure.

The findings, which come as the province of Ontario goes to war over cycling infrastructure in Toronto, undercut claims that the dedicated routes contribute to urban gridlock.

The leak comes as the provincial government further intensified the stakes of the battle by shielding itself from any lawsuits arising from the death or injury of cyclists on roads where the bike lanes were removed. Critics have described the last-minute move as an admission by the province that “people will get hurt”.

Premier Doug Ford kicked off the row last month when he announced he would remove three of the city’s main bike routes. Ford, who commutes on a road shared with one of those bike lanes, said the protected lanes were major factors in the “insanity” of traffic congestion in Canada’s largest city.

But the internal draft document appears to undercut the premier’s rationale. The cabinet briefing memo, first reported by the Trillium, suggests that removing bike lanes “may not reduce congestion as most research (eg New York, Washington, Vancouver) suggests reducing road capacity by introducing bike lanes can encourage biking and discourage car use, alleviating congestion”.

Staff who prepared the briefing also warned that Ontario “may be seen as encroaching on municipal decision-making authority” and risks “jeopardizing progress” on long-term deals made with Toronto and Ottawa on financial stability.

The Toronto city council is vehemently opposed to the plan and last week voted 21-4 to oppose a provincial bill which would grant Ontario the power to block planned cycle paths that remove traffic lanes. The province’s pledge to rip out 13 miles (21km) of infrastructure would cost $C48m (US$34m), according to a city report – a figure the premier said was “hogwash”.

“We’re going to show them how to do it for a lot less and get traffic moving. We’re going to keep bike riders safe, simple as that,” said Ford.

But the safety has once again emerged as a flashpoint for cyclists, who fear the plan will only increase risk to commuters.

On Thursday, the province made a last-minute amendment to Bill 212 that would indemnify the government from being sued over the deaths or injuries of cyclist on roads where bike infrastructure was removed. The law doesn’t make it illegal to ride on those roads, all of which are key thoroughfares, but clears the province of any liability.

“The safer thing for a cyclist to do would be to make a decision to go on streets that are safer,” Ontario’s transport minister, Prabmeet Sarkaria, told reporters. “That’s what we believe is the right way to do it, is on our secondary streets where there is much less traffic volume and ultimately safer for cyclists and everyone else.”

David Shellnutt, whose firm the Biking Lawyer represents the families of those killed or injured by cars, says the government is “preemptively trying to wash the blood from their hands” by blocking lawsuits.

“They know people will get hurt. It’s incredibly upsetting. The impact of injuries and death involving motor vehicles costs immense wealth, property, time and emotion. And to take deliberate steps to increase the risk? There are no words.”