Ontario court strikes down Ford government's plan to tear up Toronto bike lanes as unconstitutional
Ontario's Superior Court of Justice has blocked a plan by the provincial government to rip up bike lanes in Toronto, calling it unconstitutional.
In a ruling handed down Wednesday Justice Paul Schabas sided with Cycle Toronto, which brought the suit, and found that the Ford government's decision to remove bike lanes installed by the city violated the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
The Ford government introduced the legislation back in November, saying the bike lanes were contributing to gridlock and making it harder for emergency vehicles to get around. Among other things, the law required the removal of newer bike lanes on stretches of Bloor Street, University Avenue and Yonge Street.
Cycling advocates argued that the removal of the bike lanes would make them less safe, a position the judge agreed with.
'In this case, the evidence is clear that restoring lanes of motor vehicle traffic by removing the bike lanes, or reconfiguring them so that they are no longer physically separated from cars, will lead to more accidents, injuries and deaths,' Schabas wrote in his ruling.
The Ford government did not immediately comment on the decision.
More details to come…
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