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CBC
07-05-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Ontario serves notice to appeal injunction preventing it from removing Toronto bike lanes
The Ontario government has taken its first step to appeal a temporary injunction that prevents it from ripping up three Toronto bike lanes until a judge decides whether its plan to remove them is unconstitutional. On Wednesday, the Ministry of the Attorney General filed what is called a notice of motion for leave to appeal an April 22 decision by Superior Court Justice Paul Schabas. In that decision, Schabas ordered the government not demolish the bike lanes on Bloor Street, Yonge Street and University Avenue until he makes a decision on a Charter challenge by cycling advocates of provincial legislation. The injunction is in force until he rules on the challenge. Schabas said in his ruling that failure to issue an injunction would "cause more harm and inconvenience to the public interest" than allowing the legislation to be implemented, and that the government did not provide evidence about the process by which it would remove the lanes or what it plans to put in their place. Asked why it seeks to overturn the injunction, the ministry said in an email on Wednesday that Ontario wants to proceed with its plans. "As we've always said, we need to keep our busiest roads moving and that's exactly what we're doing," ministry spokesperson Dakota Brasier said. Decision to appeal 'fuelled by spite,' advocates say Cycle Toronto, an advocacy group that says it works to make Toronto a "healthy, safe and vibrant cycling city for all," said in a statement on Wednesday that the government is ignoring what its own experts have told it. "The facts are clear: ripping out bike lanes won't solve congestion and will put people's lives at risk. The provincial government's own experts agree. Today the provincial government confirmed they don't care about the facts," the group said in the statement. "Today's decision by the province is a distraction, fuelled by spite, coming off last week's rant from the Premier that had a few inconsistencies with the truth and seriously undermined judiciary independence." Last week, Premier Doug Ford went on a rant about some provincial judges, arguing they are soft on crime and interfering in municipal issues based on ideology, and floated the idea of electing judges in Canada as is done in parts of the U.S. He also singled out the injunction, saying the province planned to appeal it. "We get democratically elected, and some judge slaps an injunction on bike lanes. Don't the judges have anything better to do than worry about if we're taking out bike lanes or not taking out bike lanes?" Ford had said. The province gave itself the power last year to remove 19 kilometres of protected bike lanes, despite the objections of the city. It passed a law that requires cities to seek provincial approval to install new lanes that cut into vehicle traffic.
Toronto Star
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Toronto Star
Ontario to ask for appeal of court order pausing Toronto bike lane removal
TORONTO - Ontario is seeking to appeal a temporary court order stopping it from ripping up three major Toronto bike lanes while a judge weighs whether the plan is unconstitutional. The government served notice of its intent to appeal last month's injunction to lawyers for a cycling advocacy group challenging its plan to remove lanes on Bloor Street, Yonge Street and University Avenue. Superior Court Justice Paul Schabas ordered the government last month to keep its hands off the 19 kilometres of bike lanes until he could decide the case. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW His injunction ruling cited the public interest in protecting cyclist safety and a lack of evidence backing the government's claim that removing the lanes would reduce congestion. In response to Wednesday's notice, a spokesperson for Ontario's transportation minister said, 'we need to keep our busiest roads moving.' Cycle Toronto, the advocacy group leading the removal challenge, called the government's intent to appeal a 'distraction, fuelled by spite.' 'The facts are clear: ripping out bike lanes won't solve congestion and will put people's lives at risk. The provincial government's own experts agree. Today the provincial government confirmed they don't care about the facts,' the group said in a statement. Last week, Premier Doug Ford singled out the injunction in a self-described 'rant' critical of court decisions overruling the government and suggested Ontario should pursue an American-style system where judges are elected. The suggestion, widely panned as an attack on judicial independence and impartiality, was later walked back by Ontario's attorney general. This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 7, 2025. Politics Headlines Newsletter Get the latest news and unmatched insights in your inbox every evening Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. Please enter a valid email address. Sign Up Yes, I'd also like to receive customized content suggestions and promotional messages from the Star. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Politics Headlines Newsletter You're signed up! You'll start getting Politics Headlines in your inbox soon. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page.
CBC
16-04-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Ontario's bill to remove certain bike lanes to be tested with Charter challenge
The Ontario government's "irrational and dangerous" bid to remove three major Toronto bike lanes should be ruled unconstitutional, a lawyer for a group of cyclists said in court Wednesday, arguing the province's own internal advice and experts suggest the move won't accomplish its stated goal to ease congestion. Lawyers for a Toronto cycling advocacy group and two other cyclists are asking the Ontario Superior Court of Justice to strike down parts of a law empowering the province to remove the 19 kilometres of protected bike lanes on Yonge Street, Bloor Street and University Avenue, and replace them with vehicle lanes. "It's a narrow challenge to what we see as the irrational and dangerous ways that this government has chosen to remove these bike lanes," said lawyer Andrew Lewis. The challenge was brought by the advocacy group Cycle Toronto and two other cyclists — a university student who relies on the Bloor Street bike lane to get to school and a bike delivery driver who uses the lanes daily. They argue the province's bid to remove the lanes violates their constitutional right to life and has no connection to its stated objective to reduce congestion. The bill could even make traffic worse, they suggest. Removal doesn't violate Constitution: province's lawyer A lawyer for the government argued Wednesday that removing bike lanes does not violate the Constitution. Bike lanes were put in place under provincial law to reduce the danger posed by drivers, lawyer Josh Hunter said, and the government could choose to take away that risk-reduction measure for other reasons, such as to ease congestion. "No one's saying the government is causing the harm. It's the drivers on the road that's causing the harm," said Hunter. Six cyclists were killed in Toronto last year, all on roads without protected bike lanes, a lawyer for the cyclists said. Premier Doug Ford's Progressive Conservative government has said that the law passed last year, which also requires municipalities across Ontario to get the province's approval for bike lanes that cut into vehicle traffic, was a bid to fight traffic gridlock. Lewis used the government's own internal documents to try to undercut that claim. Removing bike lanes won't reduce congestion, lawyer says He said a document signed by the minister of transportation on Sept. 9, 2024, advised that the government's plan "may not reduce congestion." He said a Ministry of Transportation briefing note dated Oct. 28, a week after the government introduced the bike lane bill, stated that "removing cycling infrastructure may not have the desired goal of reducing congestion." Lewis also cited an engineering report, commissioned by the government and finalized earlier this year, that found while removing the bike lanes might increase vehicle capacity, the actual alleviation of congestion may be "negligible or short lived." The same report also found bike lanes are predicted to reduce crashes involving cyclists, pedestrians and motorists by between 35 and 50 per cent, Lewis said. "Those facts were kept from the public until produced here, while (the government was) engaging in a public relations campaign to the contrary," he said. 'Two lanes is more than one,' government lawyer says Hunter, the government lawyer, argued the law was connected to its purpose: to increase the space available for cars. "Two lanes is more than one," he said. In response, Justice Paul Schabas suggested some traffic experts may question whether adding more lanes would just induce more traffic, and congestion could wind up just as bad as it was before the bike lanes were removed. Hunter suggested a study prepared by a Toronto Metropolitan University professor and submitted as evidence found travel times worsened after the bike lanes were installed. But Schabas took issue with that report, too, and how it compared travel times in 2020, when "hardly anybody was on the road" due to the pandemic, with times in 2021, when it was "a little busier". "I found that very odd," he said. The bike lane issue has sparked protests by the public and pushback from the City of Toronto. Mayor Olivia Chow and the city have proposed a solution to the province that would allow for a car lane to be returned to those roads while also keeping a bike lane. Mayor wants 'win-win solution with the province' A spokesperson for Chow said the mayor is committed to achieving a "win-win solution with the province." "Discussions with the province are ongoing," Zeus Eden said in a statement. Earlier this month, a spokesperson for the provincial transportation minister suggested the government was open to collaboration with the city, provided it funds its portion of infrastructure needs. Ford's recent re-election campaign included fresh promises to reduce traffic congestion. He has cited the bike lane on Bloor Street, not far from his own home, in describing the issues he hopes to address. The premier has said he's not against bike lanes but prefers them on secondary routes. Lawyers for the cyclists argue there's no evidence that cyclists would avoid arterial roads and cite Toronto's city manager as saying there's no feasible parallel alternative that wouldn't cut into traffic lanes. The initial stretch of the Bloor bike lane was installed in 2016, then extended several times since the start of the pandemic. It stretches around 13 kilometres from near Islington Avenue to Castle Frank. Temporary University Avenue bike lanes installed in 2020 were made permanent in 2021, the same year the Yonge Street lanes were installed.
CBC
12-04-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Cycling advocates optimistic about fate of Toronto bike lanes after province says it's open to compromise
Social Sharing Some Toronto cycling advocates say they're hopeful the province will walk back its plans to remove three key bike lanes after Ontario's transportation minister indicated there may be room to compromise with the city. Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow and the city have proposed a solution to the province that would allow for a car lane to be returned to those roads while also keeping a bike lane. Dakota Brasier, a spokeswoman for Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria, said where both a reinstated car lane and a bike lane can exist, "we are open to collaboration with the City of Toronto, provided they fund their portion of their identified infrastructure needs." Albert Koehl, a co-ordinator with the Toronto Community Bikeways Coalition, said it's a positive development "that is hopefully the first step in something very good to come." But Koehl said he hopes that the province will ultimately back down from its plans. "I think the province knows that they're not going to solve traffic congestion by taking out bike lanes," he said Saturday ahead of a panel discussion in North York on the issue. "Hopefully, the next step will be planning together and then finally coming to the realization that the route the city was taking really is the best route if we're going to build a better city and a better province." Ontario government open to compromising with Toronto on bike lane removals 2 days ago Duration 3:42 Last year the Ontario government passed legislation to remove some Toronto bike lanes, citing it would help reduce the city's congestion. Now, the transportation minister's office says the province is open to compromising with the city. CBC's Clara Pasieka has the details. Jessica Spieker, a spokesperson for Friends and Families for Safe Streets, said she'd like to see more details on what the city's proposed solution is before giving it her support. "If they're stripping away any of the protective barriers and the speed calming measures, then I don't think it's worth compromising on," she said. Spieker called the province's plans "morally abhorrent." "It's going to get people killed. It is going to shatter families and devastate individuals who are severely injured and who are not at fault," Spieker said. "And it's grossly unfair to value the convenience of a handful of privileged people on corridors that have subways running underneath them above the safety of any other road users." Court challenge to be heard this week Cycle Toronto is leading a group of cyclists in a Charter challenge against the legislation. Cycle Toronto executive director Michael Longfield said he hopes the province will reconsider its legislation without being forced to by the courts "and instead work with the city to find, you know, data-driven solutions to keep people moving and keep them safe." "I think we're heartened to hear there's talk of a potential compromise on this," he said. "The mayor herself seems very dedicated to keeping this infrastructure." The Charter challenge is set to be heard in court starting Wednesday. It states that the government's reasoning for removing bike lanes is arbitrary, alleging Premier Doug Ford and Minister Sarkaria have not shown evidence to support their characterizations of the lanes. It also argues the removal is a violation of section seven of the Charter and Rights of Freedoms, saying the removal deprives cyclists of life and security of the person.
CBC
11-03-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Cyclists seek injunction as Ontario bike lane removal work could start this month
Social Sharing Ontario won't begin removing bike lanes in Toronto until March 20 at the earliest — but a group of cyclists is applying for an injunction to prevent the work until their legal challenge against the plan has its day in court. The group, led by Cycle Toronto, launched a legal challenge against the province's plan to remove bike lanes on Bloor Street, Yonge Street and University Avenue in Toronto. The challenge will be heard in April, but the group wants to ensure that infrastructure isn't removed between late March and the April hearing. A hearing for the injunction that could do that is happening Tuesday at the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in downtown Toronto. The group's lawyers say lawyers from the province informed them no steps to remove the bike lanes would come before March 20, something a spokesperson for the ministry of transportation confirmed. The March 20 date was first reported in The Trillium. "This won't help address traffic, and we know it'll make our roads more dangerous for people and make it so that fewer people will choose to ride a bike," said Michael Longfield, executive director of Cycle Toronto. The province fast-tracked Bill 212 in the fall, arguing that the bike lane removals are needed to reduce congestion in Toronto. Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria said the city's approach to installing bike lanes was "failed" and described the bike lane removal as "freeing up some of Toronto's most important roads," in a January news release. WATCH | Do only 1.2%of Torontonians really commute by bike? StatsCan data says no: Do only 1.2% of Torontonians really commute by bike? StatsCan data says no 4 months ago Duration 2:54 Research from cities around the world suggests that adding bike lanes to streets doesn't actually add to congestion, though adding more roads for motor vehicles does. Bruce Ryder, a professor at York University's Osgoode Hall Law School, said the applicants have a strong case for an interim injunction on the grounds of the initial application's argument that people's safety could be put at risk. "The balance of convenience in terms of the status quo favours them," said Ryder, who's not involved in the challenge. "In other words, it's better to leave the bike lanes in place for the time being until the case is fully argued," he said. Full legal challenge to be heard in April The legal challenge that will be heard in April states that the government's reasoning for removing bike lanes is arbitrary, alleging Premier Doug Ford and Minister Sarkaria have not shown evidence to support their characterizations of the lanes. It also argues the removal is a violation of section seven of the Charter and Rights of Freedoms, saying the removal deprives cyclists of life and security of the person. The city has said ripping up the lanes would cost about $48 million — a figure Ford has publicly disputed — while increasing driver travel time during construction and having a minimal impact once completed. Sarkaria has frequently said 1.2 per cent of people in Toronto commute by bike, though census data shows that number is higher in several areas where bike lanes actually exist. Though in Etobicoke-Lakeshore, where the debate around bike lanes has been perhaps most intense, statistics line up with Sarkaria's messaging. "Removing these bike lanes makes sense for our community and it cannot be done soon enough," the area's former MPP Christine Hogarth said in a January news release. Hogarth was defeated by Liberal Lee Fairclough in the February election. Legal experts say challenge has merits When it comes to the legal challenge that will be heard in earnest in April, some in the legal field feel Cycle Toronto's arguments have merits. David Schneiderman, a professor of law at the University of Toronto who's not involved in the legal challenge, said the challenge's argument has some merits when it comes to the argument that the decision to remove bike lanes is not being done with sufficient evidence that it will reduce congestion. WATCH | Toronto's mayor critical of bike lane removal: Mayor Chow calls Ontario's plan to remove bike lanes 'arbitrary' 4 months ago Duration 1:26 The Ontario government is planning to remove three sections of bike lanes in Toronto. At a news conference on Friday, Mayor Olivia Chow emphasized there have been several studies done in recent years that support the existing bike lanes. "That would be of interest to a judge, and a judge would say, 'show me the money,'" Schneiderman said. "[Courts] don't like governments behaving arbitrarily without any evidence just because they don't like something or someone." Ryder, from Osgoode Hall, said while the interim injunction has a good chance, the hearing for the challenge itself will be more difficult. "It will be the claimant's burden to establish that the government is putting their lives at risk. And it will also be the claimant's burden to establish that they're not doing so for a good reason or a sufficiently strong reason," he said.
