1. Think outside the box
Gorgeous planter boxes separating bike lanes from traffic would protect cyclists from cars and beautify streets – a win for the local community. Think of them as business improvement.
2. Protected intersections
Some 40 per cent of car-bike collisions in Toronto happen at intersections. We need to make them as safe as the bike lanes leading to them. The city is piloting protected lanes on Richmond and Adelaide. Let’s pilot protected intersectionsl like Portland’s, too.
3. Cyclist counters
For all the talk of congestion and gridlock, you wouldn’t know that cycling is the perfect antidote. Roads can move far more people on bicycles than in cars. Live cyclist counters help demonstrate the transformation that’s under way and build the case for more cycling-friendly infrastructure. Some counters in Copenhagen also double as air pumps!
4. Repair potholes
Potholes force cyclists to dodge, weave and become unpredictable for drivers, especially when confronted with massive curbside ditches. All streets in Toronto should meet minimum standards for cycling.
5. Reduce speed limits on all residential roads to 30 km/h
Even when given a more direct option, many cyclists prefer riding on low-speed residential roads. And it’s easy to see why: a cyclist struck by a motor vehicle travelling at 30 km/h or less has a significantly smaller chance of serious injury or death than when struck by a car going 40 or 50 km/h, the standard speed limit on major roads. Medical Officer of Health David McKeown recommended this back in 2012. Denzil Minnan-Wong, chair of Public Works at the time, charged McKeown with meddling, missing the fact that lower speed limits make life safer for pedestrians, too. Let’s make it happen.
Jared Kolb is executive director of Cycle Toronto cycleto.ca
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