Premier Doug Ford is defending his bill that would prevent cyclists from suing Ontario if injured on roads with removed bike lanes, only one day after hundreds gathered at Queen’s Park in protest.
Several biking advocacy groups united along Bloor Street in protest of the premier’s Bill 212, an effort to reduce gridlock that would require municipalities to seek approval from the provincial government before installing bike lanes.
The bill also gives the province power to remove existing bike lanes, a possibility that isn’t sitting right with many Ontarians.
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Speaking to reporters at a news conference on Friday, Ford refrained from addressing the recent controversial amendments to the bill that would protect the government from lawsuits. Instead, he accused Toronto of “inflating the costs” of removing the lanes along three major roads.
“People do not want the bike lanes, especially on Bloor West,” the premier said.
As a suggestion, Ford recommended that cyclists should ride on secondary roads, parallel to major streets. He also cautioned cyclists to “be careful” while riding, and gave his condolences to the ones who have lost their lives on city streets.
“My heart goes out to the families, I’m so sorry that happens… that’s terrible, I want to keep everyone safe. We want to keep everyone safe across the roads,” he added.
On Thursday night, Cycle Toronto, Advocacy for Respect for Cyclists, Friends and Families for Safe Streets, Bike Brigade, The Biking Lawyer LLP and some 500 protesters united to deliver two ghost bikes to Queen’s Park, in honour of two cyclists slain on Ontario roads. Earlier this month, a 47-year-old woman on an electric bicycle was fatally struck by a pickup truck driver in Kingston, and only days later, a 13-year old cyclist died in hospital after being struck by a vehicle in Ajax.
Personal injury lawyer and founder of The Biking Lawyer LLP David Shellnutt describes the night as “somber,” as he and hundreds of other bike lane supporters rode to drop off the ghost bikes at the legislature.
“We delivered those bikes there as a stark warning to the premier and the government that these deaths, and ones like them, will increase once bike lanes are removed, and that the responsibility for those deaths and the injuries of many other cyclists would be at their feet,” Shellnutt said to Now Toronto on Friday.
Although Ford’s latest remarks seem to be focussed on the removal of bike lanes along major inner city roads, Shellnutt says the issue affects many cyclists beyond the borders of Toronto.
“It’s not just Torontonians, it’s people across this province. People are demonstrating in Ottawa. They’re working with municipal officials in Hamilton and Guelph. This is an issue that affects all of us in Ontario,” he said.
Shellnut says many cyclists are feeling vulnerable when it comes to their safety on Ontario roads, especially after the quiet amendment. As a lawyer, he says he and others across the province will be looking into the legalities of the government implementing a law that could further harm its residents.
“I think it will strike the people of Ontario as pretty disheartening that a government can sort of remove any accountability in decisions that put the people of this province at risk,” Shellnutt said.
“In our justice system, if you do something that’s negligent or you create a dangerous situation and someone’s injured, they have recourse by way of the law against you. And so if that applies to regular citizens, it must apply to the government… I think people across the province, whether you like bike lanes or not, ought to be waking up to this and saying that this provincial government is bringing down some pretty draconian legislation that should strike fear into the hearts of everybody.”
