City council had no right to order the removal of the Jarvis Street bike lanes without first conducting a study on reverting to the old car-friendly configuration.
That’s the opinion of a lawyer hired pro bono by the Toronto Cyclists Union, which has long argued that the bike lanes on Jarvis make the street safer for riders and have not hindered car traffic.
At a press conference Tuesday at City Hall the bike advocacy group released a document prepared by Iler Campbell, LLP, which alleges that the bike lanes cannot be taken out without first conducting a high-level environmental assessment of the street. The review, called a Schedule C EA, is required for city projects that could have significant negative impacts on the surrounding community.
“We feel there are sufficient grounds to call upon the city to undertake a full Schedule C environmental assessment process for the Jarvis St. reconfiguration,” said Andrea Garcia, the TCU’s director of advocacy. “As such any steps to revert Jarvis St. to its pre-existing condition should be put on hold until the EA is undertaken and council has had the opportunity to vote on the matter with proper information.”
The middle car lane on Jarvis was removed to make room for bike lanes in 2010, but council voted to reverse the decision in July of last year in a move that provoked fierce backlash from the cycling community.
The legal document makes the case that council’s decision can’t be reversed without an EA however. It argues a full review is warranted because of the intense public interest in Jarvis and the increased car traffic’s potential effect on “air quality, efficient transportation, healthy lifestyles, cultural heritage, and the economy.” It also charges that removing bike lanes runs counter to official provincial and city policies that encourage cycling, and that any reversal of those policies should be subject to review.
A full Schedule C study would require a public consultation, which the TCU believes was lacking when the Jarvis issue went to council last year.
“I do feel confident that the EA will show that the street is working fine for everybody and therefore [the lanes] should stay,” said Garcia.
The group is asking for a response from the city within 10 days, after which it will take its case to the provincial ministry of environment. Garcia would not rule out court action if the city does not comply.
Kristyn Wong-Tam, local councillor for the area, supports the TCU’s legal gambit. Last July she opposed council’s direction to remove of the lanes and says that in recent months she’s been inundated with messages from constituents who think they’ve made the community safer.
Wong-Tam says that after July’s council vote, she asked city staff whether an EA was required and was told that it was not. In light of Tuesday’s legal opinion however, she’s thinks that advice could have been tainted by Mayor Rob Ford’s vocal opposition to the Jarvis lanes.
“At that point in time I felt reasonably satisfied that they gave me a proper answer,” she said. “Now reading this 12-page legal opinion I’m questioning whether city staff did give me the appropriate response or if perhaps the response they gave me was politically motivated.”
Seven months removed from council’s decision, cycling advocates are hoping the mayor’s waning influence at City Hall will benefit their cause if the Jarvis issue is reopened. Councillor Michelle Berardinetti, a former Ford ally who has recently distanced herself from his agenda, has already signaled she’s willing to revisit her support for going back to the five-car-lane plan.
Another Ford-friendly councillor, public works chair Councillor Denzil Minnan-Wong, remains unmoved however. His committee would have to approve any new EA, and he says that while he’ll review the legal opinion, as far as he’s concerned council acted properly.
“At the time that council made its decision we never saw any advice saying we needed to do anything else. Staff looked at this and offered an opinion,” he said.
Last year Minnan-Wong, who says he supports cyclists, proudly showed off his new TCU membership card around City Hall. But on Tuesday he was having second thoughts.
“I don’t believe I’ll be renewing my membership,” he said.
City staff estimates removing the bike lanes will cost $272,000.
