Lawyer, and former Toronto Police Services Board chair, Alan Heisey, is being supported by bike union members in calling for a crackdown on bike lane blockers. Currently the city is putting in bike lanes but enforcement is lax, effectively negating their usefulness.
A former Toronto Police board chairman wants cops to crack down on bike lane blockers.
In a letter to his former board, lawyer Alan Heisey details his run-ins with vehicles illegally parked in Toronto's bike lanes and demands the police services board order its boys in blue and the blue hornets to unleash a ticketing blitz.
"There has been an awful lot of good intentions by the city implementing a system of bicycle lanes, but as we all know the road to hell is paved with good intentions," Heisey told the Sun yesterday. "The bicycle lanes as a practical matter don't exist because they are not usable."
Along with the crackdown, Heisey -- an avid city cyclist for the past 35 years -- wants the board to consider putting cameras on the Bay St. bike-transit lanes to catch violators and increase fines to those who use bike lanes as short-term parking spots.
He also wants the board to ask police and parking enforcement vehicles to avoid stopping in bike lanes unless it's an emergency.
"It's interesting that some motorists complain about how little the bicycle lanes are used and I would say one of the reasons that that is possible is because motorists occupy the bicycle lanes on such a frequent basis," Heisey said. "It's a (bike) road to nowhere."
The police board will consider Heisey's letter and a deputation from Yvonne Bambrick of the Toronto Cyclists Union tomorrow. Bambrick said the union passed on 200 letters from its members supporting Heisey's recommendations.
While she doesn't support using cameras to catch bike lane blockers, she does want a crackdown on violators and would like to see the about $60 fine for blocking the lane to at least double.
Traffic services Sgt. Tim Burrows said parking control and police officers currently issue tickets for those caught parked illegally in the lanes.
"Most of the time ... by the time we get the call and get over there, (the vehicle) is gone," he said. "It is a problem and it is a risk to safety when someone decides they are going to occupy the lane illegally."
I think many of us have seen police drive right by vehicles parked in bike lanes. I can't see how anyone could miss them. Drive down College at any time of day and you'll find any number of taxis, Canada Post, Fed Ex and other courier trucks blocking the lane. Please deputize us cyclists and we'll solve this problem while making loads of money for the cops!
Comments
vic
But will the cops care?
Wed, 11/18/2009 - 16:04The police generally don't care about motorists parking in bike lanes. Even if the fines are increased and officers told to be more vigilant about it, will they actually do more for us?
There's a restaurant on the south-east corner at Annette and Runnymede where the cops are always stopping for snacks / meals. Car cops, bike cops, etc. I rode by on my way home from work last week and there was a cop car blocking the bike lane. A cop was carrying his takeout from the restaurant to the car. Great example there. In front of him was a big black SUV (civilian). In front of that? Another cop car!
They. Don't. care. Not even the parking enforcement officers.
robb (not verified)
Souvlaki emergencies
Wed, 11/18/2009 - 17:48**** I bike by that take out place every day, and it drives me nuts to see the cops parked illegally. It sends the message loud and clear that bike lanes do not need to be respected, and on that corner people are taking the message to heart. Even though there's parking right across the street, people are always stopping there.
That corner was a major turning point (no pun) for cycling in the city. It was the first time, in my memory, that significant opposition from business owners was overcome, and bike lanes were installed where there were some complaints. To see the police refuse to respect how this democratic process unfolded is tremendously disheartening. Perhaps it is time for more direct activism - ''taking the lane' parties, or something similar...
electric
They won't be giving out hugs either.
Wed, 11/18/2009 - 19:03Do the police care well the answer is maybe, you'll have to ask the constable.
However, I do know that if their supervisor says "ok people, today we'll be ticketing drivers parked in bike lanes" then the job will get done for the most part! I think in this case law enforcement has less todo with caring and more todo with public priorities... usually they both exist in the same realm but, sometimes when it comes to cyclists they just don't. So it is good the former police chair is speaking out. Somebody has to make the police "care", set their enforcement agenda. Otherwise there are just too many "small" issues to deal with.
Though, recently the bike-lane parking issue has become more than "small". Most drivers really do treat a bike-lane as an opportunity to stop and get out "just for a second". If the city plans to install bike lanes on busy carterials then lack of enforcement is going to ruin their careful traffic plan, particularly in regards to no standing or stopping zones put in place to keep traffic flowing. The bike-lane parking ruins the city's plan because there is a secondary effect caused by drivers stopping in these bicycle lanes. That effect is the subtle corruption of the flow of traffic, since a bike-lane can only fit 1/2 the width of the car. The rest of the car sticks out into traffic obstructing flow. Yet it is insidious because it appears as if nothing is wrong, or maybe it is only 1/2 wrong, since common sense reasoning says half a car in a lane isn't really a true obstruction. However, that is incorrect for many reasons, the worse being it sends cyclists squirting out into traffic. The merging process slows down traffic and is dangerous for the cyclist. Secondly, responsible drivers tend to slow down when a car is parked in such a manner since the passable gap in the lane narrows preventing any evasive action thus increasing the risk of collision.
Lastly, yes it is easy to pick on the police for parking in the bike-lane since it is a great example of hypocrisy but, really it is just a symptom of the laxness regarding bike-lane parking in general and nothing particularly insulting. Cops are regular people also who are tempted to "just stop for a second."
R A N T W I C K (not verified)
Ah well
Wed, 11/18/2009 - 16:30I drive, but I bike more. I'm not sure anyone will ever be able to resist the temptation to park in bike lanes any more than they do loading zones and stuff like that. It doesn't really bother me.Where there is an unobstructed bike lane, I'll use it, but when people park in it, I am comfortable taking the "car" lanes, because they are mine to use anyway, but especiallyin that case.
John Henry
Bikes
Wed, 11/18/2009 - 21:37Parking enforcement should use bikes.
kiwano
A bunch of them do. I don't
Tue, 11/24/2009 - 22:27A bunch of them do. I don't have an exact figure, but I can distinctly remember having a conversation with a bicycle-based parking enforcement officer about how much it frustrates him that he isn't allowed to convert his duty bike to a fixie.
The issue is more likely that we just need more of the bike-riding officers in areas where bike lane parking is a significant problem. I think that it's one hell of a low-hanging fruit to just take a parking enforcement officer or two (or maybe three or four), and tell them that their territory to cover is the bike lane on College St. until motorists get the point that stopping there is almost certain to produce a ticket and stop parking there.
There's really a lot that could be accomplished with some simple policy decisions here.
MattAlexander (not verified)
Bike Cops
Wed, 11/18/2009 - 21:54Bike cops should have an express mandate to patrol bike lanes, ticket cars parked in them and ticket cyclists who break the law. I can't think of anything else they're particularly well suited to, but I never see them out on the street during rush hour when clear bike lanes are most important.
Of course the other side of it is that the average car parked in a bike lane is probably stopped there for less time than it would take to write a ticket.
Cyclist should be deputized, not to hand out tickets, but to act as rolling cop cameras. We should be able to send our photos of cars parked in bike lanes to the police so they can mail them a ticket. Even if we have to register to participate it would mean more tickets and fear among drivers.
R A N T W I C K (not verified)
uh oh, I've been thinking again
Thu, 11/19/2009 - 10:07I have come to realize that I have what is bound to be an unpopular view of this issue. Particularly in busy downtown areas, what are we suggesting vehicles do instead? Where can they stop legally? I don't think bike lanes belong in areas where there aren't reasonable alternatives to stopping in them. I'm far from a "pro car" kind of person, and I've posted more thoughts along these lines at
rantwick.blogspot.com/2009/11/ive-got-question.html
and I welcome all opinions, especially well-reasoned ones that might change my mind.
SunnySide1
What would they do without the bike lanes?
Thu, 11/19/2009 - 11:23There are ALWAYS alternatives to stopping in a bike lane. The obvious one is to leave the car home. Another is to park in the lane of car traffic, leaving the cycle lane clear. Which no driver ever thinks of, but makes as much sense as blocking the cycle lane. One lane of traffic is blocked instead of 1.5. If you're simply disgorging passengers, all buildings should have a driveway/alleyway that a car can pull into . Alternatively (although still not legally) driving off the main drag and onto a lightly traveled side street will less affect traffic flow generally, and cyclists specifically. Longer stops (such as picking up takeout) may require finding an actual parking spot which can be problematic in some areas, but is rarely impossible. If impossible, then back to point number one.
Stopping in the bike lanes (in my experience) is almost always out of laziness and convenience rather than necessity. The example that comes to my mind is Sherbourne street- people will park in the cycle lane DIRECTLY in front of No Frills with plenty of available on-street parking less than 20m away. Because that would be an inconvenient sort of walk.
I have limited sympathy for people driving cars in a busy downtown area. There are trains and streetcars and buses and bikes and, of course, feet.
Antony (not verified)
That's exactly what I thought
Thu, 11/19/2009 - 16:16That's exactly what I thought when I ran into this. If you stop in a car lane, drivers will honk at you and generally make a lot of fuss. If you stop in a bike lane, well, cyclists might give you a dirty look.
In an abstract sense, people stop where there is less psychological "pressure". If cyclists started carrying air horns, calling the cops immediately, or more car slapping / spitting / water ballooning, then maybe the pressure would force cars into side streets, parking spots, or back into car traffic.
The Pedaller (not verified)
Ticket Master
Thu, 11/19/2009 - 11:35On occassion I will spank or tap a vehicle stopped in a Bike Lane, other times I have called the City in full view of the driver, or politely asked if they could move their car.
All of these methods find results in some fashion, but it IS abour time for enforcement in the way of tickets.
The Pedaller (not verified)
Ticket Master
Thu, 11/19/2009 - 11:35On occassion I will spank or tap a vehicle stopped in a Bike Lane, other times I have called the City in full view of the driver, or politely asked if they could move their car.
All of these methods find results in some fashion, but it IS abour time for enforcement in the way of tickets.
jamesmallon (not verified)
driver's side door handle
Thu, 11/19/2009 - 11:57It's a bit petty, but more effective than appealing to our auto-head cops and politicians: I 'accidentally' spit on the driver's side door handle of tools parked in the bike lane. Not so effective once people start wearing winter gloves...
good_lord (not verified)
We should start calling you The Camel.
Thu, 11/19/2009 - 17:12If the driver gets out and loses their shit after you do that, a high possibility if they're an off duty TO cop, then you might end up being charged with mischief and they will get off since they were "only defending their car"
I often thought about having some magnets done up that I could slap on offending trunks and tailgates... oh the possibilities, maybe even some with a super-glue backing!
"Thank You" wouldn't be one of my messages. Can we get the bike union in on these?
SunnySide1
I actually have been considering stickers
Sat, 11/21/2009 - 17:41With something along the line of
"I tried to kill a cyclist today"
or
"Yes, my drivers license DID come from a cracker jack box"
and a few dozen other iterations of things I often yell at passing motorists
cheaper and more permanent than magnets
I'm not exactly sure where the line of vandalism/mischief is, but a theoretically removable sticker seems at worst borderline. But I'm no lawyer.
I am not sure slapping/spitting on cars is at all advisable not just for legal reasons but because I really don't like the idea of descending to that level. I tend on the side of dirty looks and verbal correction. But that's me, and I certainly understand the urge.
Kevin Love
Private parking lot operators
Sat, 11/21/2009 - 20:25Private parking lot operators commonly use the stickers sold at this site:
myparkingpermit. com
A quote from the site:
"Our ScrapeIt™ stickers use a strong adhesive that the driver must use a blade to remove. Yes, this is doable – but a real nuisance."
I suspect that regular use of these stickers by Toronto's bike community would lead to a sharp reduction in bike lane parking.
Tom Flaherty
Dirty Deeds
Sun, 11/22/2009 - 11:12I understand the frustration that spawns ideas like putting stickers on cars; it's a symptom of the greater problem that cyclists feel like second class road users. But to suggest that vandalizing cars would lead to a sharp reduction in bike lane parking is ridiculous.
Maybe a static window application would get the same message across in a way that appealed to the driver's sense of reason instead of stoking their resentment towards cyclists.
There is no such thing as bad drivers or bad cyclists, just bad people – don’t be one.
Svend
Agreed, Tom
Sun, 11/22/2009 - 16:41Spitting, shouting, vandalizing, will all confirm existing notions about cyclists.
Most drivers are potential cyclists, we want to encourage them to take that step.
Seymore Bikes
Deep Thoughts by Jack Handey
Sun, 11/22/2009 - 22:54I slapped the hind quarters of a car parked in a bike lane on my way to work one day.
Words were expressed by all involved, and I carried on my way as my sense of victory faded in a feeling of uncertainty; had I done the right thing?; could I have just asked him to move?.
I still see that car on my way to work some days, idling beside a parking lot, near to the spot where we first met, but well out of the way of my bike (and my hand).
locutas_of_spragge
Actually...
Sun, 11/22/2009 - 18:14as any veteran protester knows, people who wilfully block a lane of traffic can find themselves charged with mischief. I suspect that if one of the more egregious offenders in these instances found themselves begging the court not to give them a criminal record, the notion that anyone can use bicycle lanes for anything they want would go out the window pretty fast. Yesterday I had an air conditioning service guy tell me that he wouldn't get out of the bike lane unless I found him another place to work.
Dragonstar
Did anyone call?
Fri, 11/20/2009 - 01:03According to the City of Toronto's cycling website at http://www.toronto.ca/cycling/index.htm they listed a contact number for illegally parked cars in a bike lane.
Has anyone tried this number? Personally, I haven't but I also expect not much to happen if I did.
They also list numbers for debris in a bike lane, snow in a bike lane and potholes (not 311 probably because not updated)
The Pedaller (not verified)
S.E.T.I.
Fri, 11/20/2009 - 08:57I have caled and reported cars - I've even called the attention of near by Parking Enforcment to cars in Bike Lanes, but it's like I'm reporting a U.F.O. or something!
In my opinion there first needs to be a change in the attitude of how we manage Bike Lanes before we expect anything to change.
David Juliusson (not verified)
Cars park every morning in front of LAMP on Birmingham Lane
Fri, 11/20/2009 - 12:22I have a pet peeve. I ride the Birmingham bike lane every morining on my way to work. There is always a car parked in the lane with hazards flashing. Across the street is the brand new Police College.
I have approached officers sitting outide having a break about it. They just look at me and say it is not their job.
Look at what we are teaching the next generation of Police Officers. People park right in front of their training facility and nothing is done about it. I am sure they get the message loud and clear.
hamish (not verified)
some blockages are built in
Fri, 11/20/2009 - 18:53This is relatively speaking a nuance - but in winter, along parts of College and St. George and Spadina, the City has been unable or unwilling to plow out the indented parking bays, so that all! the motorists park further out, often to the point of totally occupying the bike lane.
This may well be a favoured look by urban designers and politicians who are happy to point to a different street design as being "greener" or with "wider" sidewalks, but it becomes more dangerous for cyclists in wintertime, and even can block or slow the motorized traffic.
So we don't need as many of these indents as are being approved eg. Roncesvalles and Bloor.
simplicius2wheels
Parking tickets being canceled
Mon, 03/08/2010 - 16:30Today's Star describes how the city cancels parking tickets for certain situations - delivery situations is one of those. That makes you think that we've been bambuzzled (at TCAC meetings, for instance) into believing teh city is enforcing the law.
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/transportation/article/776461--secret-pa...
dances_with_traffic (not verified)
So that is why they keep parking in bike lanes
Mon, 03/08/2010 - 19:29because there is no incentive not to!
Not only do you have to be soooo unlucky to even get a ticket for parking in a bike lane, you can simply go to court, tell them you were delivering $5 to tim hortons and have the ticket ripped up!
Hahaha... oh my goodness.
smacks head
dances_with_traffic (not verified)
So far i haven't heard of any crack down.
Mon, 03/08/2010 - 19:30Except it you mean the serious of retaliatory crack downs on cyclists. Bunch of whiners are gonna get what is comin' to them!
anthony
Physical Barriers, another war brewing
Mon, 03/08/2010 - 23:42Tonight, at the TCAC meeting, a petition for physical barriers to protect the Beverly/St.George bike lanes was presented. Staff said that there have been an increasing number of requests for physical barriers to protect bike lanes.
The main motivating factors driving these requests coming is that problem with parking in bike lanes is getting much worse; drivers are increasingly realizing that getting a ticket is a real long-shot because most cops (and even most parking enforcement officers) are totally apathetic about enforcing bike lanes.
What do you do when your playmates don't share? You take your ball away.
What do you do with drivers who don't play nice? You give them fewer places to play.
Tonight there were even calls to make the section through UofT a car-free zone; this call actually a bit of traction!
As drivers escalate 'the war on the bike' (by parking in bike lanes), the cyclists are escalating 'the war on the car' (by asking for barriers, and for car-free places)...
...I find this fascinating to watch. But then we humans do like to watch fights...
geoffrey
re: Physical Barriers, another war brewing
Tue, 03/09/2010 - 10:45There is no "war on cars". There never has been. This is taking back a community resource that was stolen from the community for the benefit of a "privileged", short sighted and greedy few:
http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2009/05/19/new-frames-for-new-ages/
geoffrey
parking link
Tue, 03/09/2010 - 10:52http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/transportation/article/776461--secret-pa...
I believe tickets are taken to city hall where counter droids cancel the tickets.
On another note, how did you make BOTH the TCAC meeting and the Etobicoke Civic Centre bike lane meeting Anthony? Is that smoke wafting from the soles of your shoes?
anthony
Two meetings in one night
Tue, 03/09/2010 - 12:12Shh, don't tell anyone, but my dirty little secret is that I drove my car from one meeting to the other, and I was a little late for the latter.
anthony
Not a war? Then in what context are these "sides" fighting?
Tue, 03/09/2010 - 12:09I used the terminology of "war" because it's overuse in the news media is funny. And because there might just be some truth to it.
Not that I think that what you've linked to -- about how pedestrian and cycling advocates are merely playing a modern version of "Robin Hood" -- is wrong; but if there is no "war," there seems to be an awful lot of fighting going on.
To some people in this city, the term "Cyclist" has become an epithet, that is a defamatory or abusive or contemptuous word or phrase. To a few people, the epithet is "Driver" or "Motorist." At least some of us, culturally, seem to have adopted this as a war. Personally, I've had the term "bike lobby" hurled at me as an epithet.
Consider the tactics that Mayoral Candidates are using: Although he doesn't use these terms, I find it most curious that George Smitherman is calling for a ceasefire period during which time he's hoping to negotiate a type of peace accord. Rocco Rossi is using language of a diplomat yet he's asking to abolish cycling from Toronto's arterial streets.
There is ongoing escalation of tensions and of battles by both "sides. My note earlier was describing some of these escalations.
Groups like URS and OURS have been using Guerrilla tactics, for example, their DIY bike lanes. And drivers, like Bryant, have engaged in killings of the "other," that is, the perceived enemy.
These activities are most often found in the context of a war. Politicians have actually used the term 'war' in their rhetoric, which is how the news media found the term.
But you're right about one thing: no one I have ever known has declared a formal "war" against the car. Instead what has happened is than many people have realized the car is the biggest impediment for building better communities, and is also poses the biggest risk to our existing communities. That the car is also is the biggest safety risk to our personal well being as we travel within these communities is merely icing on the cake.
Regardless, even if this "fighting" is not happening in the context of a war, the real point I was trying to share is that I find these fights and battles fascinating to watch in much the same way that many enjoy watching Boxing, Wrestling, or Football.