Will anti-bike lane rhetoric win elections? Do all residents want fast car traffic?

TorontoCranks informed me of some anti-bike lane campaigning taking place in Scarborough, Ward 35 - Adrian Heaps' ward. There's no love lost on Heaps by hardcore cycling advocates (including TorontoCranks who considers Heaps an "arrogant jackass") but TC points out that Heaps has done a lot to improve his ward. And at least Heaps has voted for all the bikeway network projects before council in the last 4 years while he was also the chair of the Cycling Committee.

Can an anti-bike lane screed win Michelle Berardinetti this ward? I'm skeptical since I don't believe the issue is front and centre for lots of people who are likely more worried about their jobs. TorontoCranks makes the great point that the bike lanes on Pharmacy, which Ms. Berardinetti complains about so loudly, were installed on what is basically a residential street. Much like the Dundas East bike lanes, the Pharmacy lanes have calmed traffic and made it safer for all the residents. This may be something which the locals have noticed.

Pharmacy Avenue in Ward 35 runs from Eglinton to Danforth Avenue. 90% of the addresses in this section are homes. There are two small strip malls, an indoor mall at Eglinton, one gas station and two factories on Pharmacy. There are also two schools, two recreation centres and two major apartment complexes. There are also a few schools set back from Pharmacy. A lot of kids use Pharmacy or cross it to get to and from school. Before the bike lanes were installed collisions were a near daily occurrence. Screeching tires a near hourly occurrence. Two things caused these accidents. High speed and the fact that many intersections on Pharmacy have the crossing street offset.

The speed limit on Pharmacy is 50kmh. Yes the bike lanes have slowed traffic. To about 55-65kmh compared to pre-bike lanes of 60-80kmh. Largest ticket from a radar trap outside my house was 100kmh. Post installation there has been a great reduction in collisions. So effectively Ms.Berardinetti wants to increase the speed on Pharmacy Avenue resulting in more collisions. After 60kmh, crosswalks and crossing guards become useless. Not enough time for either driver or pedestrians to react if their paths cross. This is why two crosswalks were removed from Pharmacy and replaced with stoplights… and yes part of the rationale of installing bike lanes was to reduce the speed on Pharmacy. Actually residents were calling for the installation of speed bumps. So how will her plan for increased speed benefit the kids walking to school? Prior to the bike lanes you knew things were bad when the semi-crusty mechanic from across the street would help kids cross the street to help them avoid being hit. The look on seniors’ faces was also precious as they tried to cross four lanes to get to the post box outside my house. Have bike lanes solved all of the warts on Pharmacy? No but it is a lot better now compared to before. This is a residential street and not a high speed shortcut for 905?ers.

Tags:

Ward 35

politics

bike lanes

Comments

Random cyclist (not verified)

Ironic

Mon, 10/11/2010 - 18:06

Ironic that Scarborough is a place that feeds off Toronto. So they want faster routes to drive their cars into my city. Take transit. I'm all for shoving Scarborough out of Toronto anyway. Downtown tolls for outskirt trolls.

SunnySide1

Thats a little scary

Tue, 10/12/2010 - 15:19

Because "real change" is clearly defined by her as "stepping back 30 years in our ways of thinking". Yes, I guess that's a change, when you put it that way.

Does she think she's appealing to voters, or does she think that she's right? That's the question here. She's either a bad politician, and is willing to "do a stupid" for the sake of getting elected, or she's a bad planner, and thinks what she is suggesting actually makes sense. I don't know which possibility is more alarming.

Seymore Bikes

Catching Fish with Snot

Tue, 10/12/2010 - 22:49

To unseat an incumbent Councillor one must go for the throat, except in this case Heaps is wearing a turtle neck made from forward thinking positions on transportation alternatives.

Michelle Berardinetti attacks Heaps on the fact that he supported spending $7 million on Bike Lanes in 2009. Because in all seriousness, that could pay for 38 metres of Subway, or 10 days of Road Repair.

Baiting voters with false realities might get their attention, but you still need to get them on board. But in time they will realize that they've been duped.

jamesmallon (not verified)

False Consciousness

Tue, 10/12/2010 - 23:26

"in time they will realize that they've been duped." No, not really.

kiwano

People don't know their "illions" apart.

Wed, 10/13/2010 - 16:05

The average voter, newspaper reader, etc. can't really be bothered to stop and think about the difference between a million, a billion, or a trillion. In their mindset, all numbers ending with "illion" are just really big. I mean if you stop and ask someone whether $2 billion (AKA roughly what Toronto spends on policing annually) is bigger than $7 million, they'll be able to answer that correctly, but they'll have no idea how much bigger it is. Compared to the total operating budget for Transportation services (somewhere in the neighbourhood of half a billion, last I checked), $7M is noise, but there's no way that we can count on the average voter to have even the slightest clue about that.

Ivanovitch (not verified)

Like it or not

Wed, 10/13/2010 - 23:24

Weather you are an avid cyclist or not, most of us have one thing in common if we are really honest. When we do get into our car, or cab, we want to get to our destination safely, and with minimal obstruction. Whether bike lanes or speed bumps, it doesn't matter, if it interferes with traffic, and there is a better way to accomplish the same goal, it should be reconsidered.

It seems to me that Adrian Heaps is an avid cyclist. The choice to place bike lanes around his ward and to conspire on a broader plan for the city, especially without constituent consultation seems a bit self serving. Its like needing more money and voting yourself a pay raise without talking to the people that put you in office.

The speed issue is of course a ruse. More confusing data by the cyclist special interest to gain ground by misinforming the public. It sounds cool, but doesn't make it any more accurate. The, "I know a guy" or "I know a police officer that tells me..." line has been well played. It is usually delivered by those that can't stand on the facts or the merits of their ideas. So they try to support it with "you know they say that..." comments.

Alas the cyclist special interest will win of course because they have an advocate in the seat of power who has no qualms about pushing his narrow agenda despite what the majority of the people who put him there think.

Darren_S

502 homes

Thu, 10/14/2010 - 06:06

Ivanovitch,

Check her website. She touts an endorsement from a group that wants to use the hydro corridor for HWY 448. Over 500 homes will have to be bulldozed. Her plan for cyclists comes right out of their play book.

dances_with_traffic (not verified)

Oh no, a Councillor who rides

Wed, 10/13/2010 - 23:55

Oh no, a Councillor who rides a bicycle!

Well how the heck ivanovich how do most of the other Councillors get to work? Oh yeah! in cars... and they've been voting for paving new roads for themselves for decades!

The True conspiracy is revealed! These self-serving car driving Councillors never consult the whole community, they just keep installing massive roads at the behest of GM and FORD. I hope two-faced Michelle doesn't tear up my home for the new freeway!

Ivanovitch (not verified)

In response to the Oh no guy

Thu, 10/14/2010 - 00:17

Yes, it is true. You are correct. The majority of councillors get to work by motorized transportation. Coincidentally, the majority of Torontonians do as well. Shocking that councillors would vote in favor of making a mode of transportation that the majority use daily work better. I will point out that many of the same car driving, road hogging councillors have also voted in favor of bike paths that are inter-connected all over the city. They have made it possible to get from Scarborough to downtown with very little roadway use.

No-one is tearing up homes for freeways, at least not that I have heard, however, all those cars on Birchmount Road and Danforth sitting, idling, in a single lane for 15 minutes waiting to get through a light just might pump all kinds of toxic fumes into your home. It isn't really the freeway that poses the most danger for your home, is it.

Ivanovitch (not verified)

In response to the Oh no guy

Thu, 10/14/2010 - 00:17

dances_with_traffic (not verified)

Well then, why is it shocking

Thu, 10/14/2010 - 01:10

Well then, why is it shocking they should vote for improving the cycling mode? Not much of the conspiracy you claimed it to be. Cars are a special interest group also you know! The car Councillors have done a very good job of voting down many bike oriented plans. From what i've seen lately anti-bike is what the hype is about(see above flyer).

If nobody is going to build a freeway through your neighbourhood then you'll just have to put with idling traffic jams. Even if a freeway was built, it would be at capacity quickly.

I haven't seen any large interconnected bike routes in this city, most pathways are glorified walking paths which lead to almost nowhere. Great for leisure on sunday but, for most of us they're useless for getting to work. Is it any wonder more cars are ending up clogging the roads?

Toronto has to innovate - not fall backwards into it's old ways, that is disaster and failure to adapt - the landscape has significantly changed.

Flagmore (not verified)

FYI Ivanovitch

Thu, 10/14/2010 - 10:35

Bike Lanes are voted through in City Council by all Councillors and the Mayor, it is not the decision of one.

Ivanovitch (not verified)

Councillors represent the

Thu, 10/14/2010 - 11:38

Councillors represent the people. Their contract with their constituents is that they are in council to represent the will and act on behalf of the people in their riding. What they are not supposed to do is act against the majority because of their personal bias. Democracy isn't about ramming your views down the throats of the people that put you in office. The was no community consultation. Today bike fans may win this battle. The minority rules.

thomas owain

There's still time to change your mind.

Thu, 10/14/2010 - 13:30

It's much more fun to support good ideas. Hey, look what's going on in Portland. The BikeTO tweets are all over it.

dances_with_traffic (not verified)

That is pretty naive

Thu, 10/14/2010 - 12:02

That is pretty naive Ivan.

How is it you know they acted against the majority? How should we treat the minority? The fact is that the majority is served by bicycle lanes and the minority is supported.

I really doubt any rational person would conclude bicycles are ruling the road. Take a time out from reading a politician's flyer as fact. This woman clearly takes an unsophisticated two-faced approach to weaseling away your vote.

Ivanovitch (not verified)

You keep referring to

Thu, 10/14/2010 - 13:25

You keep referring to Michelle. This must be personal. The facts are then irrelevant here.

dances_with_traffic (not verified)

No, it's not personal Ivan.

Thu, 10/14/2010 - 21:35

No, it's not personal Ivan. You are posting comments to an article about her. Facts are not irrelevant. If you read her other propaganda she claims to be pro-environment and cycling, yet goes around telling a specific group of people she is anti-cycling. That is what I call a liar.

Ward 35 guy (not verified)

In case anyone cares, I live

Fri, 10/15/2010 - 16:30

In case anyone cares, I live in the ward, and one of those bike-laned streets is my main route whether by car or bus. And really, it's made what was once a bit of a drag strip into a more pedestrian friendly roadway.

Sure, it takes me an extra 45 seconds to go from one block to the next, but really, it's not an issue. What it does mean is that I'm less likly to get killed crossing the street heading home from the bus stop. And the road is marked at 50, and is mostly residential, so why are you racing?

As to democracy? The locals voted for heaps with a clear statement on his part that he was pro-bicycle. Community consultation? It's called an election. Don't like it? Vote him out, or change the process. Arguing on a blog is unlikley to change anything.

locutas_of_spragge

Ivanovich: When I have

Tue, 10/19/2010 - 12:42

Ivanovich: When I have occasion to need to drive, I prefer not to deal with congestion. As in most places, traffic congestion in this city happens because too many people choose to take their cars out on the road. Congestion also happens because people who drive frequently go to considerable lengths to prevent other people from driving on their streets. People do care about the speed motorists drive around their children; I can't believe anyone who doesn't notice that drives in this city.

As for the majority: last time I checked, the majority of Toronto residents have bicycles and ride them at least some of the time. When the local councilor where I live opposed bike lanes on Annette, over a hundred people wrote city council to demand them; not one person wrote to oppose them. I suspect the majority of people in this city do understand the need for bicycle lanes and the need to reduce unnecessary driving.

Random cyclist (not verified)

Ha

Fri, 10/22/2010 - 09:26

Ivanovitch are you on crack-cocaine? Public consultations are the norm for installation of infrastructure such as bike lanes.

Point to one example wherein a bike lane was installed without public consultation.

Go on, show me one, just one.

Can you do it?

C'mon!

What is wrong with you?

Stand up for what you said and show an example demonstrating that you are not just a blowhard.

Why can't you do this one simple thing to support your contention?

Oh yeah... cause you're dead wrong.

Also, Heaps will win for one simple reason already mentioned.

The reason?

Only rhetoric fed, hyperbole spouting pundits and prospective politicians are confused about this.

So get ready.

You heard it here, don't forget it.

Here it comes.

Did you sit down yet?

Okay.

Bike lanes.
Are.
Not.
An.
Election.
Issue.
For.
Most.
Of.
Us.
Voters.

Pretty simple huh?

It's true too.

People that care about that issue are... bike nerds, a small minority. Also, pundits and politicians, also a tiny minority.

The rest of us.

We laugh.

And disregard anyone who thinks they can engage us on such a non-issue.

Good luck to your candidate finding work next week. Lots of positions open for people willing to say stupid things to try and fool the public they hold in disdain.

Anonymous (not verified)

Sat, 10/23/2010 - 09:21

The group.

Martinho (not verified)