I'm sure there's some interest out there on this. Any great ideas?
Call for submissions - Deadline November 5, 2008
Do you live in the downtown west-end in the area bounded by Bloor and the Gardiner, from Keele to Bathurst? Do your ride a bicycle through that area? If you answered yes, we want to hear from you!
In partnership with the Toronto Cyclists Union, the City of Toronto is seeking your ideas on bikeway projects for west-end Toronto. We are looking for quick fixes that can be built in 2009-2010, so please keep in mind potential hurdles associated with your suggestions.
The west-end challenge:
Currently, there is a "black hole" in the bikeway network in the downtown west-side. Street car tracks on east-west arteries, disjointed local streets, and railway corridors all pose challenges to accommodating bikeways.We want your help to identify potential bikeways to be designed and implemented in 2009 and 2010. We're not just talking bike lanes - we're looking for new ideas that respond to the specific challenges in the west-end.
Submit your west-end bikeway suggestions:
Text or visual submissions are welcome. Draw over the study area map on the back of this page, or whatever other material you like, and send it in to us. Or write your suggestions down in 300 words or less. Your brevity ensures submissions can be processed in a timely manner.You can find printed copies of this call for submission, and the study area map, at these locations:
- Community Bicycle Network - 761 Queen Street West
- Trinity Community Recreation Centre - 155 Crawford S
- Parkdale Public Library - 1303 Queen Street West
- Ideal Coffee (on Ossington) - 162 Ossington Avenue
- The Bike Joint - 290 A Harbord St
- College/Shaw Public Library - 766 College Street
- Alternative Grounds - 333 Roncesvalles Avenue
- West Side Cycle - 213 Roncesvalles Avenue
Send your submissions by email, fax or mail to:
Please specify "West-end Bikeways" in the subject line for e-mails and faxes.
E-mail: bikeplan@toronto.ca
Fax: 416-392-0071Mail: Attn: West-end Bikeways
850 Coxwell Avenue, 1st floor
Toronto, ON M4C 5RIAll submissions must be received by: Wednesday, November 5, 2008.
Thank-you in advance for your participation. All submissions will be reviewed by City of Toronto Transportation Services and the Toronto Cyclists Union in cooperation with the westend community. Selected bikeway projects will be announced in Winter 2009.
Thanks to the little bird who whispered this in my ear. ;-)
Comments
The EnigManiac
I am just north of Bloor on
Sun, 10/19/2008 - 22:58I am just north of Bloor on Dovercourt, but naturally ride south of Bloor most of the time. The only bike lanes nearby are Davenport to the north and Harbord to the south. Both run east-west, of course. There are no north-south bike lanes whatsoever---I'm not counting the three-inch sliver of a lane they installed on Spadina; that's a joke. Fortunately, I work at the dome and St. George / Beverly gets me from Harbord down to Queen. From there I have to manage John St. down to Front. Bathurst and Dufferin are treacherous streets at the best of time due to the speed and aggressiveness that motorists feel they must employ. I tend to use the many side streets.
In my opinion, Manning and/or Palmerston are ideal choices for north-south routes, particularly Palmerston as it is nice and wide. The road surface on both those roads, however, is atrocious with many pot-holes, cracks, bumps and debris. Both streets feature intersections at main roads though.
Adelaide and Richmond both would be good options for east-west routes for the south section of the city.
andy (not verified)
Remember to have any chance
Mon, 10/20/2008 - 08:35Remember to have any chance of success, your ideas should only include streets that are already safe where no parking spots will be lost and no merchant or car driver inconvenienced.
herb
need good east-west routes
Mon, 10/20/2008 - 09:09EnigManiac, I don't think anyone is worrying about a good north-south bike lane. You can choose from any number of side streets to get you north-south. Putting bike lanes on Manning or Palmerston is pointless (unless they are contra-flow). Their traffic is low and slow, and people wouldn't want to be stuck with Palmerston when they are out by Keele or even Dufferin.
The City should implement a lot more contra-flow lanes if they want to make legal what most cyclists do anyway. The big issue, however, is finding good east-west routes that span most of the distance from Keele to Bathurst. There's the rub.
I will be submitting my ideas. I worry that even these somewhat modest ideas will be beyond the means of the City to implement. I tried to keep the contra-flow lanes to a minimum but you just can't use any side roads without contra-flow (def: a bike lane that goes against the one-way traffic on that road).
My current idea involves putting something like sharrows, destination signs and contra-flow lanes so cyclists can take side roads and know they won't end up way off track:
That's all I can think of right now. One important factor in making cyclists feel comfortable cycling on the arterial roads in the west-end is the speed of cars. If the City could enforce lower speed limits of, say, 30 km/h on all the arterial roads this would already go a long way to make it more comfortable. Most of the time roads like Queen are that slow anyway, which may go towards explaining why you find so many cyclists on it despite the annoyances of parked cars and streetcars.
The EnigManiac
North-South, East-West
Mon, 10/20/2008 - 13:23Herb, the request did not specify what they were looking for. Since I can't presume to know, I must assume they are looking at both north-south and east-west routes, therefore, I offered what I thought were good viable routes. Sorry if you thought they were pointless. Sheesh.
Experienced cyclists don't need bike lanes at all. We are generally comfortable in traffic and know how to take the lane and deal with those who try to crowd us. However, as we all know, most of the cyclists on the roads now are not experienced and, appealing to their sensitivity in regard to riding with motor traffic, suggesting good north-south routes might be attractive to novice and potential future cyclists whether they are on quiet, light-traffic residential streets or not. Some cyclists simply prefer to have the assumed safety of a painted white line.
In my email to the committee, I pointed out that Adelaide and Richmond---both being one-way in opposite directions---could be viable for core commuters if they connected with Strachan and up to Palmerston(Tecumseh)/Euclid combination or a contraflow on Palmerston. Not many of the other main routes like Dundas are viable due to narrow lanes, streetcar tracks and parking. The further west one travels out toward Keele, the fewer options there are. I don't ride much out there so I don't know what routes to suggest. Thanks for your suggestions out there, Herb; you know that section better than I. And I'm sure they're not pointless (just ribbing ya).
The key to any suggestion besides ensuring that the road is wide enough and we protect residents precious parking (though really it is public space and not theirs at all), because we wouldn't want the city to actually discourage car-use, goodness knows, is connectivity. Offering routes for core commuters is vital, in my humble opinion, as well as to other major destinations like the MGT, dome, ACC, Harbourfront, ferry docks, etc.
vic
Bike Plan doesn't show much either
Mon, 10/20/2008 - 13:04Even the Toronto Bike Plan doesn't have much in store for the west end.
The Railpath will be a very welcome addition when it opens next year, but it will only go as far south/east as College+Lansdowne for now (City doesn't own the land beyond that yet).
Good east-west routes are the big challenge. College St. actually isn't too bad, except it gets pretty narrow through Little Italy. Maybe it could possibly be improved upon somehow to make it better for cycling.
anthony
Correction from city staff
Mon, 10/20/2008 - 15:35I had originally posted that there were places in the community to drop off your ideas, that's not the case; feedback must to go directly to the city. The community locations will have printed copies of this with maps available for your perusal.
Svend
One word - Bloor
Mon, 10/20/2008 - 22:14I'm surprised the Bike Union has chosen this area over other areas with far less bike infrastructure for their first focus.
I'll still cheer for them though, more is good!
A.R. (not verified)
Railpath!
Tue, 10/21/2008 - 23:06Build the entire West Toronto Railpath. That would be such a convenient route.
hamish wilson (not verified)
uh, gee, what about Bloor?
Tue, 10/21/2008 - 23:41Better east-west biking has been a multi-year concern ever since seeing that pattern of crash and harm of cyclists with the predominant east-west carterials clearly marked out.
I'm a bit conflicted here for a couple of reasons, perhaps more on this later, but one clear option is Bloor St. right? No streetcar tracks, long, fairly flat in the west end, though some bigger hills as one heads west for true connectivity beyond High Park, and if/when we do squeeze the cars a bit for bike safety there's a massive amount of non-car mobility right beside the bike lanes!
One other key routing would be along Queen St. though of course the streetcar tracks are a larger challenge. It isn't the fault of the current generation of cyclists that Caronto hasn't built the Queen St. subway idea now 60 years old, and it's shameful that many current politicians put a lot of emphasis on "completing the grid" for motorists (eg. Front St. Extension at $125M a km) but have ignored even beginning a safe grid for area cyclists, perhaps at $25,000 a km.
A couple of years back, when there was a network subcommittee, I did put forward something involving extra paint markings on the street, though it was a bit unusual. But something was better than zilch, and it's been a known defect ever since the BIke Plan, and there was no "gee, maybe we should react to a tragic fatality", and instead of getting a full look at this with paid consultants (as the core east-west routes on RIchmond/Adelaide were okayed for being analyzed a year ago), we're getting the public to bring the ideas forward.
My overall thinking on this area is such that the highest and best use of the rail corridor must be for transit first and let's hope that we can fit or refit in a bikeway, but my overall sense is that it's relatively costly for relatively minor benefit and even though it's been built at c. $2.6Mfor 2kms, we seriously may have to relax about it being used for transit, though not the Blue 22. Please see the weston community coalition site for some details, though I favour a streetcar ROW to Front St., maybe a busway, and maybe we push for a velotube atop...
herb
think within the parameters
Wed, 10/22/2008 - 01:04As much as we all like to think expansively, and if we we were going to do that we should probably be hoping that cars get banned from Toronto, this isn't the time.
The City probably approached the bike union to help them with this discreet project of finding some bike routes that don't involve a long planning process or a huge political shift. This means Bloor, College, Dundas, Queen, King are out of the question. The rest of the Railpath is also out of the question since the City doesn't even own the land yet.
It's much more doable to put in some north-south bike lanes but on many of the side residential roads some sharrows would be just as useful. I don't find these particularly interesting or urgent. But they would be nice.
I think the biggest bang for buck here would be if the City could install more contra-flow lanes. That would open up a few more side roads to becoming half-decent bike routes.
No matter how experienced a cyclist will always like the chance to have a bit of breathing room from cars, especially if we're always worrying about possible car doors opening. It's also simply not practical to always take the lane on these routes. So I don't buy the "experienced cyclists don't need bike lanes" argument. Bike lanes can make my route much faster downtown.
Antony (not verified)
Process of elimination
Wed, 10/22/2008 - 15:50Getting over/under the rail bridge has always been my biggest headache in the west end. I don't imagine novice cyclists being comfortable riding under on Bloor, Lansdowne, Queen, or King, and agree with the previous poster that retrofitting bike lanes to those streets would be too big a pill for city council to swallow. That leaves only one underpass that is somewhat safe. Find it on the map for yourself. I would focus on that underpass and its north-south-east-west implications.
City Staff (not verified)
One further note to anyone
Fri, 10/24/2008 - 09:24One further note to anyone sending in a submission: Please include your name and contact information (email, telephone number, mailing address) with your submission if you would like to receive follow-up materials. Thank you to everyone for their interest in the West-end Bikeways project.
jonraesmith (not verified)
I don't care what people
Fri, 10/24/2008 - 15:59I don't care what people say, and I don't care about the cost. It needs to be done. Lives or convenience?!?!
In this part of town Queen/Dundas/College both need massive bicycle improvement. These parts of town are screaming for bicycle infrastructure and it will only increase as time goes on.
Most of the people here don't even drive cars anyway. Why are we giving priority to the car drivers who don't even live here.
Oh, and to the ridiculous argument to the person that said experienced cyclists don't need bike lanes...
1. Without a bike lane, cars hug the right curb. This is why during Rush hour Wellesley Street is so terrible for cyclists. Bikes spend most of their time sitting in traffic. With a real bike lane, cars hug the white line. And, since they are currently putting in (this week actually), I'm watching cars do this.
2. I've been biking in Toronto for 10 years and I consider myself experienced and a conservative cyclist, but just 3 weeks ago I was hit from behind by a car. Explain that.
The EnigManiac
Oh, and to the ridiculous
Sat, 10/25/2008 - 15:28Oh, and to the ridiculous argument to the person that said experienced cyclists don't need bike lanes...
1. Without a bike lane, cars hug the right curb. This is why during Rush hour Wellesley Street is so terrible for cyclists. Bikes spend most of their time sitting in traffic. With a real bike lane, cars hug the white line. And, since they are currently putting in (this week actually), I'm watching cars do this.
2. I've been biking in Toronto for 10 years and I consider myself experienced and a conservative cyclist, but just 3 weeks ago I was hit from behind by a car. Explain that.
There used to be a time when we had no bike lanes at all. Yet there were still thousands of cyclists. Explain that. That is when many of us were already experienced cyclists. We learned to take the lane and filter. We learned to choose our routes carefully. Indeed, there were and are some lanes that are so narrow that vehicles do hug the right curb. However, due to being so narrow, those roads would never be considered eligible for a bike lane anyway, so the point is moot. Avoid roads and streets where the curb lane is narrow, whenever possible. I do. In 30 years of accident-free urban cycling, I understand and acknowledge that there are some roads that are simpy not bike-friendly. Fortunately, there are often---though not always---other options. Bike lanes are fine. I like them and use them, for the most part, but not always and I'm not intimidated by most roads that don't have them.
In future, if you don't mind me saying, state your argument without the unnecessary derision. You're free to disagree and offer your viewpoint, but you won't likely encourage respect if you call a much more experienced cyclists remarks 'ridiculous.' There are thousands of cyclists in the city who openly profess their dislike of bike lanes. Most are among the most experienced and undaunted cyclists I know. Their valid opinions are hardly ridiculous.
Hope you're ok after the collision, by the way. Happy riding. :)
Darren_S
Perfect world
Sun, 10/26/2008 - 08:36In a perfect world I would mostly agree with you. Yet there are many challenges on the road, some from a legacy of poor design to human nature, that can question it. I prefer taking the lane, and always have, yet I see a lot of cyclists who do not and hug the curb that appear to have a whole lot less stress. I know cyclists who ride more than me at night without ever using a light and have never been hit. Even most of the cyclists using lights are using lights that easily get lost in light pollution in urban areas rendering them mostly useless.
We need to examine what is told to cyclists as being safe practices as much as we question bike lanes.
anthony
Building a future includes the kids
Sat, 10/25/2008 - 19:08It has been said that our children are the future. We want to get kids riding bikes. If we are going to do that then we need safe places for them to ride. All parents I have spoken with feel much more comfortable letting thier kids ride in a bike lane than in mixed traffic, regardless of the age or experience of the kid. For many parents, bike lanes are crucial in order to allow space for on the road for their kids to ride.
Yes, experienced riders need bike lanes less than novices; but parents simply want them for their kids.
And fully separated bike paths/lanes are even better when they serve the same destinations. Which is why the rail-trail is such a priority for so many.
David Juliusson (not verified)
Getting kids to ride includes proper parking at schools
Mon, 10/27/2008 - 10:40To Anthony
I fully agree with you. Getting children riding is important. Getting my first bike and learning to ride was one of the most lasting memories of my childhood. Being allowed to ride to school meant freedom and recognition that I was growing up. I am sure my parents were stressed by it, but it was important.
One of the major barriers to riding to schools now is a lack of bike parking. On election night I voted at my local school in Ward 6. There were 3 bike rings for the whole school. All were right on the street where bike theft is easy rather than in a more secure location. On the otherhand, there was a large area where cars were parked illegally making the street nearly unusable.
This is a school with a bike lane leading to its parking lot and quiet streets around it.
I have written my local school trustee on this issue but have heard nothing. I suggest people write their trustees too.
Finally, our newspapers are filled with stories about obese children and how unfit they are. I have worked with children for 20 years and can see the difference. There are also reports that biking to school has plummeted in the past 20 years. Of course there is no correlation...
The EnigManiac
Biking To School
Mon, 10/27/2008 - 15:38I have spoken with two city councillors regarding bicycle parking at schools, as this is one of my pet issues and I've learned a few things. The schools must request ring-posts if they are to be placed on city property, such as sidewalks, but the schools will not make the request as they are under the direction of their respective school boards who have the misguided and irrational opinion that cycling to school is dangerous. I have spoken to the principal at my son's previous school---a junior high---and explained that the only danger near most schools is due to the vast quantity of cars that are delivering or picking up the students. Many of the elementary schools are located on quiet, one-way residential streets that are neither designed nor equipped to manage such volumes of traffic and most, if not all, the parents stop or park illegally when chauffering their kids. If students walked or rode---and considering that about 65% of students at any of the area schools live within 4-5 blocks they should be---there wouldn't be the traffic that constitutes the danger. The school boards are unswayed, however, and cling to the myth of dangerous roads. It seems unreasonable to me to encourage kids to be sedentary lifestyles and the resulting obesity by having kids stop riding to schools rather than petition the city to reduce motor vehicle traffic on roads around schools to make them safe.
jamesmallon (not verified)
School Boards / Admin. = Assinine
Mon, 10/27/2008 - 20:01I am a teacher, 'Enigmaniac', and agree completely. The present stupidity of cars on school properties, lazy kids passed on to the next grade, rare suspensions ofchildren who are a danger to yours, and necessity of teachers covering their backs for every legality, is a norm created by the lack of stones of the people in charge of the circus. It is isn't going to change until we do something about the gutless $#!+ that floats to the top. Parents get their way, unless there is no way to let them have it, under the law.
The EnigManiac
I'd like to see...
Mon, 10/27/2008 - 21:06...an interest in a 'Bike To School Week' iniative. I don't know how to promote or organize such a thing although I have started a Facebook Group trying to see if there is genuine passion for it. http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=12478851357
I think if it were organized, promoted, attended by teachers and parents, we might be able to start petitioning the school boards to install secure bicycle parking while convinving the city to ensure that all residential streets surrounding schools have bike lanes and have those same streets patrolled by police to discourage illegal stopping, parking, speeding, etc.
Bicycles and cyclists don't present the danger. They should not be punished. Cars and motorists should be, though.
Tammy Thorne (not verified)
Please submit ideas directly to the City via email or snail mail
Sun, 10/26/2008 - 11:17Hello everyone and thank you for the feedback and great ideas! PLEASE be sure to submit these directly to the City ala the instructions in the post/ Call for Submissions... leaving comments on I Bike TO will not suffice as official feedback. i really hope to see all of this input on the City's compiled list!! I am the Bike Union Ward captain in Parkdale and will be pushing the City to implement as many of these changes and additions as possible in the next two years. Your input must be sent directly to the City to be considered !!! THANK YOU all! Tammy
tammy@dandyhorse.ca
mothman (not verified)
What you can do
Tue, 10/28/2008 - 13:13I would recommend two things for anyone who is serious about encouraging cycling to school. First, request that a bike rack get installed. If your child's school is an "Eco-School" (ask if they are) then they supposedly have a mandate to provide enegry-saving options to kids and the community. A bike rack is definitely part of this madate, and is a jusifiable expense. The racks at most schools don't tend to be the most secure things, but their proximity to the building, and the fact that they are just for daytime use, means that they generally get the job done.
Also, fit cycling to school into a broader context. We have to admit that the board has a point about cycling being dangerous - I know, speaking from experience, that as a grown man I often feel extremely threatened out there. We need better cycling infrastructure for everyone, if we are going to make parents want their kids biking around. There's a million kids living in the area around annette - that'd be a perfect place for a bike lane. It would make a real difference.
David Juliusson (not verified)
Biking to school.
Thu, 10/30/2008 - 11:24There is strange thinking going on in school boards in the GTA. It feels like bicycling is actively discouraged by them and by many prinicipals too. They reason that the roads are not safe for cycling to school. Granted, there is some danger to riding a bike. There is danger in walking, taking the TTC or driving to school too. Car driving is encouraged in high schools. My local high school has a large car parking lot for students, yet almost zero bike parking. If I follow the bikes being dangerous logic, teenagers aren't at risk from driving a car. Encouraging things like bike lanes that make it safer to get to schools should make sense to the school boards.
It is in the offical mandate of the TDSB to encourage environmental initiatives. Environment is part of the curriculum in every grade. Apparently alternatives forms of transportation doesn't factor into their environmental thinking. Driving a car, however, most definitely does. Drivers Education courses can be taken after school, on weekends or on holidays. Auto mechanics is a recognized credit course. Actions speak loud and clear.
At the same time, students are encouraged to participate in Toronto Schools on the Move (TSM) program. The TDSB mandate says it is "to encourage students to adopt a healthy, active lifestyle through exercise and nutrition." Initiatives like the Terry Fox run come out of this mandate. One of the mandates guiding priniciples is " TSM believes in maximizing opportunities for all students to be physically active on a daily basis in less structured programs in order to work towards the recommended 90 min / day of physical activity stated by Health Canada." Kids riding to school seems a natural fit. Making something part of your daily routine would seem to meet these goals. I am personally more active because I ride daily. But I guess kids aren't.
Attached is the reasons the TDSB gives for the TSM program.
Why is TSM important?
The TSM initiative was instituted to address current evidence that shows inactivity in children and youth leads to increased risk for early onset of chronic disease.
Reduced fitness due to an inactive lifestyle in children is increasing at alarming rates and schools play a major role in shaping values, providing opportunities, and encouraging healthy active living.
In Toronto only 33% of children and youth are physically active.
In North America, 40% of five to eight year olds can be classified as obese.
Obesity is a critical risk factor in the development of Type 2 Diabetes in children.
Overweight and obese children are much more likely than healthy-weight kids to be bullied.
I hope that anyone who wants more opportunities for children to ride to school can use some of this information.
vic
West End: Deadline today!
Wed, 11/05/2008 - 10:47Reminder that today is the deadline for submissions. Almost forgot to send mine in.
Here's what I wrote:
Here are my suggestions for the West End:
Lansdowne:
Sorauren, Brock, Palmerston, Grace, etc.:
College:
Bloor, Queen and King railway underpasses:
...and of course, don't forget Bloor St......