Highway 401 cuts Toronto in half

My heart was beating a mile a minute, and it was only a video. These are exactly the sorts of situations where I bend the rules for my own safety. I would have used side walks and pedestrian crossings through that whole thing. I would have gladly accepted a ticket and the opportunity to tear everyone a new one in court too. totally worth the 110 bucks, imo.

Cyclists across Ontario risk their lives crossing the on and off ramps. These highways are a major barrier to safe cycling and deter many from cycling across their city.

In spite of Ontario government policy, such as the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, requiring safe and comfortable bike networks across the province, MTO however, feels its overpasses are already safe. Ironically, MTO personnel told our cycling group, It is NOT advisable to cycle across overpasses.

At a bare minimum, coloured bike lanes are needed on these overpasses as a visual reminder to motorists daily that cyclists also use the overpasses.

puhleez. pop a viagra, cialis, or midol...whatever it takes to boost your confidence, and take a damn lane. build a bridge, don't complain about it!

you who complain about such matters have probably never taken a CAN-BIKE lesson, or even considered asking an expert what they think. You just immediately gripe and complain instead of attempting to improve your skill. whine. yawn.

You know who is entitled to ride on the sidewalk? Children. You know why? because we know for a fact they havn't been educated in road cycling, and aren't developed enough to provide the muscle power needed to keep up to at least 20 km/h. That, my dear riders, puts you in a very interesting and vulnerable category.

Those of us who ride across the 401, 400, and even - aiigh, heaven forbid - the Don Valley Parkway, know it's about taking the lane, shoulder checking to let drivers approaching know that you are predictable and aware of what's happening, and holding a steady line to state "I'm here, I'm traffic, move to the left and go around me." It's that simple. Duh.

If you can't chant this mantra with me and get into the position that will carry you across any merge/diverge on a bicycle...take the bus. The rest of Toronto's able cyclists don't want you on the road.

arrgh. get over it already.

I'm not sure what I would rather do in north toronto. Cross the 401 or get held at gun point. Anywhere near the 401 is terrifying.

I generally don't bike North of bloor. Scary stuff if you ask me.

Herb writes:

"I'm going to expand on my other comment. There are times to "take the lane" and there are times not to take the lane. Keele, for most of its length falls into the latter category. Traffic is too fast and is unable to respond quickly enough to a cyclist that is trying to stake a claim to the whole lane. Any cyclist who is doing that would need to keep going at 50+ km/h, otherwise you'd risk a distracted motorist coming up quickly behind you, failing to see you until it is too late.

If you took a CAN-BIKE course from me I'd be telling you to stay near the edge of the lane. Do not try to take the lane on fast arterial roads!"

A long time ago, I rode my a bike up to York University via Keele (and the Old Weston Road overpass) a few times, maybe like 10 or 15 times.

From this experience, my advice is to take enough of the lane so that trucks must move over for you, but not so much of the lane that cars can't fairly safely squeeze past you. I generally find that trucks are courteous, and will take the time to pass you at a safe distance, if it's quite clear that there isn't enough room in the lane to try to squeeze by. On the other hand, trucks do try to squeeze by a gutter-hugging cyclist.

A memory from Keele St. right at the 401 overpass has never left me: I was northbound right in the gutter and an 18-wheeler was slowly squeezing by me. I was skimming the curb already, I had no place to go, I couldn't stop safely, and these huge tires were spinning, crushingly, just to the left of me, one slowly after another. That was over thirty years ago, and I remember it clearly. I've never tried gutter-bunnying since then, and despite all the tens of thousands of km of riding, I haven't had anywhere near as scary an experience.

My opinion of trucks respecting someone who takes at least a quarter of the lane has proven out on Kipling, The Queensway, North Queen, Horner, and other major truck routes. Fortunately trucks are mostly not as fast as cars, and the truck driver has good visibility. Now, cars and SUVs worry me more than trucks.

"What stops a car from passing you with a couple of inches to spare when you have taken the lane?"

Nothing. But at least you have a lot of escape room to your right.

Too bad most comments are stuck on cyclist's behaviours rather than considering the major lack of infrastructure for cyclists to cross these hiways. The person who made the video has 30 plus years of riding in major urban centres and is a safe, effective rider.
The video has been made to illustrate a point - which was obviously missed by needing to make comments attempting do demonstrate you know more than someone.
Macho cyclists attitudes are tiresome and if we're going to get anywhere to make changes for universally safe cycling infrastructure, pointing out other people's cycling flaws is wasted energy.

Hey Random, and everyone else watching from home...

It's all about behavior. you'd call me insane if I suggested that riding over the yellow line in the path of oncoming traffic is a good way to keep yourself visible. but that's exactly my point : the infrastructure dosn't matter, the yellow line is only a suggestion. yet people observe and respect it adroitly. the challenge with painting coloured pavement for bikes is all about how people interpret and understand the colored pavement. Otherwise, it's just meaningless road art, like sharrows, or spacing chevrons on 400 series highways.

it's behavior that matters. If everyone thought like "wow, I'm approaching a merge/diverge, i'd better pay more attention as i move in two directions" we'd be better off. If everyone approached an intersection thinking "wow,I'm approaching a place where the most number of collisions occur, I'd better slow down", we' wouldn't need those inane suggestions for "Idaho Stops". If we taught everyone "drive carefully, or you WILL hurt someone", things would get a lot easier. but no, we have simplified, lifelong licensing, a focus on infrastructure rather than education, and insurance. oh yes, insurance, the wonderful industry that takes responsibility out of driving and makes all collisions and injuries just a mass of paperwork and easy wireless transactions. Funny how the car drivers get to be insured, but cyclists aren't. Think about that as a means of education. Funny how car drivers get discounts on their insurance for taking driver training, but cyclists? Nah, bike lessons are for pussies and geeks.

Behavior, behavior, behavior. It's all about behavior. Speeding is behavior. No manner of infrastructure can prevent speeding. Drivers who want to speed will speed. Same with careless driving. Careless drivers don't care. No infrastructure can help a driver who is not paying attention or caring for others. And dangerous driving - dangerous drivers are people who have, on rare occation, been caught after maiming or severely damaging persons or property.

The infrastructure already exists - who is using it? I challenge any of you to ride the Don Trail from downtown to Steeles, and report back. You can safely cross the 401, and DVP in several places. I promise.

The point of this video is to remind us that one of the widest and busiest highways in the world slices our city in two. For those of us not willing, or not able to cross this barrier by car, the challenges are enormous. How can a city as vital, and ecologically conscious as Toronto let this happen?

It's true there are other ways to cross, such as using the Humber River trails. This reminds me of the arguments against putting a bike lane on Jarvis Street - some councillors didn't understand why cyclists couldn't use the Don River trails instead. (And why couldn't cars use the Don Valley Parkway instead of Jarvis?)

I commute regularly from downtown to a school north of the 401, and often have to be there early in the morning. The ride takes me just under an hour, on average, if I bike at a steady, hard pace. To use the Humber trail would add 30 to 60 minutes to my commute - meaning waking up earlier, expending much more energy, and mentally preparing for a far longer distance.

Realistically, my only other option is to take Dufferin, which goes under the 401. It too has on- and off-ramps, plus the large shopping mall. I'm sure a similar video could be made for this route (but the lighting wouldn't be as nice).

One option I believe would be close to perfect. There is a lightly used rail line that cuts north between Keele and Dufferin, passes through Downsview Park, and comes up beside York University. It is marked on Toronto's Bike Plan as a future bike route between Eglinton and Steeles. It would make the commute a dream, as nice as going along the Eglinton Beltline path shown in the video. I dare to dream.
- rick

directly from the mto site:

Taking a lane

In urban areas where a curb lane is too narrow to share safely with a motorist, it is legal to take the whole lane by riding in the centre of it. On high-speed roads, it is not safe to take the whole lane. To move left in a lane, should check, signal, left and shoulder check again then move to the centre of the lane when it is safe to do so.

[Editors: the MTO page is here]

I've ridden the Don Valley Trail several times to visit family in North York.
But sometimes I want to go to York, some times I want to go to Kleinburg by bike. Here's a novel idea, maybe some day I'd like to bring my kids or my aging parents.
If it's all about behaviour explain me this: why do 40% of people in Copenhagen cycle to work?
The macho cycling attitudes are tiresome. I'm a woman amongst many who want to have a safe way to cycle to work, do errands, get to were I need to go, and ride with children. Until the behaviour of drivers is 100% perfect, I'll be spending my time advocating for better cycling infrastructure. Spare me the rant.

i love people that complain on the internet

isn't it just the most active form of citizenship?

WOW is all I can say.
I live in St Catharines, and we have crossings mostly over or under the QEW. For the most part they are slower moving traffic and much safer.
The one road I take most often (Lake Street) they are almost completed with a new overpass. It is **MUCH **wider and from what I gather is going to have bike lanes.
I think only the Martindale overpass down here is the the only dangerous overpass, and that's because it's down to a very narrow lane as they are re-doing that also. Which when completed will be more bike friendly I suppose.

As for on/off ramps, I don't recall ever having any issues here. We don't have too many like those anymore. Most of the on/off ramps lead to the service roads here. I pass a few depending on where I'm going, and any cars that are going on or off will simply wait till I pass it.