Toronto becomes more polarized around "war on car" / "war on bike"

It's official.

A few years ago an ex- bike courier who had survived 20 years on the mean streets of Toronto
once told me that Toronto is a city that hates bikes ... I did not want to believe him then.
Well, now I know he was right.

Honestly, people, focus on the issues. The fact he is fat means absolutely nothing. It could be genetics, it could be laziness, it could be anything. Personally attacking the man doesn't solve a damn thing. In the end, HE is the one that's our new Mayor, because we voted him in. Attack his decisions, not his chins. I would hope that cyclists demonstrate their ability to be rational thinkers and behave accordingly.

On the downtown traffic thing, I say we invite it in. The only way something like this can be shown to be such a shit-show is to actually document it happening. It's like Quebec separation. They're on crack to think it would work, so the best way to get rid of it once and for all is to have it happen, and to catch it when it fails.

So, when the Super-Traffic arrives, we will have our ducks in a row to resurrect what we all know to be a great plan to implement international-level transit policies in Toronto. Maybe we are only 4 years away from realizing such an excellent vision. Voting for Rob Ford might be the optimal route, as nobody can deny the Super-Traffic we are about to see.

To the ravines!

It's now more important than ever to be seen and to come out in numbers. Where do I find info on the next suburban critical mass?

And how many members does the Toronto Cyclist Union have?

Its important to take a breath.

FORD will have influence, and in theory, this will slow the advance of cycling and pedestrian-friendly investments.

HOWEVER, he also ran on building more bike trails than ever in Toronto's history, and even on more bike lanes where there is local support and the councillor wants it.....

Given that Case Ootes is out, and new bike friendly councillor in, in Ward 29; and other bike friendly councillors have been elected as well, all hope is far from lost.

Its worth saying that under Miller, we had many great promises about bike infrastructure, few of which actually happened.

Perhaps under FORD we will be promised far less, but actually get it what we are promised.

(about a wash)

FORD may try to rule with an iron-fist, but its unlikely that will go anywhere, to get his share of mushy middle votes and even the odd hard-core lefty on an ad-hoc basis, he'll need to work with moderates.

The language will likely be more intemperate, but I'm not sure that means less good news, so much as fewer false-hopes.

Now that the dreamers are out, let's let the pragmatists make the deals we always should have been. 30km of new off-road trail per year, only 10km new bike lanes, but in key areas of the City where they will be well used and supported.

FORD gets to say 'no more suburban bike lanes' and "we cut those cyclists back to 1/3 of the bike plan", while still giving most of us, everything we ever wanted.

Time to focus and horse-trade.

At the end of the day, many here support LRT, if only cause we feel we wont' get 100km of new subway, let FORD see if he can get his 2 new subway lines, if he does, most of us won't complain, same destination, different journey.

I'll gladly give up on bike lanes on Lawrence (for now) which we weren't going to get anyway, in favour of deluxe bike lanes on Sherbourne, Queen's Quay, and harbord; and the basic variety on Donlands and Dawes.

No sulking, let's make it work.

Ha ha, roughly half of Toronto voted. Of that half, about half voted for Ford. In other words, only 25% of Toronto actually voted for Ford. 25% of voter support is not a mandate.

Moving on, Toronto doesn't need a policy-based 'war on cars', if there was one to begin with. Energy costs will do that for Toronto. Haven't you learned anything from this election? People don't vote with their heads, they vote with their wallets.

Moreover, when the same proles who chanted "Throw out the socialist bums!" begin telling the government to "Do something!" about rising energy prices, you have my permission to point and laugh and ridicule their hypocrisy.

Remember, it's a fundamental and self-evident tenant of conservative ass-hatery that the market should be let alone to do its work. I know it's against every carbon-fibre of your hippie being, but just sit back and let the market work.

Tsck tsck Darren, don't be a reverse racist now... why don't you relax and let Rob Ford score you some oxycontin on the house.

There's always been some antipathy towards bikes and bike infrastructure here in Caronto, in contrast to some other parts of the world that did respond to energy/climate issues.
It may well be worse with Mr. Ford, but we have had some nasty precedents with what happened and didn't happen in the aftermath of the killing of Mr. Sheppard by Mr. Bryant, and also what did happen and didn't happen with Geoffrey and his being hit over a year ago. Many of the police are "carist" and now many of the politicians are too.
Smarter choices might have eased the situation - insisting/working towards full bike lanes on Jarvis (which did need to change given its tight/dangerous previous conditions) when we already have a very near and parallel facility with shit pavement might have helped poke a few motorists in the eye.
The clearer needs are for better east-west and connectivity, and smooth pavement.
And we may have to tackle Mr. Ford on his own turf ie. those mobile furnaces are subsidized - time to stop that caravy train - c. $4,200 annual avoided cost each year! and we should begin our pushback by working with our new and re-elected councillors to thwart the repudiation of the car registration tax that Mr. Ford wants, and as a compromise position, change it to charge the big pigs of weight and fuel consumption far more than the sippers or the hybrids.
We also might want to think of a Die-in or something in Nathan Philips Square on the first day of the new council regardless of weather.

if Ford gets on a bike there better be no bell on it. If there is he will have a heart attack ringing it!

SOmeone suggested that everyone going on this months Critical Mass should wear Rob Ford masks, even if they are those back of the cereal box face masks!

WHere can I get one?

I don't understand "die-ins" as a response to right-wing authoritarians.

It might work to shame politicians who are sympathetic, but Ford's supporters voted for him because he was going to go do battle with the downtown elites, "teach bike riders a lesson", be faster than a speeding gravy train, leap buildings in a single bound, etc.

Is rolling over in submission the right symbolic response to this? Or does it just send a message that we're vulnerable and politically weak?

The 'die-in' symbol made sense in the 60s when everyone was at risk of nuclear obliteration or death in a Vietnam swamp, but I'm not sure it's the right fit for cycling advocacy in 2010.

Huh, if you get a few hundred out for a die in that is an example of your political sway. Maybe it's melodramatic, but these people are still all there together making their voices heard.

With Mr. Spragge's hopeful observations of Mr. Ford's listening capabilities, I think maybe his peers on Council and some others would have dim views of his learning/listening abilities vs. a high degree of bombast and bluster.
I have tried to put the new ideas of better biking on Bloor/Danforth into his head on the campaign trail, not so much for our needed bike safety, but as a cheap way of expanding the capacity of the stretched Bloor subway, and gee, he didn't seem to get it, not that others did either it seems, but there was less dismissive attitude, and Mr. Ford didn't reply to the TCAT questionnaire.
As for die-ins, maybe it's less effective, but I sense that we have less support with our legal right to actually take the lane when conditions warrant it, and it seems we need to ensure that we have respect for our health/life/rights on the roads. Maybe just fill the Council chambers with our bike helmets on in early December (7th?), and maybe try to flex muscles with all the new Councillors to thwart the removal of the car registration tax, just to push back to the new Council to make him work for his votes - he's only a single vote with 44 others!

Haha, yes Darren.. you might be right! Lets hope not, huh?

About those money bags - Quite often(or as a matter of principal) right wing candidates are very willing to fuck over the very idiots who voted for them with their anti-social policies which really favour only the wealthy... Sometimes(?) people are really a bunch of crabs in a bucket. Now if we could find some money bags of our own, we could bribe the media... er, get their attention.

Might be a phrase to use to highlight what our positions should be, though it may run into friction if helmets are worn into the Council chambers as the City may be tighter again about demo signs in the council chambers, and the helmets are apparently ok. Or were in the old regime.
I would hope that the right would respect numbers and studies that show a different outlook on what costs and subsidies actually are - but in circulating a set of studies showing a range of costs avoided by the car from $1,000 to c. $4,200 per car per year to the Metro level back before we was amanglemated, it wasn't really acted upon. So I don't think we can really presume that logic and niceness will penetrate into the carcooned consciousness - look at how slow we are to show women equity - there is persistence to privilege within the status quo, and looking at the map in the Star this morning, the older and more car-driving suburbs voted for Mr. Ford, and the old core voted for Mr. Smitherman.
So along with working with new/existing councillors and thinking of a presence on Dec. 7th, and trying to thwart the first item of Mr. Ford's agenda, the car registration tax, we should also be thinking of working on the provincial politicians as this is fall-out from the forcible amanglemating Harris foisted upon us.
Key to any campaign seems to be a pithy slogan - a cycling taxpayer, not a target might be clearer, but there is a real depth of "carism" that will keep us as targets. despite laws and many good and considerate drivers.

$60 for a registration tax ain't much - and we'd be really unwise to let it just go "poof" without any! resistance/defence of it. I should know just how many millions it brings in - what are there? - a million cars in Caronto = $60M - and that's the Bike Plan being done, even though the cost of doing a bike lane repainting is only $25,000 a km.
Mr. Ford's agenda isn't a slamdunk - eg. the Sat. Star today - and to roll over ahead of something that is less than the cost of a single month's Metropass isn't defensible really. And truly, given how much and how many harms the collective automobility of Toronto costs us, and how little direct user pay there is to the City for the many costs, $60 isn't much.
If they want to tweak it to a weight/footprint basis - that could be a compromise.

On streetcars:
Doug Ford is not only saying that they are not on the chopping block, but also claiming that Ford's team never said they were (though it's on page 2 of their transit plan).

On attitudes towards cyclists:
Could you consistently follow one set of rules, please! I rent a car maybe once a month and in the short drive from the rental agency to my house, it is always the bikers, not the cars that cause the most stress. Dodging in and out of crosswalks, going on and off of sidewalks, blowing through four-way stops and giving me the finger for thinking that they should obey the rules of the road... come on!

It's worse as a pedestrian. Expecting the right of way on a sidewalk, not stopping at streetcar stops, etc.

I support more bikelanes and the bike rental system, but I just loathe many of the people who use them. Also, wear a damn helmet. Your healthcare is my taxes.

Pretty sure pedestrians are the worst at disobeying the rules, try riding a bicycle and not hitting j-walkers, sure those pedestrians are looking for cars don't get me started about car doors... I only wish pedestrians and motorists would follow one set of rules. Instead they honk or swear when I legally have the right of way. It's like they think they're the most important ones on the road.

It's our healthcare and it comes from our taxes. Your taxes wouldn't buy coffee for donuts for the hospital lobby meetings.

Are you cyclists dealing with a full deck? Seriously.
You want to ban cars from Canada. But did someone drop you on your head when your came out of your mothers birth canal?
You expect everyone in the city to start riding the TTC so that the roads are left for you.

I pray to God, that Rob Ford forces all cyclists to pass a road drivers test like us car owners have to, as well as pay for a license & license plate and insurance, for you to drive on the road and also for you to display that license for all to see as we car owner have to do.

That way, when you do not obey the driving on the road protocol, witnesses can jot down your license plate and report you.

You want to drive on the road, yet you do not want to take the responsibility for road safety.
You just weave in and out all over the place expecting car drivers to just slam on their brakes to accommodate you. Roads are for cars not cyclists.....period!

You see that a driver is opening is car door and yet you refuse to stop, instead you scream out at us & we have to bow to you! If a car stops on the road, the car behind also has to stop.
Why should you be the exception to the same rules that apply to car drivers.

Our mandatory car fees contribute to the community. WTF do you contribute?
Seems to me, cyclists cycle simply bcos they can't afford a car. I'll bet my life that if someone gave you a swanky, sleeks hot rod, you would be tearing up the road in it. Taking out you date in fine clothes to a wonderful show & dinner. Picking up your mom & dad for a visit or a trip around town. Or just doing their major grocery shopping for them. Or driving them to their doctor or hospital app'ts.
Try doing that on you bikes!

You want to ban cars.....to me & ALL car owners, you make no sense at all, you have no life and you don't hold down jobs where proper attire is a must. Your thinking is irrational & illogical. The only reason you cyclists got this far is bcos the politicians wanted your vote.

Car owners are fed up with all of this. It's time to start a petition to force our government to impose the same road tests, licenses & insurances that we have to be subjected to. It's time you learned proper road behaviour. You want the road, then it's time you pay for it like we do!

Wow that's a lot to get of your chest Missy.

I hope you feel better now.

But if you don't you could always leave you car at home at try cycling - it works for me.

This is not true. Cars are subsidized by various governments from the time the iron ore is mined, through the entire manufacturing process, consumer purchase, and maintenance, not to mention the oil it takes to run them. Add to this bill the societal costs of car culture--pollution, ill health (to drivers and anyone who breathes air), road damage, vehicular homicides-- that are downloaded onto the taxpaying public, and the bill is clearly even more in the red. In reality, cars are some of the biggest welfare queens on the planet.

Just because you pay a lot to drive doesn't mean you're paying full price.

...and you're certainly not supporting me or my community. In fact, it's quite the opposite.

You're welcome.