Tragedy on Avenue Road not an Anomaly
Last Wednesday, Miguel Joshua Escanan’s young life was taken while riding his bike on Avenue Road, metres beyond the end of ActiveTO bike lanes (and where a speedway begins).
Press release: Toronto picks road safety over speed, new poll finds
Seven in 10 residents back Bloor bike lane
Seven in 10 residents back Bloor bike lane
For Immediate Release: June 24, 2017
TORONTO — Eighty-one percent of Toronto residents support lower speed limits on city roads even if it means increased travel time, and 80 percent favour building a safe network of bicycle lanes, a new poll has found.
The survey of 802 Torontonians, conducted by the Angus Reid Forum (owned by Maru/Matchbox), also shows nearly seven in 10 want to keep the bicycle lane on Bloor Street.
"These data suggest the vast majority of Toronto residents want to prioritize safety for all road-users — car-drivers and cyclists alike," says Gideon Forman, a transportation analyst with the David Suzuki Foundation, which commissioned the research. "When you reduce speed limits and build separated bike lanes you save lives."
An astounding 97 percent of respondents say they support achieving Vision Zero, which seeks to eliminate all deaths and serious injuries from traffic collisions. Last year, Toronto adopted a road safety plan to achieve Vision Zero by 2021.
This fall, city council will debate whether to make the Bloor bike lane permanent. The pilot started in August 2016. Polling suggests a growing majority of Torontonians support such a move.
"Polling released by Forum Research in 2016 found 56 percent of Toronto voters approve of the Bloor bike lane," says Cycle Toronto executive director Jared Kolb. "The new poll shows support for keeping the Bloor lane at 69 per cent — 13 points higher than Forum. I'd say there's increasing momentum to make the lane permanent."
The David Suzuki Foundation and Cycle Toronto launched a partnership in 2016 to support building a citywide network of protected bike lanes across Toronto. Their first priorities are lanes on Bloor, Yonge and Danforth.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Gideon Forman, Transportation Policy Analyst, David Suzuki Foundation (647) 703-5957
Jared Kolb, Executive Director, Cycle Toronto (416) 729-9023 [email protected]
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