On the same day the Ontario government announced restrictions on future municipal bike lanes, Toronto city staff released a report calling for bike lanes on a busy west-end road with a history of crashes.
Staff are proposing installing a 3.8-kilometre, two-way cycle track on the west side of Parkside Drive between Bloor Street W. and Lake Shore Boulevard W.
The proposal, released Tuesday, is part of a suite of proposed design changes meant to improve safety for pedestrians, cyclists and other “vulnerable road users” like motorcyclists on the dangerous stretch of road.
“We’ve been waiting forever for this day to come,” said Faraz Gholizadeh, a local resident and co-chair of community advocacy group Safe Parkside.
“We want to feel safe walking on our own street. We want to feel safe when our kids are walking beside us, and the street, as it’s been designed, is not safe for pedestrians, not safe for cyclists, not safe for motorists.”
The changes would reduce the number of vehicle lanes to two from three on much of the road. City staff estimate it would take an extra one to three minutes during peak hours to traverse the stretch, with southbound traffic during the morning commute being impacted most.
Residents near High Park are asking the city to move faster on implementing changes to make Parkside Drive safer. The road has long been known for dangerous driving and accidents, but people in the neighbourhood say the city isn’t listening to their concerns. CBC’s Olivia Bowden has more.
If the city moves forward with the recommendations, it could set up a clash between council and Premier Doug Ford’s government over planned provincial legislation that would require municipalities to get ministerial approval before building any new bike lanes that reduce lanes of vehicle traffic.
“We support a common sense approach when it comes to bike lanes- which does not include removing a lane of traffic in the most congested city in North America,” a spokesperson for Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria said in an email statement.
“We will be reviewing the city’s plan, as well as all other information from municipalities regarding bike lanes that have been installed in the past 5 years.”
The local councillor is signalling he’s ready for the fight.
“We have been working as a community for years to make this street safer, and I would be appalled if the premier of Ontario … decided that saving a couple of minutes in traffic time was more important than saving lives,” said Coun. Gord Perks, who represents Ward 4, Parkdale-High Park. “This will be a life-saving intervention.”
5 serious injuries, 3 deaths in 10 years: report
Parkside Drive is a major north-south arterial road, bordered by High Park in the west and homes to the east. Around 21,000 vehicles and 1,000 transit passengers travel on it per day, according to the staff report, many of them heading into the city or to the Queen Elizabeth Way via the Gardiner Expressway.
The report says there were 1,487 collisions on this stretch of road between August 2014 and August 2024. Seven of those collisions resulted in five serious injuries and three deaths. Forty-seven involved vulnerable road users.
Local residents have long complained to council about narrow and missing sidewalks, a lack of bike lanes, speeding vehicles, aggressive driving and a history of collisions, according to the report.
Council decided to conduct a study of the road in November 2021, just weeks after an older couple was killed after their car was hit by a driver who police alleged was travelling at a high rate of speed. A Burlington man was charged with two counts of criminal negligence causing death in connection with the crash and is currently on trial.
After that crash, councillors also reduced the speed limit to 40 km/h from 50 km/h, added speed cameras, new traffic signals and signs telling motorists to reduce speed, as well as curb lane parking at all times, when previously parking was prohibited.
These measures led to reduced average speeds, the city states on its website. Though city data shows Parkside Drive continues to rank as one of Toronto’s most ticketed streets for speeding.
Designated turn lanes, new bus stops also proposed
The proposed cycle track would be separated from vehicle traffic by a painted buffer with physical separation where possible, according to the city.
Other changes staff are proposing include designated turn lanes at intersections along Parkside, new TTC bus stops and reconstructing the Parkside-Lake Shore intersection with safety improvements.
“The proposed changes balance the space requirements for proposed cycle track, motor vehicle travel lanes, and curb lane parking, fitting within the existing curb to curb space,” the report states.
The city estimates it would cost $7.5 million to implement the project, with work to start as early as 2026.
Gholizadeh said that’s too late.
“You have some residents that have been advocating for safety for … two decades by the time any changes actually come, so it just shows you how extremely slowly the city is moving to make our streets safe, to meet our Vision Zero goals,” Gholizadeh said, referring to the city’s initiative to prevent serious injuries and deaths on city streets.
Mayor Olivia Chow said she will defer to the committee and local councillor before making a decision about the proposed changes. But she reiterated her opposition to the province’s bike lane legislation.
“I do not support limiting city powers, and it’s always better when we work together and we can always improve things,” Chow said at an unrelated event Wednesday.
“Let us also remember all modes of transportation [are] important, and we need to make it safe so we don’t have deaths because we are committed to Vision Zero,” Chow said.
City council’s infrastructure committee will consider the recommendations at its next meeting on Oct. 22. If the committee votes in favour, staff will move forward with detailed design work and report back to the committee before the matter goes before the full council for final approval.