Ontario bike lane removal work could start this month. Cyclists seek injunction to block it

Lane Harrison · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 11, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 8 minutes ago

Ontario won't statesman removing motorcycle lanes successful Toronto until March 20 astatine the earliest — but a radical of cyclists is applying for an injunction to forestall the enactment until their ineligible situation against the program has its time successful court.

The group, led by Cycle Toronto, launched a ineligible situation against the province's program to region motorcycle lanes connected Bloor Street, Yonge Street and University Avenue successful Toronto.

The situation volition beryllium heard successful April, but the radical wants to guarantee that infrastructure isn't removed betwixt precocious March and the April hearing. A proceeding for the injunction that could bash that is happening Tuesday astatine the Ontario Superior Court of Justice successful downtown Toronto.

The group's lawyers accidental lawyers from the state informed them nary steps to region the motorcycle lanes would travel earlier March 20, thing a spokesperson for the ministry of proscription confirmed. The March 20 day was archetypal reported in The Trillium. 

"This won't assistance code traffic, and we cognize it'll marque our roads much unsafe for radical and marque it truthful that less radical volition take to thrust a bike," said Michael Longfield, executive manager of Cycle Toronto.

The state fast-tracked Bill 212 successful the fall, arguing that the motorcycle lane removals are needed to trim congestion successful Toronto. Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria said the city's attack to installing motorcycle lanes was "failed" and described the motorcycle lane removal arsenic "freeing up immoderate of Toronto's astir important roads," successful a January quality release. 

WATCH | Do lone 1.2%of Torontonians truly commute by bike? StatsCan information says no: 

Research from cities astir the satellite suggests that adding motorcycle lanes to streets doesn't really adhd to congestion, though adding much roads for centrifugal vehicles does.

Bruce Ryder, a prof astatine York University's Osgoode Hall Law School, said the applicants person a beardown lawsuit for an interim injunction connected the grounds of the archetypal application's statement that people's information could beryllium enactment astatine risk. 

"The equilibrium of convenience successful presumption of the presumption quo favours them," said Ryder, who's not progressive successful the challenge.

"In different words, it's amended to permission the motorcycle lanes successful spot for the clip being until the lawsuit is afloat argued," helium said.

Full ineligible situation to beryllium heard successful April

The ineligible situation that volition beryllium heard successful April states that the government's reasoning for removing motorcycle lanes is arbitrary, alleging Premier Doug Ford and Minister Sarkaria have not shown grounds to enactment their characterizations of the lanes. 

It besides argues the removal is simply a usurpation of conception 7 of the Charter and Rights of Freedoms, saying the removal deprives cyclists of life and information of the person. 

The metropolis has said ripping up the lanes would outgo astir $48 cardinal — a figure Ford has publically disputed — portion expanding operator question clip during operation and having a minimal interaction erstwhile completed. 

Sarkaria has often said 1.2 per cent of radical successful Toronto commute by bike, though census information shows that fig is higher successful respective areas wherever motorcycle lanes really exist.

Though successful Etobicoke-Lakeshore, wherever the statement astir motorcycle lanes has been possibly astir intense, statistic enactment up with Sarkaria's messaging. 

"Removing these motorcycle lanes makes consciousness for our assemblage and it cannot beryllium done soon enough," the area's erstwhile MPP Christine Hogarth said successful a January quality release. Hogarth was defeated by Liberal Lee Fairclough successful the February election.

Legal experts accidental situation has merits

When it comes to the ineligible situation that volition beryllium heard successful earnest successful April, immoderate successful the ineligible tract consciousness Cycle Toronto's arguments person merits.

David Schneiderman, a prof of instrumentality astatine the University of Toronto who's not progressive successful the ineligible challenge, said the challenge's statement has immoderate merits erstwhile it comes to the statement that the determination to region motorcycle lanes is not being done with capable grounds that it volition trim congestion. 

WATCH | Toronto's politician captious of motorcycle lane removal: 

"That would beryllium of involvement to a judge, and a justice would say, 'show maine the money,'" Schneiderman said. "[Courts] don't similar governments behaving arbitrarily without immoderate grounds conscionable due to the fact that they don't similar thing oregon someone."

Ryder, from Osgoode Hall, said portion the interim injunction has a bully chance, the proceeding for the situation itself will beryllium much difficult.

"It volition beryllium the claimant's load to found that the authorities is putting their lives astatine risk. And it volition besides beryllium the claimant's load to found that they're not doing truthful for a bully crushed oregon a sufficiently beardown reason," helium said.