The City Needs To Hear From You to Build a Better Toronto
Photo courtesy of Matt Wiebe
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The City Needs To Hear From You to Build a Better Toronto
The Toronto Office of Recovery and Rebuild needs to hear from you on how to build back better - take their survey now:
Our Work with Recovery & Rebuild
Cycle Toronto has been working with the Toronto Office of Recovery and Rebuild over the past several months. Our open letter from April 29 stressed that active transportation will be essential to the economic and social recovery of Toronto. ActiveTO Quiet Streets, Major Road Closures, and the acceleration of the Cycling Network Plan to include 40 km of new bike lanes this summer reflect that work.
We urgently need to build on the success of ActiveTO and expand its impact across the city. We have identified key barriers facing the City in order to make riding a bike a safer option for more people during the pandemic:
- Facilitating broad, meaningful consultation within communities so that their concerns are heard and solutions are responsive to their needs, and
- Increasing capacity at the City so that solutions are implemented rapidly, can be adjusted quickly, and eventually made permanent.
Together, it is our responsibility to work toward a future that addresses the weaknesses of our pre-pandemic world. Returning to “normal” is not acceptable; we must build back better.
How Can You Help?
Complete the survey! Tell the Office of Recovery and Rebuild you want to see an expansion of ActiveTO, especially new bike lanes along our transit corridors to make Toronto a safer cycling city for all.
- Remind the City that study after study shows the positive impact bike lanes can have on local businesses and connecting communities.
- Include your thoughts on Quiet Streets and Major Road Closures to rebalance our streets for people to walk, roll, and ride.
- Ensure that all Torontonians are meaningfully consulted on their needs for access to safe cycling infrastructure across the city to benefit their own communities
Talk about much more than just bike lanes: provide feedback about other passions and priorities to improve the lives of Torontonians. Some examples include:
- Recommitting to the goals of Vision Zero and ending traffic violence.
- Identifying and addressing the complex and inter-related issues that make streets unsafe for residents beyond traffic violence, such as issues of racism, equity, and poverty-related discrimination.
- Eliminating barriers that prevent low-income and racialized residents from being able to ride a bike, such as cost and access to bicycles.
- Implementing policies in the TransformTO climate plan to build a resilient city
- Improving access to reliable and rapid transit, such as by advocating for dedicated permanent and emergency transit funding.
- Improving access and affordability of housing throughout the city.
- And more!
Complete the survey from the Office of Recovery and Rebuild by June 30.
Thank you for your support,
Kevin Rupasinghe
Campaigns Manager
We need to keep the momentum going. Join the movement for safe streets. Your support helps us advocate to expand ActiveTO to accelerate building more bike lanes across the city. Even $5 a month helps us work through the pandemic toward a safer, healthier and more vibrant cycling city for all.