|
Nanny statism continues. Councillor mulls idea of licensing bicycles like cars!!
| quote: | Councillor Michael Walker has proven to be a vocal opponent of recent measures to make Toronto more bike-friendly. He is part of this odd, little cabal of Councillors who have manufactured the so-called “war on the car”. Councillors who pine for a 1950s Toronto; those halcyon days when the car was king, lawns were well-watered and sprinkled with pesticides and the Stepford Wives wore plastic smiles, starched aprons and fixed their salaryman husbands a post-work drink.
Walker’s latest dubious idea is for cyclists to be licensed.
Why license when education would be more effective? What would the administrative costs be? How would Toronto achieve this in light of the provincial Highway Traffic Act; that is, how enforceable would this be? Is this a symbolic gesture, aimed at showing displeasure with those tree-hugging hippy types who prefer the eco-friendly bicycle over the eco-mauling car?
Would, as CBC host Matt Galloway asks, licensing be so onerous that many would just not ride bikes? I bet Walker et al would like that, but one hopes that is not the intent of his motion. Indeed, why isn’t he fighting harder for safer cycling zones, dedicated lanes, looking to New York City as an example of what can be done when the political will is present?
Walker then makes everyone’s skin crawl when he asks rhetorically (I think…) if cyclist insurance should be considered. You can bet that the insurance industry just collectively wet its pants when Walker mused aloud on that nefarious idea.
Walker seems to miss the point that there are too many roads in this city that are simply unsafe for cyclists. Licensing isn’t going to change that. Bike-friendly design will. Further, a New York City study found that in 1000 traffic fatalities involving vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists, drivers were responsible for 74% of the accidents and partially responsible for another 16%.
Shouldn’t Walker push for better driver education? Again, his logic escapes me. But maybe logic was never part of this motion.
There is also the social justice dimension. Many Torontonians who do not have a car are without because of choice or because cars are unaffordable. For those who own a set of wheels, it’s a hefty household expense. So these car-free citizens get around town on public transit and bikes. By pushing for bike licensing, Walker would make it harder for lower-income citizens to have an affordable mode of transportation. And when TTC fares keep going up, for some the only way to get from A to B will be on two wheels.
I expect that City Council, when they meet next, will reject this asinine motion. But if, for some bizarre reason, this motion is passed and if for some inane reason the province agrees to amend the Highway Traffic Act to give this motion teeth, then all of us who cycle should simply refuse to pay any ticket. Through this modest act of civil disobedience, if we all say “no” the administrative headache will be so overwhelming that bike licensing will eventually be spiked.
|
and this from todays sun:
| quote: | Had the tires on the bike that killed Cheng Li Jiang on a Kennedy Rd. sidewalk been a tad bigger, her death would have merited an $85 fine.
As it stands now there are no charges, no fine, no nothing.
Kind of cheap for the taking of a life of a wife and mother of two who was just going out to the store!
It was only a matter of time before somebody on a sidewalk would be killed by a speedy cyclist.
It's up to us if we want to stop there being more. Had that bike had a licensed adult on the pedals, perhaps dangerous driving charges could have been laid or even criminal negligence causing death.
But this cyclist was a 15-year-old on a kid's bike and it's only larger, adult-style bicycles that a city bylaw bans from sidewalks.
Translation? The tragic death of Jiang, 56, means nothing in terms of the law.
She died in hospital Friday after landing on her head Thursday and that's the end of it.
Unless, of course, we decide to change it. And we had better.
"There have been three horrible bike accidents in the past four days," says a frustrated Sgt. Tim Burrows of Toronto Police's traffic services.
"And we have had too many close calls."
Neale Gifford is one who recently had one.
"Sidewalks do belong to pedestrians," says Neale.
"Cyclists do complain about cars. But what about pedestrians who are terrorized? The biggest issue is the lack of enforcement of the law. Patrolling police cruisers ignore sidewalk cyclists."
It's a huge problem and an emergency meeting of council is needed and a whole new approach to bikes on the roads needs to be implemented.
And perhaps the horrible death of Cheng Li, who came to Toronto eight years ago from Shanghai, China, could be the catalyst to change.
It's the least Toronto could do for her.
"I don't understand any of this," says her brother, John Jiang, who was clearly angry.
"What is with the mayor and council collecting all of the taxes and not keeping people safe going for a walk on the sidewalk?"
Her family -- husband, JinBio Fang, and sons, Yuan Fang, 27, and Zheng Fang, 30 -- is devastated.
"She had a big heart," says John Jiang. "We are so sad."
Funeral arrangements are pending and her family says they are contacting a lawyer to look into the events surrounding this senseless death.
Councillor Michael Walker has been warning of this possibility for years.
"Sooner or later a government is going to get sued," he says.
His recommendation is already before council urging them to license all cyclists and ensure that they have proper training and safety equipment.
Another thing that should come out of this is a coroner's inquest.
Meanwhile, Toronto Police are still investigating. But you can see the problem. First of all you are dealing with a 15-year-old and the fact that there is no criminal intent. There is also no law that says that bike is not to be on the sidewalk.
"They both saw each other and failed to negotiate that," said Burrows, who wants to see bikes off sidewalks.
It's not lost on anybody that had that been a car which struck and killed the woman, you know there would be charges laid. It's also not lost that people riding their bikes on pedestrian sidewalks are out of control in every part of the city.
And it has to stop. It is a bylaw offence to do that and it's downright dangerous. It's scary to go for a walk anymore.
Walker is correct in his view that all people operating bikes should be licensed and subject to testing and that all safety concerns have to be addressed.
The veteran councillor would like to see only kids under 12 allowed to ride on sidewalks and proper training for everyone else who bikes on the road.
One problem police have noticed is older teens or even adults are using smaller BMX-style children's bikes for what Burrow's calls "skirting underneath" the standards and making it difficult for police to charge them.
Walker's idea would certainly take care of that.
Meanwhile, the city should call in Toronto Police Const. Hugh Smith, who has given 1,400 cops cycle training and could really help get this city up to proper standards.
He would like to see it mandatory for cyclists to wear helmets, identifying safety vests and gloves and be subject to a Highway Traffic Act offence should they not properly follow the rules of the road.
Of course there are some hoping this little mishap will just go away and die like Cheng Li Jiang did.
Perhaps there will be more who would join her family in wanting to learn something from her death and use it to prevent more tragedies.
[email protected] |
|
