In the context of City Council’s decision to install bike lanes on Bloor St. West, the Globe and Mail columnist Marcus Gee has authored a thorough-going attack on the idea of street parking, demanding that Toronto “grow up” and eliminate it. It is an extraordinary series of objections to this useful (and profitable) form of parking including the alleged arrogance of a driver who wishes to park in front of a hardware store. (Find a hardware store). There is an easy assumption in Mr. Gee’s story that bicycles represent the civilized future of transportation and that cars should, perhaps, be removed from the City altogether. He seems to think that store owners who complain about the loss of parking are fabricating a problem.
STREETS TOO NARROW BECAUSE OF PARKING?
His suggestion that the streets of Toronto aren’t wide enough because cars park on them will surely draw snorts of derision from business and residents alike. Of course, automobiles carry far more people than bicycles every day. They will continue to do so because most people — the vast majority — are unwilling or unable (how shocking) to ride a bicycle. As always, readers are invited to comment but please, those who think Gee is correct, refrain from arguing that the bicycle was here before the car. So was the sedan chair. Take a look. Marcus Gee, Globe and Mail