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opinion

Toronto, like many urban centres in Canada, has not found the answer to a safe coexistence between bicycles and motor vehicles. The death Monday night of a 33-year-old cyclist after a confrontation with a motorist and former Ontario attorney-general was, in the most outsized and terrible form, an example of the all too-common exasperation or contempt when cyclists and motorists meet.

Toronto was built for cars, not bicycles or pedestrians. The city is trying to promote greater bicycle use. Vancouver and Montreal are doing the same. Vancouver gave over a lane on the Burrard Street Bridge to cyclists this summer. Montreal has created a bicycle lane on de Maisonneuve Blvd. that takes up an entire lane of traffic. It has hiked the costs of metered parking to discourage downtown driving. But Montreal has managed to maintain civil relations between cyclists and drivers. Toronto has not.

Cyclists may feel there is safety in numbers. In Vancouver, a cycling group has declared the last Friday of each month a day for "critical mass," when a throng can enjoy "the car-free space that we create by simply riding together!" Separately, when the police conducted a safety blitz to ensure that cyclists obey the rules of the road, cyclists were outraged. Militancy, yes; responsibility, no.

The nature of the street is changing, often at the expense of drivers, who still comprise the vast majority of road users. Toronto has a plan to provide 1,000 km of bike routes by 2012. It has removed capacity from cars on some streets to create dedicated bike lanes.

On Jarvis Street, a critical north-south artery to and from the downtown, a lane for cars is gone. On Wellesley Street East, a left-turn has been removed from a stretch where bikes are seldom seen. Huge backups in traffic result on Wellesley. For what, other than an appearance of bike-friendliness?

Squeezing motorists has not dissuaded them from coming downtown. And why should they stay away? Toronto is cold in winter. Not everyone is physically able to walk or ride a bike. Public transit is inadequate. People want to get to work in safety and comfort, and in a short time, if possible.

Toronto has more than 1,200 bike-car collisions a year, or more than three every day. The city's goal is to double the number of bike trips, as a percentage of total trips, by 2011. It also wishes to reduce the number of collisions and injuries. After the death of Darcy Sheppard, and the criminal charges laid against Michael Bryant, the two goals seem to be mutually exclusive, and becoming more so.

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