Northern Light
Superstar
".......nothing will fit...."
Sure it will, if you remove the parking. That's it. If the decision is to leave the parking, then the bike lane can not be protected; remove the parking and there is room.
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General cycling issues (Is Toronto bike friendly?)
- Thread starter rp07
- Start date
".......nothing will fit...."
Sure it will, if you remove the parking. That's it. If the decision is to leave the parking, then the bike lane can not be protected; remove the parking and there is room.
W. K. Lis
Superstar
There is more off-street parking (including unused parking spaces in the downtown condos) available, and that could be built as the city develops more density.
Admiral Beez
Superstar
Reply that back to Layton.
W. K. Lis
Superstar
The problem that Toronto has, when compared to the US cities, is that there are no or very little derelict or abanding buildings that can be torn down and replaced with off-street parking lots or garages.
This is not Toronto...
From link.
It would be expensive for the city to buy buildings and tear them down for off-street parking. Only if new buildings include parking could we replace the on-street parking with proper bicycle lanes and paths in the downtown.
This is not Toronto...
From link.
It would be expensive for the city to buy buildings and tear them down for off-street parking. Only if new buildings include parking could we replace the on-street parking with proper bicycle lanes and paths in the downtown.
amnesiajune
Senior Member
Off-street parking and on-street parking have completely different uses. People go to off-street parking -- especially garages -- if they need to leave their car for several hours. Someone who's just stopping in to have dinner or buy a few things isn't going to go looking for a garage and drive up/down two or three levels of parking to find a spot. They'll just go somewhere else.
W. K. Lis
Superstar
Green P off-street parking are generally the same rates as on-street parking nearby. You can get 15 minutes parking using your Green P smartphone app, with extensions.
amnesiajune
Senior Member
The parking rates don't matter. The point is that with on-street parking it's a lot easier to leave your car, walk into a store briefly, and walk back out to your car. If people have to go use a garage several blocks away, most of the time they just won't bother.
If the city is getting rid of on-street parking on Harbord they need to make some available nearby (this is why the changes on King haven't been much of an issue), but to do so on Harbord requires taking side street parking spots away from people who live around there.
If the city is getting rid of on-street parking on Harbord they need to make some available nearby (this is why the changes on King haven't been much of an issue), but to do so on Harbord requires taking side street parking spots away from people who live around there.
Northern Light
Superstar
Not necessarily.
One could implement pay and display on nearby side streets but exempt residential permit holders from paying.
One could raise permit rates to something closer to market value, freeing up spaces. (some homeowners who have on-site parking choose to park on the street instead, and that class of permit is available
for under $60 per month in area where you were never get such a space in the private market for under double that).
One could a pick a central location in the area, buy 2 homes adjacent to a laneway, widen the lane and add parallel parking.
Many of the businesses have substantial property at the rear abutting laneways which could be used for this purpose as well; if customer parking is the priority.
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Admiral Beez
Superstar
Perhaps the days of Main Street retail, dependent on customers parking out front are coming to an end. I was in Singapore last year and noticed an almost total absence of small retail or restaurants dependent on each customer driving and parking in front. Instead, everything is in malls.
W. K. Lis
Superstar
amnesiajune
Senior Member
The issue isn't that residents would have to pay. The issue is that there's only enough spaces in the east and west ends for the cars that have permits. If you add shoppers into the mix, some of the local residents will be left with nowhere to park except in the middle of the night.
We did that in the 70s, 80s and 90s. Now we're going in the other direction, malls are dying and street-front retail space is in high demand.
Admiral Beez
Superstar
One difference with today’s street retail vs. the 80s are today’s are mostly chains. But regardless, you can have street front retail without onstreet parking. Such retail predates the invention of the car.
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salsa
Senior Member
For all the talk of coordinating cycling projects with major road works, the city continues to miss one opportunity after another to do exactly that.
On this section of Royal York Road, a significant reconstruction of its sidewalks, curbs and road surface has just been completed. This stretch also happens to be part of the city's Ten Year cycling plan which calls for new bike lanes here.
Despite this, no bike lanes have resulted from the reconstruction. There are wide curb lanes and an unused yellow-painted strip in the middle of the entire stretch, but somehow no one thought to put this space to better use. Perhaps not surprising, since this is Stephen Holyday's ward.
On this section of Royal York Road, a significant reconstruction of its sidewalks, curbs and road surface has just been completed. This stretch also happens to be part of the city's Ten Year cycling plan which calls for new bike lanes here.
Despite this, no bike lanes have resulted from the reconstruction. There are wide curb lanes and an unused yellow-painted strip in the middle of the entire stretch, but somehow no one thought to put this space to better use. Perhaps not surprising, since this is Stephen Holyday's ward.
robmausser
Senior Member
I believe a yellow space like that allows for higher speeds on the road, which, if you are a pro-car Councillor, is of importance to you.
salsa
Senior Member
And after seeing this article which highlights how progress on vision zero is being held up by bureaucratic crap, now I have to wonder what kind of similar roadblocks must be preventing progress on our cycling network.
Toronto city hall still throwing up roadblocks to road safety
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/toronto-road-safety-1.5299831?cmp=rss
And sure enough, I happen to find something on Twitter:
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