Cyclists Shut Down the Gardiner
On Friday night more than 200 Toronto cyclists overtook the Gardiner Expressway. Entering on the westbound ramp at Jarvis and cycling toward the Dunn Street exit, a group belonging to Critical Mass set out to block traffic on Toronto's much maligned waterfront barrier before cops descended, broke up the ride and arrested two of the participants.
On the last Friday of every month, Critical Mass participants congregate in an area of the city to make an oft-overlooked petition for more bike lanes, safety and bike-awareness in the city. With the Gardiner making headlines on Friday morning, the route last evening was more relevant if not also more dangerous than the usual non-highway fare.
According to posts made to the Critical Mass Facebook Group, the ride was a success even if our beloved police force took actions a bit beyond what was deemed necessary by local cycling activists.
Apparently, two cyclists were arrested and treated with force that was more extreme than what the situation called for. A wall post on the Critical Mass Facebook group called for members to react against the unnecessary use of force by our men and women in blue. The specific text of this was as follows:
It is IMPERATIVE that we all send emails to our individual city councilors and to the mayor and to the Toronto police service asking that:
A. The Charges against these two men be dropped.
B. These police officers be reprimanded for their violent acts (and punished for refusing to give us their name and badge numbers.) Officers K.Daley, N.Lee and two unidentified officers on the Gardiner.
C. That this double standard stop NOW! It is NOT ACCEPTABLE for Police Officers to threaten us in this way. And it is absolutely unacceptable that we be handcuffed and forced off our bikes for a TRAFFIC TICKET. This is prejudice and abuse.
We must ALL send emails and make phone calls to our councilors demanding that they act on this. An apology from the Toronto Police Service and an assurance that they will not abuse us in this way EVER AGAIN. WE are all tax-paying citizens of Toronto and we should feel safe around our PEACE OFFICERS.
More info over at the Toronto Star.
Photos by Torontopile in the blogTO Flickr pool.
Comments (73)
Cyclists are not licenced - CARS ARE!
Find a councillor that could be helpful to your cause.
I hope the city make cyclists pay and obey the rules of the road, acts such as critical mass is not respected by anyone.
Toronto has serious transportation and pollution problem. More and more people who live in the city are discovering how quickly they can get around by bicycle, how relaxing it can be, cheap, healthy and pollution free it is. To raise awareness of the benefits of cycling events like Critical Mass are necessary as no other form of promotion for urban cycling exists. Demonstrating this to car drivers on the Gardner Expressway is not a joke. It takes 40 minutes to get from Jameson to Mississauga on a bicycle going easy, but maybe 60 minutes by car in rush hour if not more.
So pick up your bike and ride! You'll get the bike bug that this city needs!
There is a reason why many people don't take cyclists seriously: STUNTS LIKE THIS.
Outside of the Ride for Heart this weekend, you can not ride on the highway, and there are signs at every on-ramp to remind you of it. It's right in the Highway Traffic Act.
I am a cycling advocate and I am mad that short-sighted, dangerous stunts like this push back our cause, not move it forward. All this demonstrated is that a handful of cyclists are taking completely unnecessary risks to themselves and the drivers on the highway, who should not expect to have to do deal with cyclists on a highway.
Anyone who did not get a ticket should feel lucky, as everyone who rode on the highway deserved one. If there was a "demonstration" where cars drove together down a bike path, I am guessing you would want the drivers to get tickets.
I agree that we really need to work on the cycling issue here but doing stunts like this (and putting other people in unnecessary danger) does not help the problem -- it hurts it.
This undermines my support for the bicycling cause: one I'd very much like to support. Affirming your rights to use surface streets is one thing, but riding illegally on a freeway sends the wrong message.
Weird. I actually passed by this happening last night (the arrest part, not the protest part) and wondered what possible reason some middle aged hippies on bikes could have for getting arrested. Now I know (by the way, I saw absolutely no evidence of anything close to brutality, at least when I was there. The bikers were standing next to the cops next and their bikes looking grumpy. That's about it).
You break the law, you're going to get arrested. Them's the breaks.
These people make the rest of us (who actually support their cause) look stupid for doing so.
Kudos, bikers. Kudos.
Were they trying to make a point or was this just a novelty thing, for the fun of it? If it's the former, i'm struggling to see what the point was. If it was the latter, it was extremely inconsiderate of them.
I don't think this should devolve into a bikes vs cars debate, responsibility for this rests primarily with whoever was leading that group ride.
Can't say I'm in support of this either. Assemble on Bloor Street, or somewhere else that could use bike lanes but doesn't already have it - make the point. Riding on the Gardiner is just stupid, and illegal.
If you're going to pull off a stunt of this magnitude (which is sure to result in police action and arrest), why not go all out? Instead of Jameson at 8pm on a Friday, shouldn't they have hopped on at Spadina at 4pm?
Also, if the activists planned appropriately, there should be video footage clearly documenting the accusations of excessive force.
It's crap like this that gives cyclists a bad name. The crazy activist stunts paint the entire cycling community with the same brush - so that regular people commuting to work or to the store with their kids are seen as "fringe" by non-cyclists.
Enough already - grow up and work with society to achieve your cycling utopia dreams... NOT against it.
I really thought people were more mature than this. I guess not.
As someone who has been hit while biking in this city, I fully support efforts to make our streets safer for cyclists. But last night as a pedestrian when these guys (assuming it was the same group) went by and one of them started yelling quite aggressively at me and the other pedestrians, all I could think was 'wow, a greener version of an aggressive jerk in a car with a bell instead of a horn. Awesome.' Are pedestrians going to have to fight for safer streets now too?
I know it was probably one bad apple but it completely put me off a good cause. Hopefully he was the one who was arrested, that would make my day.
Is this productive at all in showing bikes are a valid transportation option?
My feeling is that crazy stunts like this just further perpetuate the stereotype of cyclists as crazy activists who can't fit in to normal society.
Sunday morning is the Ride for Heart - why not wait 36 hours and ride the Gardiner and DVP for a good cause?
I started a discussion thread for this in the BikingToronto Community too.
This is ridiculous.
If anything we should "send emails to our individual city councilors and to the mayor and to the Toronto police service asking that" the punishment in this case be more severe (or at least remain as it is.)
Anyone who advocates or supports this is wrong.
Cycling is a seasonal activity in Toronto so why the need for such sensationalistic actions which create more resentment amongst the motorists.
I photograph Toronto during all seasons and the only time these hipster cyclists appear are during summer and then thy disappear as soon as it gets cold.
Cycling is NOT the solution to Toronto's transportation problems, what we need is more subway lines and more public transportation buses.
When cyclists stop riding on sidewalks, obeying the rules of the road that they use and maybe start getting licences...then I will have sympathy. Cycling, like driving a car is a privelege not a right.
The article is wrong. There were at least 500 of us riding on the Gardiner.
I was there and it was great, except for ignorant drivers who even though they saw that there was absolutely nothing they could do about it, still thought it their duty to imperil bicyclers lives with aggressive driving.
Zack - I cycle as my main means of transportation in Toronto year round. Dressed properly the weather is no obstacle. The only days I missed cycle commuting were in the middle of snowstorms with significant road accumulation that had not yet been plowed (maybe 4 days?)
Yes public transit is great but we also need an environment where people can cycle safely. Active transportation (including walking) has side health benefits. People choose cycling over transit (at least I do) because it is very fast, efficient and direct, not to mention free (once you own the bicycle). A transit system with frequent stops cannot compete with that.
We need an integrated solution with public transit, and improved facilities for walking and cycling. Private cars should be last in the order of consideration of priority on the roads in infrastructure design, but unfortunately remain king.
"Entering on the eastbound ramp at Jameson and cycling toward the Dunn Street exit" this is incorrect. We entered at *Jarvis* and went Westbound to Dunn. This blog tells the story well: http://modernhobo.blogspot.com/2008/05/critical-mass-riding-gardiner.html
I amazed that in this day and age more people haven't realized how much more they would get out of life by not giving all their money to the lousy carmakers, insurance companies, gas companies...and then have to run the gauntlet, under a continual, daily scrutiny, by The Pigs. No wonder there are so many stressed-out motorist. Millions simply haven't realized that they really cannot AFFORD to drive...
I was there. This was stupid.
This will be my last critical mass. Whoever thought this was a good idea needs there head examined. There is one thing to promote cycling, there is another to be an outright nuisance, do something blatantly illegal and put peoples lives at risk.
This isn't about "Promoting Cycling".
This is about making Toronto a "Cycling City" or even a "Cycling SAFE City"
NOW
Kudos to the group for letting the police know when it will be happening in the future.
I hope you get arrested on the on ramp before you get yourselves killed.
Tanya:
I think cycling during winter is dangerous and reckless. the chances of slipping on ice, punctured tire and the cold itself is so great that anyone who cycles during winter is basically playing with his/her life.
I agree that there should be cycling lanes and also the cycling culture should be promoted but disruptive action is not the solution.
Wow! I'm shocked at all the aggression towards this action.
First, the Star got it wrong. We took the Jarvis exit up and wanted to take Spadina down, but it was gridlocked for more than a kilometer, so we went to the next exit, which was Dunn. Also the Sun got it wrong. They printed that "most of the protesters escaped police by throwing their bikes over a fence on the ramp and fleeing on foot." This is fiction at it's Hollywood best. It never happened. All of the riders took the exit and continued on a pleasant cruise through Parkdale. (Well except for the ones apprehended by Police.)
And by the way. The highway was shut down for an extyra 10 minutes at least because of the Police. And yes, they used excessive force to throw a young man off his bike and pin him face down on the road. (You never know, those cyclists, they might attack you with an allan key.) The police action was the most dangerous thing that happened. The cars politely slowed behind us. The cops got to the front of the far right lane and zoomed dangerously ahead so they could serve and protect us. This is what the police sometimes forget when dealing with big groups: their job is 1. to keep everybody safe, 2. get traffic going again. But what often happens is they feel their authority has been threatened, so they must impose it and teach us "rogue cyclists" a lesson, so they take dangerous action to zoom ahead and assert their presence. Then they set their cars as a blockade and uselessly apprehend a few cyclists, deal with anger growing in the rest of the group, even hide poised and ready with pepper spray, (or was that a taser?) They really truly made it worse for everybody, cyclists and motorist alike.
So a few hundred cyclists blocked the Gardiner for 15 or 20 minutes. What if we were in 200 cars all entering at once? Same impact. No one complains when a Blue Jays game gets out and it's an hour of gridlock on the Gardiner. It's not like this is the first time that road has ever been at a stand still.
As for the car drivers we passed. Most of them were snapping pictures calling there friends, laughing into their phones that they couldn't believe it. East bound cars were honking and clapping hands out their windows.
The act was done in a very safe manner. We took the right lane and slowly merged left as opportunity safely presented itself.
Yes it is illegal to ride a bike on a highway. That is not the point here. The point is that millions of dollars go to support/subsidize the automobile as the primary means of transportation in our society. It's a means of transportation that is destroying our ability to live in this city. Riding a bike is possibly the most civic-minded action you can take. Yet bikes have no place on the roads of Canada. Toronto's mythical bike plan is a joke. We are sided off to commuter routes on Harbord or Shuter street. If we want to shop on Bloor or Queen we take our lives into our own hands. How about that poor fellow who died last week on Eglington? He died because our spineless City staff won't spend the money they have and actually get the job done. Gary Welsh (General Manager of Toronto Transportation Services) told me "10 years from now you won't recognize Toronto." Great. But that's what they said 7 years ago when the bike plan was announced. And they've done nothing to implement it.
But now I'm just rambling....
People want to ride bikes. It is the solution to so many of Toronto's problems. Give us the space or we'll take it ourselves.
MLJ
ps, Rick, We had 70 people in the driving snow of January's Critical Mass. There are thousands of commuters who bike all year long, no matter the weather.
MLJ
Wish we had a video of the police assault. There was only one injury sustained during this otherwise safe and careful stunt, and it came at the hands of an officer supposedly present to keep the peace. Unfortunate, but not surprising, that the most reckless act of the entire event is being purposefully overlooked.
Michael:
People buy cars because they need them. So, for you to antagonize those people, block their way and treat them as if by simply owning a car they're a damaging the city, then you will only create antagonism and even put off some of the more levelheaded cyclists... What if someone had to go to the hospital and was blocked by you guys, what about missed appointments, flights etc... Next time consider these facts before going to one of these ?adventures?.
I was one of the cyclists on this ride. I consider myself responsible and respectful of both others and the law and I want everyone to feel safe using the roads - motorists and cyclists and rollerbladers and skateboarders....and let's not forget pedestrians on the the sidewalk.
Change doesn't happen when we follow the rules.
I agree with MLJ and am sorry to continually read strange comments like Zack's which argue against the rights of some by making inflammatory statements. I drive a car as well and I have missed appointments while trapped in CAR traffic that blocked the passage of emergency vehicles.
YES. It was a bit crazy to merge onto the Gardiner, but it was a statement. Critical Mass is peaceful activism. Activism is inconvenient - but far less inconvenient than being run over by a van or knocked off a bicycle by a door or a lack of respect.
Cyclists aren't AGAINST drivers, they (we) are FOR bike rights. It is usually a driver who gets indignant and defensive about THEIR rights. And...fear not, just as drivers get ticketed for breaking rules when they're caught, so too do cyclists receive pricey fines and points off their CAR licences. For THAT right we deserve to be respected as the TRAFFIC we are, not a nusiance to be cut off and endangered.
Thanks for considering that we can all use the city together. If we work TOGETHER we'll all get around more easily.
You'd be amazed at how quickly and easily we let the sirens through (even though they were speeding ahead to cut us off). If we were 400 cars and not 400 bikes, there would be no chance of those emergency vehicles being given the entire left lane. Consider how many people die enroute to the hospital because of automobile-generated gridlock.
It's easy to fly off at the mouth toward those pesky cyclists! How dare they ride a bike on the road when they're not licensed! Make sure they stay off the road and keep them on the sidewalk . . . oh, wait, they're not allowed on the sidewalk, so make 'em drive theirbike-mounted car to the nearest bike path so the pedal pushers can play 'til they have a heart attack.
Two words: n plz.
I'm a cyclist. I've also held a driver's licence for 19 years (and owned a car for 15 of those). I ride during all four seasons. With confidence of hindsight and experience, one can ride in snow, rain, or shine. The biggest fear and danger aren't, however, slippery conditions.
The biggest dangers are the people in their two-to-four-tonne missiles yammering away on their handhelds. Worse now are the "Blackberry peckers" behind the wheel of a moving vehicle. Certain cab companies are, without fail, always a fearsome sight to behold even on the nicest days. And drivers racing through red lights (not amber or just-turned-red) are a flirtation with the death penalty. For cyclists and pedestrians, that is.
But it's examples like the following which really drive home the problematic double-standard triggering so many sore feelings: when a bicyclist is in the right lane, foot on ground, stopped and waiting at a red light (and following the traffic bylaws to the letter), some drivers who want to turn right have the audacity to slam their horn and expect that the cyclist move for them. This would be an affront if the bicyclist were on a motorcycle or in a car.
Note to non-bicyclist-drivers (cos some drivers *do* cycle): YOU CAN'T HAVE IT BOTH WAYS. Sorry, Charlie.
Either you recognize bicyclists as having to adhere the same rules you as a driver must, or the deal's off. Put away your handheld or take the TTC to use it there. If you expect bicyclists to adhere to a driver's standard, then you must adhere to the same standard of awareness one must absolutely have to be on a bicycle.
And to wonder why regular commuter cyclists are so furious with aggressive, inattentive, distracted, and self-absorbed driving behaviour on death traps! That is, death traps like College Street, where the "bike lane" suddenly becomes the "new car park lane" and drivers scream at you to get off the road where "you don't belong", going so far as to throwing coffee at you (a form of assault, by the way) to drive home their point -- even though you're still in the bike lane!
Bottom line?
1) To the province: paint and enforce "bike boxes" at traffic light intersections the way they do in Portland, Oregon, so that at a red, no driver can make a right on red if a cyclist is in the box.
2) Also to the province: work with civil engineers to construct "asymmetrical street traffic architecture". What this means is that two-way streets aren't mirror images of the other direction's layout (e.g., curb, parking, lanes of traffic, berm or median, and then the mirrored reverse for the other direction). Rather, make it a curb, two lanes of bike traffic, a berm or divider, then public transit lanes, then car traffic, then a car parking lane, and then the other curb. This ensures that the province and city can create traffic signs exclusively for bikers to obey and do so in co-ordination with other modes of traffic. It'd reduce how often drivers could point at cyclists and blame them for "chaos", and it'd make cyclists feel so much safer when getting from point A to B.
3) To the city: pass and enforce the driver ban on all handhelds while a car's parking brake isn't engaged. No exceptions.
4) To cyclists: wear a damn helmet, or else end up like that bike courier this week who'll probably eat baby food for the rest of his life. And to fixie riders: keep riding them, but get a hand brake. Use it like an emergency brake. It won't detract from your hipster mystique. Trust me. It's cooler to stay intelligent instead of having limbs sliced by streetcars or having silly putty for frontal lobes, and you can't charm anyone when you're in adult diapers and using your blinking eyes to say "yes" and "no". And it's far cooler than death. Also to some cyclists: don't drink and ride. Doing that only makes you sloppy, and it screws things for the rest of us (and, ahem, you know who you are).
As for the big picture? Tear down the Gardiner to Bathurst, not Jarvis, and institute a usage fee for motorists to upkeep and maintain the roads. Institute it as a congestion zone fee. That way, it also encourages bicyclists to chip in with registration fees to help maintain the roads they also use. Of course, the wear on paved roads by bike tires is a sliver of the wear that multi-tonne vehicles impose on creating potholes and crevices that could swallow young children or terriers. But we'll cross that bridge if we ever find it. QED.
The inconvenience for drivers posed by a few bicyclists, once or twice a month, pales against the danger bicyclists face every single day they ride. Drivers face inconvenience more often being in a traffic jam caused by other cars than a traffic jam caused by bicyclists.
Astrid
To heck with you all.... you are no better than the cops that were 'too hard' on a few individuals.... I wish i had a video of that too... it would be quite the laugh. vigilanties of any sort should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Vehicles are vechicles, and I'll be sure to write my MP/MPP/Councilor re these pathetic actions. I am not here to dispute the benefits of cycling, but to the attitudes of some cyclists. go to h#ll. What happens if I don't brake so quickly next time. I'm insured, are YOU? I don't really care at this point, sadly enough.
If you don't brake so quickly next time Spaztick, then aside from the criminal charges looming over you, the replayed image of the cyclist you struck will probably require quite a few therapy sessions to move past the post-trauma stress. Your insurance should take care of your car and their hospital/burial bills, but the memory will last you a lifetime.
I heard from my friend who was in it that one police car rammed the cyclist who was trying to get away, and everyone else go off at Dunn.
I'm strangely supporting this event. I think it has supported the cause in a non-violent manner and made the news to boot. Since two out of two hundred+ got ticketed, meaning the majority obeyed officers to get off at Dunn, this is an unmitigated indication of a successful protest.
Congradulations
i am so glad that there are people working through proper channels for the rights of cyclists and pedestrians. there are also other, more spontaneous and flambuoyant ways of affecting progress. they work hand in hand with write-a-letter-to your-politician type advocacy by agitating for change at ground level. there's no need to squable amongst ourselves when we're on the same team...we ought respect each other and learn to work together to make the city we live in.
when you see the gardiner with no cars on it, think...
ANOTHER TORONTO IS POSSIBLE
one where the gardiner has an LRT and bike path, great views and picnic spots...with no cars underneath we have room for a flea market, farmers market, basketball courts (i saw that in Paris)
if we retrofitted the city to be built for people instead of cars without spending billions...what could Toronto look like? how could we reclaim the commons to serve us all instead of the mega-rich few? when will smogtown kick it's filthy driving habit?
on the 40th anniversary of the student unprising in Paris in may 1968, think of the words "under the cobblestones...the beach!"
this critical mass made the resounding point that we have to rethink our urban landscape...it's a big deal, our survival depends on it!
best wishes to kyle, angela and jordan.
LOVE TO ALL THE REBELS
Thanks Cam... you gave me a laugh. Seriously. Just proves my point. What I was saying, is that- my car is a speeding missile of metal... (and all drivers should be as aware as I am, as a constant driver in the core) if I sneezed, or ortherwise impeeded my braking ability, then there would be trouble. PTSS? lol you don't know me, I doubt I'd lose sleep over YOU. *jokes* But seriously folks, I know there are many car drivers out there that have no concept of road skills/lawfulness- this very much includes cyclists as well as drivers- so don't be smug or have a sense of entitlement because your vechicle does not pollute. BTW- final word before I ignore this pr post; I was really pleased to see everyone involved with the 'heist' were wearing helmets. pps- I'm going to be sure to lobby Police Services to enhance their ticketing policies against poor bike vehicle operators. Thanks for endangering your lives, and raising the level of concern everyone. More bike lanes YES, for certain! More Tickets for those that violate the laws, oh yeah. done and done cam sukka
I want to thank everyone in critical mass for all the support I've been given. It brings a tear to my eye to hear the story of you guys coming to the pig station to free me. I happened to be the first one arrested on the Gardiner, when an officer ran towards me and tackled me to the ground, and then proceeded to knee me numerous times in the back. And no, I wasn't trying to get away from them, where could I have gone? I was simply going around the pig mobiles and up the side of the exit ramp. The take down was completely unnecessary. The things I heard the cops say about us cyclists while I was sitting in the cop car would blow your mind. I have never heard such hatred and disrespect for such peaceful and beautiful people. Long live bikes! Long live Critical Mass!
I was at the Critical Mass rally. But I was one of about three to five who chose not to go on the Gardiner. I think it was a dumb idea that risked the safety of everyone. All it takes is one driver to fail to see a cyclist cut off from the main group and they are done for. In addition presumably a number of calls were made to 911 to alert police this ties up 911 calls from critical emergencies. All together a bad idea. Smarten up next time
I don't know if I read it correctly, but what's with that comment by one of the CM members on Facebook about "corking pedestrians in the future?" Please explain.
I too support any initiative that would bring more bike lanes to the city, but this was reckless and stupid. (Inviting very small and young children to bike on the Gardiner, anyone?)
I can't believe someone actually made a post criticizing the "Ignorant drivers".
Perhaps this was "non-voilent", but it was definitely aggressive and incredible counter-productive considering all of the criticism towards "inconsiderate" drivers. let's forget everyone who had to be somewhere and was held up because several hundred cyclists thought they were more important. It just shows the intelligence of a mass group of people. I'm always struck by what people will do when they are in a large group.
Plus, can someone please let them know that many of us have cars because we need them. Maybe they could broaden there perspective just a moment to see that we all don't work within driving distance. That we need to get to many places during a day. That they might not make sense at all to use public transportation for everything.
Thanks guys for making it a bigger Us vs. Them problem.
And correct me if I'm wrong, but I also sense a bit of disparity in attitudes among members of Critical Mass (all quotes):
"Cyclists aren't against drivers" vs. "CARS ARE SAVAGE AND GREEDY" (all caps theirs, not mine)
"Peaceful activism" vs "corking pedestrians" (whatever that means)
"Peace officers" vs. "the pigs" (I wonder if there is a separate label for T.O.'s much-lauded bike officers?)
I have an immense dislike for aggressive idiot drivers (as I've been nearly clocked by a few in the past) but for this "movement" to work, you all need to get on the same page.
I was there, and saw the arrest. The reactions from the motorist on the Gardiner were very positive. It could had been a good experience. That was up until someone refused to get off the highway when asked by police. I did not see excessive force. That one move by one lone rider had gave the ride and Critical Mass a black eye. Don't blame the whole group for the actions of one.
I would never trust the judgement of anyone who would even CONSIDER taking their kids biking on the Gardiner like this.
The police did a good job in not confronting us, instead peacefully funneling us off on the Dunn exit. I watched as one cyclist decided not to leave and went around the barricade, of course he's going to be tackled. I didn't want a part of that and left with the rest to continue our mass ride.
All in all, the Gardiner was still the safest part of the whole ride - nobody was in danger and there wasn't any anger on the part of drivers or cyclists.
See you at the next ride, there's a suburban one planned next week. No plans to take over the 401 on that one - yet.
It's such an extreme view, that the highway has to come down to facilitate the development of 'public space'. Do you people have any regard for the economy? How will all of those people get to work in the city if the Gardiner is taken down, even in part? Why would a business locate in Toronto, knowing that access for their employees and/or products will be difficult, at best?
There's no talk of a corresponding program to expand and integrate transit across the GTA to make up for its loss, no consideration that biking from long distances isn't workable, just rambling about parks and vegetable markets and the end of the internal combustion engine.
"Since when is tackling a slow moving cyclist the proper way to arrest someone??"
How else would you stop a cyclist? Shoot him? Taser him? use the spike strip? I'm sure he was asked to stop...
With crazy 'extremists' around, it'll always be a no-win situation for the police.
Typically self-centred stunt. Granted, the road system is not set up well to serve bicycles. Drivers have to be constantly careful not to crush these butterflies in the traffic flow. Take the protest to where it counts. And stay off the expressway, please.
self-centred, bike-activist stunt, what a surprise. I'm sure the 401 is next, can't wait. Regardless of who is right or wrong, the laws of physics will always be on the side of the cars, so taking your children riding on an elevated concrete highway isn't exactly the smartest idea. Good work.
So riding your bike through The Eaton Centre is sending a message to whom, and how?
I'm sorry, I'm a cyclist and I'd like to make it known I do not support or condone these acts of stupidity.
i wish all of you flustered people would just LOOSEN UP! as many auto addicts are just resigned to commuting and many cyclists feel there are only the proper channels to affect change, the collective consciousness of critical mass rose our industrial town out of the muck, albeit for a few brief minutes.
let's celebrate that under our worker-drone exterior, we all yearn for a more elevated mode of existence - that was obvious from the smiles and cheers directed our way from slowed down cars on that ride.
today, general motors and exxon-mobil run the streets again, but we know those mega-billion-dollar death merchants can't dupe us forever.
the long, slow emergency we are undergoing is far more dangerous than a bike ride on the gardiner. hell, crossing the street at a light or waiting for a bus is far more dangerous (ask my dead cousin about that one), as is being in a car on any highway. inaction in the face of urban collapse, resource depletion and environmental disaster are all far more dangerous.
for those of you out there with kids who are upset about the young ones out on this ride, tell them you couldn't be bothered to try and make their world a better place. get in your car or on your bike and go to work so you can pay for their asthma breather, or casket, as they are far more likely to die from the status quo than from civic engagement.
They should have been given tickets and the organizers charged for endangering the lives of children.
http://www.mto.gov.on.ca/english/pubs/cycling/section5.0.shtml
I'm a cyclist and I think everything should be done to make Toronto a more bike-friendly city.
I also think the leaders of the Critical Mass ride should have been arrested. I would have been completely on the side of the police if they had done so. Riding helmetless in the fast lane of the expressway is stupid and illegal. I would LOVE to join the Critical Mass bike rides, but the utter stupidity of the leadership prevents me. Is there anyone out there doing non-idiot bicycle advocacy?
Here's how to do non-idiot advocacy: stage a ride, and obey every single traffic law. Including red lights, stop signs, lane markers, and the signs that says bicycles on freeways are prohibited.
Critical Mass suggestion: next time, just the leaders go (how about today?), and do your riding through Queens Park (to let the politicians know you mean business!). Hopefully you'll achieve the ends you desperately deserve, a prison cell.
Right, waiting for a bus is comparable to going for a bike ride on the Gardiner.
Now I see how this can all make sense to you.
I hope you're a child yourself, because this is about the level of judgement these people have shown.
anon, there are no leaders or organizers for Critical Mass, you just show up. Nobody knows which route we're taking, it just falls into place.
There isn't a set agenda, it's not a formalized protest - just a nice ride with no problems over the last 10 years.
See everyone at the next one, they're held at 6:30 pm on the last Friday of every month. We start at the corner of Spadina and Bloor.
See, there it is again! Angus, you say it's "not a formalized protest", yet some of your more "hyperbolic" cohorts here plainly insist otherwise. They also claim that they were brutalized by "the pigs", yet you state that everything was mostly congenial. Which is it?
(And nobody's explained the "corking pedestrians" comment either.)
I realize that the event is open to anyone and everyone, and it's a shame that a few self-proclaimed "rebel" blowhard idiots have to sully what is otherwise an organization with good intentions.
just a clarification for some of you out there,
critical mass dose not have "leaders", it is a non-heirarchical bicycle club that is made up of whoever happens to be there...it exists in cities all over the world. by its very own definition, the conglomeration of bikes (not unlike a school of fish) finds safety in numbers.
so please understand, montrealshorts and many others out there, that riding with several hundred other cyclists on the gardiner, one is far safer than waiting for a bus by the curb or trying to cross on the light at queen and spadina on any ordinary day. (cars are the leading cause of death in canadian schoolchildren, and one in 100 will die in an automobile accident)
and to you oh opinionated anonymous one, i doubt that something like this would ever happen again here, so please don't let it ruin your idea of what critical mass is usually like. if you would LOVE to come out, how come you haven't already? i suggest it is better to draw judgement from a diversity of thoughts on the subject instead of just spouting "you otta be arrested" type stuff one could expect to hear from a law & order lackey. think about the woman in the volvo who sent a cyclist to his death because she couldn't be bothered to look over her shoulder. perhaps she richly deserves the confines of a prison cell a little more, since she actually killed someone.
good luck with leading the charge on "non-idiot cycling advocacy"...chances are a lot of the "idiots" who were on this ride will be the first to support you. more likely, you will never do anything beyond sending anonymous insults on web-blogs while your city and the biosphere descend into blight.
ps. i'm sorry that this happening drew the scorn of accordian guy...he's someone i have great respect and admiration for...i can only say that perhaps the experience of it as opposed to the toronto sun's reportage or the police officers version might have left you with less angry an opinion
Surprisingly, today's Sunday Sun has a pretty good account.
http://www.torontosun.com/News/TorontoAndGTA/2008/06/01/5737116-sun.html
Elle, I don't speak for other people - people have different views of what happened.
Wow. Just... wow. This was an incredibly reckless move. Set aside everything about the environment, whether or not bikes _should_ be allowed on the highway -- at this point in time, bikes are NOT supposed to be on the highway, and the motor vehicles who ARE on the highway are not expecting bikes to be there. It is damn lucky nobody got hurt while merging. Please, please find a better, SAFER way to get your message across.
Critical Mass is great when it sticks to downtown roads (ie. streets bikes are legally entitled to) and is a fun community ride for friends and families.
When it's horrible is when it does something like riding on the Gardiner as a symbolic "f-you" to a society dominated by car use and car culture.
Guess what happens when you give the finger to society? It gives it right back to you... forget being involved (even nominally) which transportation policy changes if you act like a 12 year old with a chip on his shoulder.
Do you think City Hall or the Province, or Metrolinx or anyone with any influence to increase the role of bicycles on the streets of Toronto will have anything to do with "activists" who only really accomplish pissing people off rather than working towards constructive, co-operative change?
Joe,
I don't think that this action should be seen as a "f@_k you" to society. As a well established member of the cycling community, you know that critical mass is an expression of cyclists concern for their own safety on a day-to-day basis and an expression of a desire for a more equitable sharing of the road.
As Tokyo said on that other local blog, this was a nonviolent protest that got lots of press for the issue at hand and should be seen as a success.
The real failure here was the sensationalistic reporting of the SUN. Using inciting language like "rogue cyclists" and "block the gardiner" does too much to alter the direction of the debate, and can't be considered good journalism. Their implication that Critical Mass has any strong association with the groups campaigning for Bike Lanes on Bloor is flat out wrong.
"You don't speak for other people?" Well then, I guess you're content to let others speak FOR you, and misrepresent you and your group with false and completely contradictory information. That's really unfortunate.
well said "It's crap like this that gives cyclists a bad name", how stupid can 200 people be? bikes on a 400-series highways are you kidding me? good thing no body was killed.
Hey Ben,
Even though the Gardiner is not a 400 series highway, it and the QEW are "controlled access" roads - and it's illegal for bikes to go on them at any time.
CM isn't an "f-you" to a non-cycling society ... it's a fun ride that shows non-cyclists the joys of cycling, and that we are valid road users... but taking a ride onto a highway IS an "f-you" - it's just a "let's stir sh** up" mentality.
Really - do you think any good will come of it? One look at the majority of the reaction on this page or any other can tell you that this is seen as "crazy weirdos on bikes almost get themselves killed".
Contrast that to Bells on Bloor - where the overwhelming reaction has been "what a cool, fun-for-the-family event, and all for a good cause - bikelanes on Bloor!
See the difference?
I'm surprised at the number of people who are surprised at the police (over)reaction. If you follow the news, stay informed and keep your eyes and ears open, you will find that a significant proportion of our people in blue are little more than thugs, more interested in 'respect for the uniform' than respect for people or laws.
I agree with a lot of you - that was a slightly too radical, irresponsible and dangerous event that perhaps did not make the point it was meant to. I assume that if you agree to participate in an event as such you assume the possibility of getting arrested. Presumably you as a radical activist are willing to take this risk. In the future, take over streets in the city that need bike lanes its a lot more effective.
On the other hand, I thought this was just plane cool - to see this organic body of cyclists take over urban city planning is like seeing grass grow through asphalt. Its very powerful and inspiring. Its a sign that our city and our world is changing.
You guys are totally crazy, and I applaud you for having the balls to merge onto the highway (dont do it again).
Sorry Joe, I've heard all the propaganda but I've also run into CM a few times when I'm walking or riding around trying to get somewhere, and while it may indeed be fun, blocking streets and running red lights is most definitely a "F- You" to everyone else. It just generates ill will in a lot of the people they keep waiting, and that's an observation, not an opinion.
Too bad some irrate persons didnt take those jerks stupid bicycles are wrapped them around their stupid necks so they can wear unsial looking collars around their puny little necks
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