Significant overreach: Ontario municipalities slam province over bike lane rules [Video]

Upcoming legislation that would require cities to get provincial approval for some bike lanes is a “significant overreach” of power, Ontario municipalities say.

None of the 444 members of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario were consulted or shown evidence the province is using to justify its proposed veto power over new bike lanes that would remove a lane for cars, the association wrote in a statement.

“Bicycle lanes are an essential element of urban transportation planning and road safety,” the association said.

“Requiring provincial approval would be a significant overreach into municipal jurisdiction.”

Premier Doug Ford‘s government is set to table the bike lane legislation next week as part of a suite of measures designed to tackle gridlock.

Ford has complained about bike lanes on Bloor Street West creating gridlock on a road that is about a 10-minute drive from his home in Toronto’s west end.

“It’s an absolute disaster,” Ford said last month of the …