The bike lane debate rages on\u2013as do the comments on social media. I\u2019ve written before about some of the myths spread by people who oppose bike lanes\u2013we don\u2019t pay taxes, we don\u2019t have jobs, we are all part of some communist scheme to get everyone to eat bugs or something. But one of the things I keep seeing is this reference to cyclists, or cycling advocates, as \u201cbikers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Apart from the fact that the word biker immediately conjures up an image of a dude in leather riding a chopper, and there\u2019s nothing wrong with these chaps (see what I did there), I consider myself a cyclist\u2013or bike rider.<\/p>\n
And it\u2019s not just a semantic thing\u2013it\u2019s because some of these comments continue to refer to all cyclists as \u201cbikers.\u201d As if we are some big, faceless entity who don\u2019t have cars (or jobs, or pay taxes, or want everyone to eat said bugs) and whose entire existence revolves around bikes. There\u2019s also this recurring theme in the comments that everyone protesting in Toronto is being paid, but that\u2019s a whole other matzo ball.<\/p>\n
Riding in Toronto<\/p>\n
I love bikes. I\u2019ve been riding and racing for decades. I also own a car and have been driving since I was able to (I grew up in the country). But I\u2019ve been riding for just as long, too\u2013and whenever I can, I use my bike, walk or take transit. And btw, I also have a job (as you can see, dear Canadian Cycling Magazine reader) but my life isn\u2019t always defined by cycling\u2013which is part of this \u201cbiker\u201d reference, making cyclists sound like some weird cult. And I don\u2019t eat bugs, either. At least not knowingly.<\/p>\n
Driving has always sucked in the city. Sure, maybe it does more now\u2014but there are also a lot more people. More construction. But this idea that before the bike lanes, getting around Toronto was Xanadu just ain\u2019t true.<\/p>\n
9 stupid bike lane comments, debunked<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n In recent years here in Canada, there seems to be more of an us-versus-them sentiment that we used to see more often south of the border. And bike lanes have become part of that fight. What should be a discussion about how we get around our cities has turned into something much more personal, with people increasingly treating cyclists as some kind of opposing tribe.<\/p>\n The ever-growing schism<\/p>\n Back to the us-versus-them thing. Sometimes I see my friends who advocate for cycling use the word carbrain\u2013referencing the idea of cities or towns being car-centric. I don\u2019t love the term\u2013or labelling anyone against cycling infrastructure, in the same way I don\u2019t like us all being labelled \u201cbikers.\u201d But there\u2019s definitely some truth to this. Where my parents live, north of the city, you have to hit the pedestrian button to cross the street, as opposed to it just going on its own. So when you approach an intersection, you need to legit sprint to hit the button or you won\u2019t get the signal.<\/p>\n Toronto bike lane memorial honours 32 people killed on 3 major streets<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n But back to these comments. Man, the vitriol is ramping up. I\u2019m used to the homophobic slurs, the claims that we are all in Lycra and racing the Tour de France, that we are commies, that we\u2019re part of some globalist agenda, all this stuff. You become sort of numb to this shit, eventually.<\/p>\n Some of these damn comments, man<\/p>\n Today, however, I saw a just delightful gentleman in the comments post a photo of a ghost bike, saying that this was his \u201cfavourite kind of cyclist.\u201d Pardon? It\u2019s one thing to have an opinion about cyclists. It\u2019s another to actually fucking want them dead. (Also, the bike is a memorial to someone\u2019s father, mother, brother, sister, kid. Like, what?)<\/p>\n Cyclists in Toronto come from all walks of life and socioeconomic backgrounds. Some wear Lycra, sure. (Although there\u2019s at least one here that\u2019s done the Tour de France, but that\u2019s it<\/a>.) Lots don\u2019t wear Lycra. Some use cycling for exercise, whether for competition or just fresh air. Some use it as a way to get to work, school or run errands. The point is, we ain\u2019t all the same.<\/p>\n But now, we are united in our fight to keep valuable cycling infrastructure that protects riders and vulnerable road users.<\/p>\n