For more than a decade, The War on Cars podcast has examined the global consequences of car-centric planning. Topics range from politics and public policy to pop culture and everyday life. Now, the podcast is coming to Toronto for a live screening and conversation that feels especially timely.
According to the organizers, hosts Doug Gordon and Sarah Goodyear will appear at Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema on Feb. 5 to discuss themes from their new book, Life After Cars, and to explore how cities like Toronto might move beyond auto-first thinking. The show describes its mission as covering “the worldwide fight to undo a century’s worth of damage wrought by the automobile,” a lens that resonates deeply in a city long shaped by debates over bike lanes, transit, and street space.
The podcasters say that Toronto holds a special place in its history. In 2010, then-mayor Rob Ford infamously declared that “the war on the car is over.” He even went so far to pledge to halt bike-lane expansion and other initiatives seen as inconveniencing drivers. Fifteen years later, the Bike Lane Saga is still kicking.
In 2025, Cycle Toronto won a legal challenge preventing the removal of 19 km of bike lanes. Interestingly–that included sections of Bloor Street just outside the Hot Docs Cinema itself. That was after court documents revealed the province knew the change would not meaningfully reduce congestion and would likely increase collisions.
With the ongoing cycling infrastructure debacle going on in Ontario spearheaded by the late mayor’s brother, Premier Doug Ford–particularly Toronto, it’s certainly a topic that heralds discussion with the hosts.
Copies of Life After Cars will be available for purchase at the event.
Screening information
Tickets:
$36 — General Admission
$68 — Ticket + Book Bundle
The event is organized by Cycle Toronto. The War on Cars LIVE is sponsored by The Biking Lawyer.