No one's post is strong except for Schneller, Face and espro, who asked questions rather than jumping onto the b****fest bandwagon, just like you.
Is that a hint of bitching?
Emotional first response, yes, but then again I stated that myself. Secondly the idea of parking bays is itself a bad one at this stage in Toronto's development. The bay plan, as deployed in London, does not allow cars to use the bay (otherwise defeating the purpose) until after working hours. The bays in London only operate to 6pm. Thus after that time it returns to free parking for bikes everywhere parking is generally allowed. Also the bay lacks efficiency here as winter months will see disused bays which cars could otherwise use. The variation in peaks and lows of motorcycle usage makes any use of bays a wasted effort!
So this isn't a ***** fest bandwagon per se. As much as the councilor is on our side now, this opens the door for fees later, when he is no longer in that position.
London has a graduated "penalty" system, especially with regard to the "congestion charge / zone" and anual road tax / licensing. The smaller capacity petrol engine / and or less polution generated, the lower fees one pays in all respects, thus punishing large capacity vehicles like sports cars, SUVs and big ol Bentleys.
The rich don't mind paying for priveledge and the middle to lower classes and incentivised to buy electric, hybrids, or low capacity cars, 1L or under.
Under their plan a car like the Puegeot 107 for example had a lower road tax and congestion charge. My 1L bike too had a lower road tax and exempt from the congestion charge. Also free to use HOV lanes, and legal to filter.
So when comparing even my now comparably inefficient 1200cc Vtwin SS, I still spend only $21 on premium gas for a 40km x 5 day urban commute. I am not average in this regard. Scale down to a sport commuter mid capacity bike and there are enormous fuel savings. Scale down further to a 250cc Ninja and you could be punishing the exact demographic you wish to encourage. Factor in my filtering and waheeay, the efficiency is tremendous! No idling, no holding up other vehicles, no wasted time and quality of life in gridlock. The downtown experience is bolstered. Tie me down with punishing fees and ban filtering and the incentive to commute via any cc motorcycle is vastly diminished. The bays then go disused and revenue is lost as cars are not paying to use those spaces! So who wins here?
You think motorcycle bays will cut down on car traffic? Increase push bike traffic? Help an already burdened transport system? If so, lay down some proportionate incentive structure on car drivers too! The reality is we don't even have a transport system to alleviate the personal automobile system!
Parking bays for bikes are a congestion issue when dealing with a problem city like London, with 8 million + people in the city zone alone. 15+ million in the Urban Zone (or GLA) with a medievel city core and insufficient radial road networks. Toronto is boastfully pushing 5+ in the entire GTA (stretching to Kingcity, Ajax, and Milton FFS). For Toronto to reach London's density it would need to grow by another 2 million people and even then, look at their public transport system!!!
This excludes the train network
Now with the train network! (equal to the Go Network here) (Excluding inter city rail network)
Toronto's demise in terms of congestion is as a result of the CAR when the city is less dense than London, all be it with a better road network but a vastly inferior mass transport network.
When you have half the system they have (half the land mass and population), then you can lay a heavy toll on motorcycle and car drivers! Otherwise when you push us, where do you expect us to go? Toronto has missed opportunity after opportunity to develop proper indrustructure and may have already stunted its future growth. Certainly like Montreal Toronto is running into the brick wall of life cycle costs for current infrustructure. And even so, this pilot plan won't achieve equilibrium to fund itself!!!!!!!
The culture of Toronto is also that of a modern, grid network, personal vehicle culture, and though that is changing for a more Eurocentric direction, attacking the motorcycle is a bewildering tangent! Cities like Paris and Rome allow free parking and sidewalk parking. Paris in my experience is so flowing (thanks to properly configured traffic lights which actually create traffic flow!!!). Brussels too was a treat to drive through! Zurich....a pedestrian overrun nightmare! All be it in cities like Rome an SS is rare. Scooters and low cc bikes dominate. Paris is more leaning toward 600cc sport touring class.
London has kick started many of these initiatives and seen failures in a overly push-bike centric bias. The then uber-green mayor Ken Livingston had many of his policies reversed by the incoming Mayor Boris. And rightly so.
It takes a fine balance and though some day the motorcycle will face scrutiny too, for it's petrol guzzling, it has been unfairly targeted way too early in the process while cars and now push-bikes are running amok.
When weaning people off cars, and the sheer amounts Toronto is dealing with, coupled with a car-centric culture of entitlement, one must leave a wider array of options open, especially as our transit system has already met it's functional capacity.
Too many times to count, when I have been questioned for riding despite the risks, when I mention free parking downtown, non riders perk up and begin to consider the benefits. And as a 250cc minimum is required for highway speeds, the sweet spot for two wheeled commuting is the 250 to 600cc class.
The distinction between scooters and motorcycles is wrong, premature, ill informed. Lower capacity bikes will naturally be favoured due to progressive conditions such as congestion, insurance rates, lower speeds, shorter commutes, older AND younger demographics and so on.
Size also sees no distinction between a scooter, ebike, or motorcycle so it is false to single out motorcycles when it comes to these laws. Either we all get to park on side walks or no one does. The irony is parking on sidewalks actually lessons congestion and maximizes revuenue as road space is available to charge cars at the max rate.
Bays are all around a bad idea. And with the exception of a few spots downtown in good weather conditions it is rare to see whole spots taken up by a bike. We usually get in where we fit in and assume the risk of being knocked over.
When a certain year round critical mass is achieved as is the case in London, bays seem to be more practical. And when the downtown borough of Westminster begand to charage a pound / day, the entire pay by plate system was already in place for ALL vehicles!!!!
Even as a pilot scheme it is mystifying why it is beginning with bikes! The revenue generation is a red herring as is the bay plan altogether. It is a knee jerk reaction and is not holistic in its approach....
So in short........this isn't a ***** fest bandwagon....I am just taking a positive position and trying to keep a chearful approach to achieve maximum effect. I would rather vent hear before I let slip something in a more critical circumstance. This is a forum to discuss and debate and share so I don't see it as a ***** fest, rather I see it as constructive.
