Ontario presses ahead with Toronto bike lane removal plan after court win
Written by The Canadian Press on September 1, 2026
TORONTO — The Ontario government is moving ahead with a plan to remove and overhaul Toronto bike lanes after winning a court battle.
The province says it has put out a bid request to study and design options to restore vehicle traffic on bike lane sections of Bloor Street, Yonge Street, Avenue Road and around Queen’s Park.
In a news release, it says the successful bidder will also look for ways to retain or reconfigure bike lanes, “where they make sense and do not make gridlock worse.”
The province says work will begin immediately to remove a section of Bloor Street starting at Clissold Road, where it says minimal design work is required.
It comes after Ontario’s top court earlier this month overturned a ruling that blocked Premier Doug Ford’s government bid to remove the bike lanes.
Cyclists who brought the challenge argued the government pursued the plan even though its own advisers and experts agreed it would not accomplish its stated goal to reduce congestion, and could possibly make it worse.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 1, 2026.
The Canadian Press