Free Parking in Toronto for Scooters & Motorcycles (if you can find a spot)
A quick follow-up to our post yesterday about the possibility of free parking for motorcycles and scooters in Toronto.
The motion has passed. Bikers and Vespa drivers can rejoice. Read more:
For those familiar with Toronto, "Green P" lots are simply parking lots under the brand name "Green P."
The motion has passed. Bikers and Vespa drivers can rejoice. Read more:
City council has passed a motion to grant free parking at metered spots for scooters and motorcycles.
Councilor Case Ootes says it's nothing but good news all around because users will save money on parking, converted car drivers would open traffic and the two-wheelers pump out less pollution.
Ootes says he's now looking into whether the "Green P" lots will be included as well.
[Via AM 640 Toronto Radio]
For those familiar with Toronto, "Green P" lots are simply parking lots under the brand name "Green P."
2 Comments. Add your comments!
wow! Something that I've bin doing for the past several years and NEVER gotten a ticket for is now Legal! Woop de do!
By Anonymous, at 10:29 PM, October 28, 2005
Send Councillor Glenn De Baeremaeker your funeral bill.
Politics
Public space advocates are not surprised at all with Councillor Case Ootes’ plan to make life even harder for Toronto pedestrians, a plan that is being paraded around as an environmental initiative. What does come as a surprise in this half baked idea is his right hand man.
Councillor Ootes’ plan for the environment includes the use of more scooters and motorcycles along with giving them free parking on city streets and sidewalks. The simplistic idea is that they use less gas and less space so they help the environment. Unfortunately pedestrians will now have to contend with motorcycles and scooters along with the sandwich boards, oversized garbage cans, various ad campaigns, and other motor vehicles that use the ever shrinking sidewalk space. Taxpayers are left to wonder if the city is really that cash poor if it can afford to give away free parking.
The surprise here of course is Councillors Ootes main supporter, the supposed environmental friendly Councillor Glenn De Baeremaeker. With such a bizarre political union some are left wondering if Councillor De Baermaeker is being threatened by an elderly gang of scooter riders to support the motion at council. For some reason Councillor De Baermaeker is ignoring the American Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) concerns that motorcycles and scooters produce up to twenty four more times pollution than a passenger car. Paris, France has also had to grapple with the pollution caused by motorcycles and scooters. While these two modes of transportation account for one percent of the gasoline sold in Paris they also account for ten percent of motor vehicle pollution in Paris. The French also have a problem with motorcycles and scooters using sidewalks as their own personal freeways.
While the citizens of Toronto are looking for Councillors to put an end to summers with record number of smog days Councillors Ootes and De Baermaeker are looking for more pollution for us to choke on. Toronto Public Health pegs the number of citizens killed prematurely by smog at over five hundred per year. Adding to this our sidewalks are on the way to being turned into parking lots that are nothing but eyesores. The one chance that Councillor De Baermaeker had with Royal York Road bicycle lane issue to actually encourage non motorized travel was lost when he began his trip over to the polluted side earlier this year.
There is only one solution if this half baked plan is implemented by council. Each time your child has to use an inhaler on a smog day or you have to bury a loved one who dies prematurely from smog send Councillor De Baermaeker the bill. Yes, send him the bill for that inhaler or the funeral costs. Though this may sound absurd but it is really no different than a provincial government suing a tobacco company for selling a legal product. The only difference is that you have a much better case than the provincial government. There should also be some agreement as to how much to charge the Councillor for each day we have to stay locked up in our homes on smog days because we cannot breathe outside.
Call your Councillor today and ask them to smoke out this regressive plan. Find the name of your Councillor here.
http://app.toronto.ca/im/council/councillors.jsp
Please send your bills to
Councillor Glenn De Baeremaeker
c/o Toronto City Hall
100 Queen Street West, Suite B31
Toronto, M5H 2N2
This article was written by Darren Stehr and released on TakeTheTooker.ca.
For more info darren@takethetooker.ca or 416-707-4744.
The motion at council.
http://takethetooker.ca/TTTdownloads/nomj.pdf
EPA motorcycle pollution.
http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.nsf/0/e5bfa323ce5ae57b85256c07004b39ed?OpenDocument
Paris motorcycles and scooters.
http://blogs.motorbiker.org/blogs.nsf/dx/07012005082416MWE9J9.htm
Motorcycle pollution.
http://www.hi.com.au/resource/rfactsa.asp?kla=13&subtopicid=3489
By Anonymous, at 9:41 PM, October 31, 2005
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