The meetings of September and October 2001 have marked a new beginning for the TCC. For one the October 15th meeting was the first for the new members of the committee. Their appointments had to be approved at the City Council meeting on October 2nd before they could attend the meeting as full members. In addition re-appointment of continuing members was also approved at the council meeting.

It is also a new start as we are starting the budget process for the first year of the Toronto Bike Plan (TBP). At the September meeting the Transportation Division of the Works and Emergency Services Department (WES) presented their Bikeway priorities for 2002. The list was divided into five categories. Three of these categories, bike lanes, signed routes and off road paths, listed projects that are ready to go ahead in 2002. They are mainly small scale projects. This being the first year of the 10 year plan there has not been the lead up time to have the necessary planning, consultations and approvals done. There was a fourth category for routes that would have this planning work done in 2002 so construction could start in subsequent years. This work included larger projects such as the off road path in the Finch hydro corridor between Black Creek and the East Don River. There is a fifth category called Capital Works Reconstruction/Overlay Projects. These are road construction projects that are going ahead in 2002 which have a Bikeway component built into them.

The WES has responsibility for Bikeways on roads. For paths in parks the responsibility falls to the Parks and Recreation Division of the Economic Development, Culture and Tourism Department (ECDT). We had a presentation from the Parks and Recreation Division representative on their budget process on October 15. We will not be able to get details on their actual budget till November 5 when their budget is released. We do know that the Parks and Recreation Department will be making a larger commitment than there is in the 2001 budget year.

This will be a modest start to the building of the Bikeway Network. The staff report accompanying the Bike Plan envisioned about 4% of the $69 million dollars needed to complete the bikeway being spent in this year. The amount of money spent on construction will ramp up as we go into future years of the bike plan.

In addition to the capital funding there is operating funding needed to run the various cycling programs in Toronto such as bike safety campaigns, the Road and Trail Ambassadors, and the Can Bike courses.

This is the first stage in the budget process. The budgets prepared by the staff in the various departments are submitted to the appropriate committees of Council for their consideration. From there they go to Budget Advisor Committee for the next stage of deliberations.

Having the money for the Bike Plan in the proposed budgets now doesn't mean it will be there in March when the final budget is approved. There will certainly be pressure to cut these funds from the city's budget. Citizens who want to see the Bike Plan implemented will have to apply equal or greater pressure to keep them in.

In the first week of November there will be more detailed information. I will post that as I get it.

Martin Koob
tcc-rep@tbn.ca