Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 43m

"There’s one glaring bump in the road ahead for bike share: the provincial government’s battle with bike lanes.

Ford has, for more than a year, targeted bike lanes running throughout the city, blaming them for congestion."

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 44m

“You have to put the bikes in places to create the demand,” McDonald said. “If it’s not there, no one’s ever going to use it.”
It’s about inducing people to take up biking, he explained, adding, “what we’ve found is when we put (docks) in those locations, we do start to see increased demand.”

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 46m

"From its initial 80 bike share stations in 2011, Bike Share has grown twelvefold, with 992 stations across the city’s 25 wards as of September." 🚲

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 46m

"As contentious as cycling has been in the downtown core, with Premier Doug Ford cracking down on cycleways along major arterial streets, Toronto’s bike share program has been quietly shattering ridership records." www.thestar.com/news/gta/how...

How Bike Share went from death’s door to one of Toronto’s fastest-growing ways to travel

How self-cleaning toilets, the pandemic and bike lanes made Toronto Bike Share a staple of the city, and how Doug Ford’s battle against bike lanes will shape its future.

www.thestar.com

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 1h

“Banning one of the most effective tools we have to slow drivers down and keep people safe, I think, this is a wrong decision,” Chow said. “It signals to people that the provincial government is OK with speeding.” buff.ly/cfu8v8H

Olivia Chow asks for changes to Toronto’s speed cameras ahead of Doug Ford’s bill to ban them

The mayor is expected to ask a council committee on Friday to change the city’s speed camera program.

www.thestar.com

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 13h

a woman speaking into a microphone with the words everyone should be voting for you on the bottom

ALT: a woman speaking into a microphone with the words everyone should be voting for you on the bottom

media.tenor.com

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 18h

While education alone may not change everyone's minds, I think helping residents better understand how their own neighbourhood is impacted by those who drive over the speed limit, is a good approach. I also think there's value in prioritizing road safety improvements on streets with speed cameras.

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 18h

As noted in @graphicmatt.com's City Hall Watcher, Chow "asks staff to send every MPP stats about road deaths in their area & to send notifications to every household near a camera location letting them know about the potential safety impacts they could face if/when the cameras are switched off."

a woman wearing a shirt that says run capita

ALT: a woman wearing a shirt that says run capita

media.tenor.com

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 18h

Yet another example. www.thestar.com/real-estate/...

Text: Neighbour Michael Miranda was concerned about the impact of the owner having to “squeeze” the garden suite onto the lot, and congestion from added cars.

“Yeah, you can use transit, but let’s get freaking real, right?” he told the Star. “There’s just not enough parking.”

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 19h

Police unions became big proponents of the cameras, though. "The cameras would create more jobs for aspiring officers while giving police services a valuable PR tool: the ability to combat the videos of police interactions recorded by citizens & circulated on social media with their own recordings."

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 19h

In Montreal, a body cam pilot study saw "the use of force by police was basically unchanged, while the introduction of cameras would require an enormous expansion of police spending and personnel: at least 200 people would need to be hired by the police to manage and analyze video recordings."

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 19h

"Body cameras do not reduce police violence or help to hold police accountable. Police killings have only increased and criminal convictions of police officers remain extremely rare. Camera footage is almost never used against police officers.”

Body cameras are not a solution

The history of police body cameras tells a different story than the marketing campaign

tedrutland.substack.com

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 1d

Transit costs are "visible, while the costs of car dependence are mostly concealed. Car dependence costs us in the time lost in congestion, in the harm from pollution and accidents, and in countless other ways that we don’t consider." buff.ly/iMCY5Fe

Should We Let Public Transit Die?

Urban-rural hostility is fueling a public transportation crisis in US cities. But demands to abandon bus and train riders ignore the economic and social costs of cutting service.

www.bloomberg.com

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 1d

Streets are at their best when opened for the people!

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 1d

"Screwing around with elections is risky, especially if your chances of achieving any desirable reforms is low and the odds of you generating a backlash — including legal and regulatory changes — is much higher." -David Moscrop www.davidmoscrop.com/p/its-time-t...

It's Time To Wrap Up The Longest Ballot Protest

The ballots really are long. And annoying. And counter-productive.

www.davidmoscrop.com

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 1d

Not everything can or should be protected. In fact, when some heritage advocates argue that all old buildings must remain as is, I think it diminishes their arguments that some buildings are indeed special in some way. When you argue everything is special, nothing seems special anymore.

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 1d

There absolutely can be community value that comes with protected buildings, but that may also come with increased housing costs in other areas of the community, as fewer spaces are now available for building new developments. Those trade-offs need to be a part of these discussions.

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 1d

I actually think there is value in considering which properties/areas should be 'protected' in some way, however, this article fails to mention some of the trade-offs that might come with the mass heritage protections that are proposed. www.therecord.com/news/waterlo...

https://www.therecord.com/news/waterloo-region/329-hespeler-properties-in-line-for-special-heritage-status/article_bbaa20f7-0337-53d8-b3e6-f7fd1a1d48ab.html

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 1d

Quote: Education should lead to informed action, and informed action should lead to liberation, justice, and repair. If we built the walls on purpose, we need to tear down the walls on purpose.

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 1d

bsky.app/profile/robs...

Robson Fletcher @robsonfletcher.com · 5d

Police in Airdrie, Alberta (just north of Calgary) say this driver hit a 17-year-old girl in a marked crosswalk, got out of the vehicle, and appeared to get upset at the teenager before driving away.

They released this video and are now trying to identify the driver.

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 1d

"Liggett did not respond to a request for comment."
This seems to add insult to injury. If there are legitimate concerns that require city hall to be closed for a period of time - then speak up about that. Remaining silent only stokes concerns that this closure is not truly needed.

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Reposted by Melissa Bowman

John Roscoe @johnroscoe.bsky.social · 23d

"It's a cash grab!"

Oh my sweet summer child. Come, let me show you how much a dedicated police officer — trained in the application of *deadly force* in upholding the law! — is paid to poke a button, read a number and deliver a ticket that could have been sent through the mail...

Average salary, OPP = $125,104
https://www.ontariosunshinelist.com/positions/law-enforcement-officer

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 2d

Vrbanovic "said that machines do not operate with the same discretion as a police officer, who may decide to let the driver off with a warning for minor speeding infractions." And that's what makes everyone so mad - that they don't have an opportunity to evade a ticket when caught.

Waterloo Region forges ahead with speed cameras despite looming ban

The Region of Waterloo will go ahead with turning on six speed cameras despite Doug Ford’s scathing condemnation

buff.ly

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 2d

Perhaps, there are good reasons for the ongoing restrictions to municipal buildings, however, there should be a very high bar that needs to be met when limiting access to what should be public discussions at City Hall. It's unclear if that high bar is being met here.

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Melissa Bowman @dtkmelissa.bsky.social · 2d

So, #CambCouncil was to finally discuss it's long-delayed accessibility plan this past week, but due to unspecified threats several weeks ago, Council chambers are not open to the public - which is problematic for those with disabilities. The solution? To postpone the meeting to a future time.

In Cambridge, concerns grow about lack of public access to meetings

Two city councillors and an advocate for people with disabilities are now raising concerns about the public being continually shut out of meetings. It’s time for the city to offer an explanation and a...

www.therecord.com

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