Twenty years ago, my husband, OPP Sgt. Greg Stobbart, was killed by a careless driver while on a training ride on his bike. The man who struck him, a commercial driver, had multiple convictions for driving while suspended and thousands of dollars in unpaid fines. Two months after taking Greg’s life, he hit someone else.

Greg’s death was preventable. It changed my life and, ultimately, the direction of cycling policy in Ontario.

In the weeks that followed, I learned what too many families discover only after tragedy: our roads were not designed with the safety of people on bikes in mind, and the laws meant to protect them were inadequate.

That realization led me to found the Share the Road Cycling Coalition. Its mission was simple: build safer, more connected communities through better infrastructure, stronger laws, and a culture of respect on our roads.

Two decades later, as we mark this anniversary during Bike Month, I find myself reflecting on how far we have come—and how far we still have to go.

Ontario has made important gains through the work of the coalition and its many partners. Greg’s Law, passed in 2009, created penalties for motorists who drive while suspended. The one-metre safe passing law followed in 2015. New statutes for careless driving causing death or bodily harm now require courts to consider the vulnerability of injured pedestrians and cyclists in sentencing.

A coroner’s review in 2012 led to Ontario’s first cycling strategy in more than 20 years, outlining investments needed to support safe and active transportation. Across the province, communities have since built protected bike lanes, multi-use trails, and traffic-calming measures that save lives, lower speeds, and encourage more people to ride.

Cities such as Ottawa, Waterloo, and Toronto have shown that when municipalities build safe cycling networks, ridership grows and collisions decline. Streets become more welcoming for everyone.

The changes happened because families, advocates, planners, and elected leaders chose to learn from tragedy rather than accept it. They recognized that more Ontarians are riding for affordability, health, convenience, and enjoyment.

But today, progress is stalling.

Polarization, politicization, and misinformation are largely to blame, and they threaten the gains we have worked so hard to achieve at a time when cycling is a valuable tool to combat so many of our society’s challenges, including congestion, affordability, public health, and climate change.

Our polling shows that 68 per cent of Ontarians cycle at least monthly, while more than 3.2 million people ride weekly or daily. That is more than one in five Ontarians choosing to ride their bicycle for frequent or daily trips.

One might expect that trend to generate support for safer cycling infrastructure. Instead, cycling has become a flashpoint in a broader culture war. Municipal projects that would save lives, reduce congestion, and expand affordable transportation options are being delayed or cancelled.

Misinformation has helped fuel the narrative that road safety is somehow a special-interest issue, which it isn’t, and that bikes cause congestion, which they don’t. Polarization has encouraged the narrative of “cars versus bikes” that pits people against one another, when in fact, we are all simply trying to get where we need to go and return home safely.

We want our policymakers to make sure that however we choose to travel, our safety is paramount.

Our polling confirms that 87 per cent of us who ride bikes also drive. Many take transit. All of us are pedestrians. The notion that it is drivers versus cyclists is a false choice.

Safe streets benefit everyone. Protected bike lanes reduce collisions, calm neighbourhood traffic, support local businesses, and give families more transportation choices.

The stakes today are higher than they were 20 years ago. Congestion costs Ontario billions of dollars annually. Rising costs put car ownership out of reach for many households.

Progress happens when we choose collaboration over division. The progress we have made is real, yet fragile.

Beyond Bike Month, let us recommit to building an Ontario where no family has to endure the loss mine did—and where choosing to ride a bike is not an act of courage, but a simple, safe, everyday choice.

Eleanor McMahon is a former MPP for Burlington, Ontario’s former Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport and President of the Treasury Board, and a passionate advocate for the safety of cyclists.

Toronto Star Newspapers Limited
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