Bloor Bike Lane Protesters Say Arrests Were Meant to Silence Dissent; Police Disagree

Four people arrested during protests against the Ontario government's removal of bike lanes on Bloor Street West say Toronto police laid "heavy-handed criminal charges" to discourage future protests. Police reject that claim, CBC News reported Tuesday.

In October, dozens of people protested daily as the province ripped out bike lanes on a 1.2-kilometre section of Bloor Street W. in Etobicoke. That work was completed last Friday. The four people arrested now face charges ranging from obstructing police, to mischief, to theft under $5,000.

"A duty to oppose unjust laws"

David Shellnutt, founding partner of The Biking Lawyer LLP, spoke at a news conference Tuesday morning. He said the protesters were only trying to keep people safe on the road. "It’s life and death for people and citizens have a duty to oppose unjust laws," he said.

Shellnutt also criticized the size of the police response, noting that the force's hate crime unit was involved. "You [have] got to wonder why entire riot divisions and multiple dozens of cruisers are sent to a bike lane protest," he said.

Release conditions ban protest

Leora Smith of the Community Justice Collective represents one of the accused. She said her client's release conditions bar them from taking part in any protest on public or private property while the charges are pending. She argues that violates Charter rights to freedom of expression, assembly and association.

"The police cannot demand that people surrender their fundamental democratic freedoms as the price of being released from police detention," Smith said. She told CBC she will challenge the conditions in court. She called the arrests part of a broader "disturbing" trend of police being used to "surveil and, frankly, suppress political dissent in Toronto."

Police: charges based on actions

Police spokesperson Stephanie Sayer told CBC Toronto that charges are not laid to discourage protests but based on what individuals did. Police would not comment on release conditions and said concerns about them belong before the courts.

"We made it clear to demonstrators that while they are entitled to express their views about the removal of bike lanes, anyone who unlawfully obstructed that work or interfered with police officers in the execution of their duties could face arrest and charges," Sayer said.

She added that the hate crime unit's involvement does not mean the cases are being investigated as hate crimes. The unit is part of Intelligence Services, which handles investigations and arrests related to demonstrations across the city.

The accused speak

Aly Vanwyck-Smart, 24, who uses a wheelchair, called the arrests "asinine." Police said in an Oct. 16 news release that she positioned herself on a curb barrier during road work and refused to leave when directed. "It is Toronto infrastructure that Torontonians used daily and we had no say in this takeover," she said.

Community members have raised $40,000 for legal fees and other supports, according to Shellnutt. Another accused, Prajjwal Rajawat, said: "I always understood that as a citizen of Canada, it was my constitutional right to be able to protest. It's pretty weird that I'm legally not allowed to do that right now."

The safety debate

Protesters argue that reliable cycling infrastructure gets more people on bikes and makes streets safer for everyone. Cycle Toronto says 32 people, including pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists and drivers, died on Bloor Street, Yonge Street and University Avenue between 2000 and 2020.

Urban design expert Mikael Colville-Andersen told CBC Radio's Metro Morning that Toronto is among the only cities in the world becoming less bike-friendly. "Blaming bicycle lanes for traffic congestion is a pretty spectacular misunderstanding of how cities work," he said. "If you want to reduce gridlock, you give people more ways to get around."