Be careful out there everyone.  It’s a good idea NOT to cut in front of streetcars.

A cyclist was pinned under a streetcar in Chinatown on Sunday, suffering severe but not life-threatening injuries.

Witnesses reported that the 30-year-old cyclist cut in front of the streetcar. The collision happened near Spadina and Nassaua around 6pm.

[CityTV]

The cyclist is apparently still alive, but can not be in very good shape.  We will let you know when we know more.

The Spacing website has started off their “Ideas for Toronto” series of posts with a doozy (of a great idea) – coloured bikelanes!

Coloured bikelanes range from The colours range from red in the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, and Belgium, to blue in Denmark, yellow in Switzerland, and green in France. (blue ones seem to be the most popular in North America, although NYC has green ones) exist mainly to let drivers know where there are cyclists crossing a lane of traffic.

Below is an excerpt from the Spacing article, as well as graphics… and if you want to know of a great place in Toronto where a coloured bikelane would work well, look no further than the Bloor Viaduct.

Many other cities use coloured bike lane markings to reduce conflicts between cyclists and motorists. The colours range from red in the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, and Belgium, to blue in Denmark, yellow in Switzerland, and green in France. Portland chose to use blue, so as not to conflict with yellow (the colour of the road lines) and red and green (the colour of the traffic lights and stop signs). Blue also shows up relatively well for people with colour blindness.

The City of Toronto seems intent on using paint markings to define the city’s bike lanes as opposed to phsyically separated lanes, and Portland shares the same attitude. Prior to the blue colouring, bike lanes in Portland were marked with white dashes, similar to Toronto’s. Thermoplastics were used to colour the bike lanes, as they hold up much better to wear and tear than traditional paints. Accompanying road signs were installed to depict when motorists should yield to cyclists.

Toronto Cyclist John Spragge has compiled a nice little montage of videos he has taken from his bike to demonstrate safe and unsafe passing by cars and trucks, from a cyclists’ perspective:

Thanks John.  Great video!

The Bloor Viaduct bikelanes are essential pieces of cycling infrastructure for residents of East York, the Danforth, Riverdale, Leslieville, the Beaches, etc… but they have some problems including being too narrow in spots as well as having a dangerous traffic crossing when approaching Broadview and Danforth from the west.  Safety concerns have been noted in the past by the Ward Advocacy Group Ward29Bikes.

The City looked at these safety concerns and decided to address some of them… stating that we’d see some changes by July 2010… but the changes have already begun:

[photo via TakeTheTooker, via Tom Flaherty]

It looks like the new bikelane may not only be a little wider (which would be extremely useful during rush-hour as there are many cyclists using the lanes… and a little more width will make passing safer) but have a small striped “buffer zone” between car traffic and bike traffic.

3 am this morning saw a collision at King & Dufferin that resulted in serious injuries to a cyclist, and the vehicle involved left the scene:

Toronto police are looking for two suspects after a cyclist was seriously injured in a hit and run incident early Friday.

A man on a bicycle was hit by a van near the intersection of King Street and Dufferin Avenue at around 3 a.m., police said. After the collision, the van sped away, they said.

Police did not provide further details.

The cyclist suffered serious head injuries and was taken to St. Michael’s Hospital. His life is not believed to be in danger.

The blue van has damage to the windshield and to its front end, police said. A vehicle matching that description was later spotted by a security guard at an apartment building at 55 Charles Street W. near Bay Street. [CBC news]

Tomorrow (Monday) morning at 8 AM at the intersection of Broadview and Danforth, the Toronto Police Service is launching their latest bicycle safety campaign:

On Monday, March 29, 2010, at 8 a.m., 54 Division and 55 Division officers will start a week−long, zero−tolerance bicycle campaign in the Danforth Avenue/Broadview Avenue area.

Officers will be enforcing laws relevant to the rules of the road, along with any bicycle equipment violations. Enforcement will be targeted at drivers who cross the path of a cyclist or open their car door ahead of a cyclist in an unsafe manner.

This year, the Toronto Police Service has investigated 54 bicycle collisions.

The TPS is requesting cyclists wear light−coloured or reflective outer wear to assist in being seen.

Motorists, prior to turning at intersections, should remember to check their rear− and side−view mirrors and blind spots to confirm this area is free of any cyclist or pedestrian flow.

The media is invited to meet Sergeant Jack West at the intersection of Danforth Avenue and Broadview Avenue at 8 a.m. on Monday, March 29, 2010.

For further information, contact Sergeant Jack West at 289−259−6800.

View the press release here (PDF).

[above image from Xander N'Dante, via the Photo of the Day]