On April 6th, 2022, city council approved updates to the Administrative Penalty By-law and Traffic By-law. These updates will improve safety and comfort for cyclists using bike lanes in Mississauga. Starting in May, drivers will be fined $55 for stopping or parking in bike lanes.

“The safety of all road users is a top priority at the City of Mississauga and that’s why we took the action we did today,” said Mayor Bonnie Crombie. “We closely reviewed options for enforcing and issuing fines and looked at how neighbouring municipalities are responding. We strongly feel that creating a fine for this behaviour and strengthening our by-laws is an important way we can protect cyclists and drivers and help avoid injury and death on our roads.”

Prior to the by-law amendments, the City’s Administrative Penalty By-law did not include a fine for parking in or blocking a bike lane. The City’s Traffic By-law prohibited road users from stopping their vehicle in a bike lane, but not from parking. Without specific reference to parking, the City was limited in its ability to establish penalties for this behaviour.

“We have painted bike lanes in Mississauga where it’s not uncommon to see drivers encroach on, stop or park in them. We often see this happening where parking exists to the right of the bike lane – where drivers must cross the bike lane to access the parking. You can see examples of this on Confederation Parkway between Rathburn Road West and Burnhamthorpe Road West, and Tenth Line West between Britannia Road West and Derry Road West,” said Geoff Wright, Commissioner, Transportation and Works. “While physically separated bike lanes will be part of major road projects moving forward, these updated by-laws will deter this behaviour on our existing painted bike lanes, where cyclists are most vulnerable.”

The updated Traffic By-law includes:

· A formal definition of ‘bicycle lane’ to make identification and enforcement easier

· Language that prohibits drivers from stopping and parking in painted bike lanes

· An updated list of vehicles permitted to park or stop in a bicycle lane (e.g. public transit, fire and emergency services)

· An updated list of those permitted to drive in a bicycle lane (e.g. bike, e-scooter, fire and emergency medical services)

The updated Administrative Penalty By-law includes:

· $55 fine for parking and stopping a vehicle in a bicycle lane

· $55 fine for parking in a prohibited area (e.g. where there is signage prohibiting parking)

The City reviewed 38 neighbouring Ontario municipalities and determined of those 38, 15 have fines for this kind of behaviour, including Toronto, Oakville, Vaughan, Burlington, Brampton and Hamilton. Mississauga’s $55 fine is consistent with these findings, as well as the City’s fine for stopping and parking in a prohibited area.

“Enforcement by the City will begin in May. Proactive enforcement will also occur this spring in locations previously identified by residents and on roads that have vehicle parking and painted bike lanes,” said Helen Noehammer, Director, Infrastructure Planning and Engineering Services. “If you see drivers parking or stopping in a bike lane, we encourage you to call 311 so that the location can be flagged for enforcement.”

Establishing this penalty aligns with the Move pillar in the City’s Strategic Plan, Cycling Master Plan, Transportation Master Plan, Vision Zero Action Plan and Climate Change Action Plan.