The Ford government’s controversial bike lane bill will prevent anyone from suing the province if they are injured once bike lanes are removed.

NDP MP Jessica Bell said the change was included in an 11-page amendment to Bill 212 presented Thursday at a meeting of the Standing Committee on Heritage, Infrastructure and Cultural Policy.

“The bill went through committee poorly and came out worse,” Bell told CityNews.

“I have never seen an 11-page amendment presented so quickly by a government, it is very worrying. What worries me most is that this bill will make traveling by bike in our city more dangerous.”

Among the pages of the bill which Bell posted on his social media channelit states that “claims resulting from collisions between motor vehicles, cyclists or pedestrians… do not constitute claims for negligence.”

“This bill will increase the chances of someone being injured or killed on the roads if you are a cyclist and it will not reduce travel times for anyone. It’s very disappointing,” Bell said.

“When these cycle lanes are removed it means cyclists will be in a lane with cars which means they are more likely to be injured and killed and it means traffic will be slower, it doesn’t work .”

Dozens of cyclists staged a ghost ride to Queen’s Park Thursday evening to protest Bill 212. Advocates erected two ghost bike memorials, symbols of two lives lost while cycling on the Ontario roads. Protesters say the bikes are a reminder of the deadly consequences of removing bike lanes.

Minister of Transport Prabmeet Sarkaria introduced the bill last month in what he said was an effort to reduce traffic congestion. The bill would require municipalities to ask the province for permission to install bike lanes when they remove a car lane. Under the proposed legislation, the power to approve or deny projects to remove car lanes and install bike lanes would rest directly with the Minister of Transport.

Bell said the bill makes it clear that the Ford government intends to remove all bike lanes on Bloor Street, University Avenue and Yonge Street and that municipalities will not necessarily be reimbursed if the lanes cycle paths are eliminated.

“Our interpretation is that they are no longer guaranteeing that they will fully reimburse municipalities for the costs of removing a cycle lane and this suggests that the Conservatives may simply want to go ahead and remove the cycle lanes themselves “Bell said. .

The government has said bike lanes contribute to traffic congestion in the Greater Toronto Area, but Bell says the government’s own documents show that removing those bike lanes likely won’t solve the congestion problem.

“There’s no way three bike lanes in downtown Toronto are the reason we’re experiencing some of the worst periods of congestion in the entire GTHA,” Bell said. “If this government was serious about reducing traffic congestion in our city, it would invest in cycle paths and it would also invest in public transport and plan it properly so that people live close to where they work and play.

A recent City of Toronto staff report puts the cost of removing bike lanes from some of its busiest streets at more than $48 million – a figure Premier Doug Ford called “hogwash” provide pricing.