BradfordFacts

Fact-checking Brad Bradford, one post at a time.

False

Bradford says Chow never joined the mayors' call to action on drugs. She voted to join it, with him.

Claim“Toronto’s drug crisis demands action, not another review. While Mayor Chow has accepted this crisis as the price of living in a big city. I have not. There’s nothing compassionate about accepting the status quo. We need to act so people struggling with addiction have the opportunity to come home, and so Torontonians feel safe riding the subway or taking their kids to the park.”

Council declared Toronto's support for the mayors' Solve the Crisis campaign in October 2024. Chow voted yes, Bradford voted yes, and it carried 22-0.

Unsubstantiated

Bradford says Bloor West businesses watched sales fall. Nobody measured it.

Claim“Today the Court of Appeal confirmed what I said on Bloor Street W., in Etobicoke on Tuesday: where bike lanes go is a decision for elected governments, not for courtrooms. For almost two years, the future of Toronto’s streets sat in legal limbo. Drivers sat in gridlock. Businesses on Bloor West watched their sales fall. The Mayor spent those two years cheering on a courtroom fight instead of fixing the street. That’s two years this city doesn’t get back. Here’s what today’s decision doesn’t change: the best people to decide what happens on Toronto’s streets are still Torontonians. My message to Queen’s Park is simple. You’ve made your point. Now let the city do this job, with the communities who live on these streets, and work with Toronto’s next mayor instead of around him. My commitment from Tuesday stands, and today removed the last excuse for delay. As Mayor, I’ll take the bike lanes on Bloor Street West, from South Kingsway to Resurrection Road, out in my first year and restore the vehicle lanes. And I’ll build cyclists something better than a painted line on an arterial road: a real network of trails in our ravines and hydro corridors, plowed in winter, and routes on quieter streets. That promise doesn’t depend on any courtroom, and it never did. Mayor Chow should accept today’s decision, end the legal chapter for good, and sit down with the province on an orderly plan. If she won’t, voters can choose a mayor in October who will.”

The City monitored this corridor for two years and never published a business figure. No study of a Bloor bike lane has ever found sales fall.

Missing Context

Bradford would move the bike network to ravines and quiet streets. Toronto already has that network.

Claim“Toronto has spent years fighting over bike lanes. It’s time to build something better. We have ravines, hydro corridors, parks and safer residential streets that can form the backbone of a connected cycling network that’s maintained year-round. More routes. Safer rides. Less congestion. That’s a city we can be proud of.”

Over 75% of Toronto's network is already low-stress, and arterials cut it into islands. On that network most of the city reaches fewer than 5,000 jobs.

Misleading

Bradford says families are "counting the minutes" waiting for 911. That wait was cut in half two years ago.

Claim“Families deserve to know they won't be counting the minutes after calling 911. Seniors deserve to feel safe taking transit. That's why I'm committing to hiring 1,000 new front-line police officers to strengthen neighbourhood policing, support officers who are being asked to do more, and help Toronto catch up with other major cities. The status quo isn't enough. Let's build a city we can be proud of: https://bradford26.ca/sign-up”

His numbers are real; the need isn't. 911 response is back at 2010 levels, and Toronto fields more officers per crime than Montreal. The shortfall his chart draws as 70% is, on Toronto's own service record, zero.

False

Bradford says Chow declined every chance to act on public safety. She voted for his own safety motion in March.

Claim“Every chance Mayor Chow has had to take action on public safety, she's decided not to. She's made her peace with the status quo. I haven't.”

One counter-example kills a universal claim. In March, council adopted a transit-safety motion Bradford moved himself, and Chow voted for it, twice. The wider record says the same thing five more ways.

Missing Context

Bradford did vote for an island airport referendum. He mentioned it 64 minutes after the fight was over.

Claim“I've been clear that Torontonians need to have a say on major decisions that affect our waterfront. That's why I voted in favour of a referendum on the proposed island airport expansion. While Toronto's seat at the table should never have been taken away, I am grateful the federal government has listened to residents.”

The votes are real, four items from March to July, referendum included. But it is entirely a voting record: no public word from him on the file until 64 minutes after Ottawa settled it.