Toronto urged to take action after string of pedestrian, cyclist deaths

Advocates, politicians and members of the public are demanding Toronto make its streets safer for cyclists and pedestrians after a string of recent deaths highlighted just how dangerous the city’s roads can be.

Two cyclists and a pedestrian were hit and killed by vehicles in three separate incidents in just the past week, bringing the city’s total number of such fatalities this year to three cyclists and 17 pedestrians, according to Toronto police.

Those figures were up from two cyclist deaths and 12 pedestrian fatalities by this point last year. In 2016, by June, there had been 21 pedestrian deaths and no cyclist deaths.

For 29-year-old cyclist Connor Gregory, who said he has been struck by a vehicle three times on his bike and has had three more collisions with car doors, the fear of a fatal brush with motor traffic weighs on him every time he hits the road.

“On an almost daily basis, there are situations that are fairly dangerous,” he said. “With the news last week, a lot of people were expressing just sort of being fed up with the lack of response that there’s been to road safety.”

Advocacy groups like Cycle Toronto, meanwhile, have said the recent deaths have highlighted the need for the city to take action.

Toronto’s mayor said he’s been horrified by the recent deaths and pledged an additional $13 million Friday to the city’s Vision Zero road safety plan, a five-year project adopted in 2016 that aims to reduce traffic-related deaths and serious injuries. The funds would bring total investment in the project to $100 million, his office said.

“Any death on Toronto streets is absolutely unacceptable, no one should lose their lives in this way,” John Tory said.