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Toronto cops ignore pedestrians
November 02, 2012
By Christopher Hume
Read More: http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/1281448--hume-toronto-cops-ignore-pedestrians
The view from One Yonge is spectacular. Watching the towers never fails to entertain, but now there’s something new to watch: It unfolds almost daily when the police arrive to take up a position on Yonge St. from which they reel in endless drivers making illegal left-hand turns from Harbour St., the exit ramp from the eastbound Gardiner Expressway.
Until fairly recently, drivers could turn left from two lanes. Then, at some point last year, the outside left-turn lane was eliminated, leaving just one. Not unexpectedly, drivers have been slow to catch on and police reel them in by the score. Most drivers feel the move was a straightforward cash grab. That’s easy to conclude: the removal of the left-turn lane serves no other apparent purpose. It actually slows traffic and causes backups and delays. On the other hand, city officials say the lane was taken out to make it easier and safer for pedestrians. Now they must contend with only one stream of traffic, not two.
Regardless, that intersection, maybe 30 metres south of the cops’ preferred spot, ranks as one of the most dangerous in Toronto. Pedestrians take their lives into their hands to cross Yonge. The police, of course, remain utterly oblivious. They’re too busy pulling over cars to cast a glance at what’s happening nearby. Their indifference is striking, but entirely consistent. From Chief Bill Blair down to the cop on the street, the police force’s contempt for pedestrians knows no bounds. For Toronto’s finest, pedestrians don’t exist, at least not until they are involved in accidents, at which point, they get all the attention they no longer need. And so few were surprised when 11 GTA pedestrians were struck by cars in a 24-hour period ending Thursday. Two were killed and nine injured. Hit-and-run drivers were responsible for three of the collisions.
But as the intersection of Yonge and Harbour makes clear, such a body count is entirely predictable; pedestrians in Toronto often find themselves sacrificial lambs, collateral damage or unintended victims of transportation policies that view them as expendable. The Yonge-Harbour corner is more awkward than most because Harbour veers to the north before continuing east. That means pedestrians cross at an angle that makes it difficult for drivers to see them as they exit, usually at high speed, from the expressway. Pedestrians must dodge cars trying to cut past them or play chicken with drivers until one or the other stops.
The current configuration, intended to keep vehicular traffic moving, makes few concessions to walkers. It provides them with the crosswalk they need, but grudgingly, and with little thought to their safety. At the same time, thousands now live in the condo towers popping up around this intersection. Five residential highrises have already appeared near the corner, and more are in the works. Like the rest of us, their inhabitants have kids and dogs and expect to be able to cross the road with a reasonable hope of making it in one piece.
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November 02, 2012
By Christopher Hume
Read More: http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/1281448--hume-toronto-cops-ignore-pedestrians
The view from One Yonge is spectacular. Watching the towers never fails to entertain, but now there’s something new to watch: It unfolds almost daily when the police arrive to take up a position on Yonge St. from which they reel in endless drivers making illegal left-hand turns from Harbour St., the exit ramp from the eastbound Gardiner Expressway.
Until fairly recently, drivers could turn left from two lanes. Then, at some point last year, the outside left-turn lane was eliminated, leaving just one. Not unexpectedly, drivers have been slow to catch on and police reel them in by the score. Most drivers feel the move was a straightforward cash grab. That’s easy to conclude: the removal of the left-turn lane serves no other apparent purpose. It actually slows traffic and causes backups and delays. On the other hand, city officials say the lane was taken out to make it easier and safer for pedestrians. Now they must contend with only one stream of traffic, not two.
Regardless, that intersection, maybe 30 metres south of the cops’ preferred spot, ranks as one of the most dangerous in Toronto. Pedestrians take their lives into their hands to cross Yonge. The police, of course, remain utterly oblivious. They’re too busy pulling over cars to cast a glance at what’s happening nearby. Their indifference is striking, but entirely consistent. From Chief Bill Blair down to the cop on the street, the police force’s contempt for pedestrians knows no bounds. For Toronto’s finest, pedestrians don’t exist, at least not until they are involved in accidents, at which point, they get all the attention they no longer need. And so few were surprised when 11 GTA pedestrians were struck by cars in a 24-hour period ending Thursday. Two were killed and nine injured. Hit-and-run drivers were responsible for three of the collisions.
But as the intersection of Yonge and Harbour makes clear, such a body count is entirely predictable; pedestrians in Toronto often find themselves sacrificial lambs, collateral damage or unintended victims of transportation policies that view them as expendable. The Yonge-Harbour corner is more awkward than most because Harbour veers to the north before continuing east. That means pedestrians cross at an angle that makes it difficult for drivers to see them as they exit, usually at high speed, from the expressway. Pedestrians must dodge cars trying to cut past them or play chicken with drivers until one or the other stops.
The current configuration, intended to keep vehicular traffic moving, makes few concessions to walkers. It provides them with the crosswalk they need, but grudgingly, and with little thought to their safety. At the same time, thousands now live in the condo towers popping up around this intersection. Five residential highrises have already appeared near the corner, and more are in the works. Like the rest of us, their inhabitants have kids and dogs and expect to be able to cross the road with a reasonable hope of making it in one piece.
.....
