Acting Toronto Police Chief Jim Ramer and Mayor John Tory announce permanent reconstitution of staffed traffic enforcement unit as part of #VisionZero effort to end pedestrian and cyclist deaths on Toronto roads
Sorry for radio silence - my phone didn’t like the rain. Here is the news release - reconstituted Toronto police traffic enforcement squad launching on a permanent basis Nov. 19 with 18 officers incl. 2 sergeants as part of #VisionZero
That release overplays somewhat the news value of the traffic enforcement squad being made permanent. From my story at the police services board last November thestar.com/amp/news/gta/2…
Reminder the previous traffic enforcement unit was disbanded around 2012, divisions were supposed to each do it. But the # of tickets dropped dramatically & the number of pedestrians and cyclists dying on Toronto streets rose dramatically.
When asked about more officer traffic enforcement then-Chief Saunders said technology including photo radar was the answer. Mayor Tory accepted that advice and echoed talk that you couldn’t put a cop on every busy street. But then ...
... a police report last year revealed drop in traffic tickets, corresponding rise in deaths over 6 years. Saunders recommending reconstituting a smaller enforce squad using officers on paid duty. Police board voted to make it permanent w on-duty officers thestar.com/news/city_hall…
Not discussed this morning was toll resulting from 2012 decision under then-chief Bill Blair to disband traffic enforcement unit & later Saunders refusal to heed calls to reinstate.
In December me & @EdTubb dug into that difficult, thorny question with help from @DFisman. Conclusion: data says dozens of lives were lost due to reduced traffic enforcement on Toronto streets after squad disbanded thestar.com/news/city_hall…
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City of #Toronto's COVID-19 update with Mayor @JohnTory & public health chief @epdevilla is about to start. Star's @KopunF is covering and I'll be tweeting highlights. Livestream here
Mayor @JohnTory says he knows the hardship on businesses and workers extra restrictions big, lauds provincial and federal governments for aid programs to help them. City doesn't have same resources "but we can help"
Today city is launching togotoronto.com to find restaurants with "safe takeout or patio" service, restaurants are encouraged to sign up for free. City is also extending partnership with Ritual to help businesses increase access to commission-free pickup and delivery.
That anyone should suffer this racist BS is blood boiling, but a teen trying to honour his late grandmother? Hope they catch the culprit and there is no acceptance of "it was a bad joke." Whatever their age, anti-Black racism is a hate crime. thestar.com/news/gta/2020/…
I hope people in Pickering and beyond rally around Joshua Telemaque. “I felt destroyed and heartbroken". No wonder.
City of Toronto's #COVID19 briefing is about to start. We expect to get Mayor @JohnTory's reaction to provincial announcement that a total of $4 billion in federal pandemic relief will flow to Ontario cities #topoli#onpoli
Mayor @JohnTory says city continues to have "positive discussions" with provincial officials about whether Toronto can move into Stage 3 reopening. Awaiting decision from premier on Wednesday.
Mayor says he knows people tired of restrictions including ongoing playground closures that would end under Stage 3. He repeats mantra that he wants to move forward but only if local COVID-19 indicators suggest city isn't in danger of virus resurgence and going back to lockdown
Breaking from @BenSpurr - A provincial official says Premier Doug Ford’s government intends to take over Toronto's subways to make radical changes to four major transit projects, while signalling projected costs for two planned lines have soared. thestar.com/news/gta/2019/…
Provincial official writes that the city’s cost projections for two of the projects, the Scarborough subway extension and the first phase of the downtown relief line, “have significantly increased to nearly double or greater than the figures released publicly.”
.@fordnation government signals upload talks w Toronto not productive, will do what it wants. "It is evident that we are not aligned on key issues related to the design/delivery of priority expansion projects. It is also clear that this lack of alignment is likely to persist ...
I quibble w @darrellbricker's statement that all the growth is in outer suburbs & don't be fooled by downtown T.O. cranes. Stats say explosive growth in a few 905 'burbs, almost none in others. In T.O., meanwhile, big continuing growth in core, little or shrinkage in inner burbs
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Charts tell the story, census data from 2011 to 2016. Source on left is CBC, for right city of Toronto. More than 10% growth in T.O. core. City projects trend will continue
(It's only a quibble with that one statement because I agreed with much of what @darrellbricker & @shawnmicallef said re: blue/orange political divide in Ontario and urban-sururban divide.