Motorists, pedestrians must use caution

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Reckless motorists and careless pedestrians are two of the biggest dangers facing TTC riders, Toronto police and TTC spokespeople said Monday, July 21.

The two groups came together to outline Take Time to Check, a TTC safety etiquette program designed to make people more aware of the dangers of not obeying laws and exercising proper caution.

Key messages stressed by TTC and Toronto police staff included the fact that car drivers must stop behind streetcar doors to allow passengers to exit and the notion that too often, pedestrians aren't as alert as they should be.

TTC Chair Adam Giambrone (Ward 18, Davenport) said one growing concern is that pedestrians often fail to pay attention while distracted by music on their MP3 players. He noted that being distracted and not being able to hear can make for a dangerous combination.

"(Pedestrians) might not be able to hear the gong of a 40-ton streetcar bearing down on them," he said. "We want to remind people that listening to music is great, but when crossing the street, it's important to pay attention."

TTC Chief Safety Officer John O'Grady said there were 91 incidents in which a bus or streetcar struck a pedestrian in 2007, with the majority of those incidents being minor.

"It's important for everybody to keep their wits about them in Toronto," he said. "The roads are filled in Toronto."

TTC and police staff also emphasized the fact that cars must, by law, stop two metres behind streetcar doors. Too often, cars will zip past streetcars as TTC riders are trying to exit a streetcar, creating a dangerous situation for all involved.

"TTC operators report as many as 80 incidents a day where vehicles pass open streetcar doors," said Toronto police Staff Sgt. Andy Norrie. "On average, we have one person a month struck while exiting a streetcar."

During a one-week safety blitz last year, Toronto police issued 2,790 tickets, including 97 tickets for drivers failing to stop behind streetcar doors and 773 for motorists parking in no stopping zones designated for TTC traffic. Norrie said Toronto police are in favour of any message that would help get the message out to motorists and pedestrians and make the streets safer.

"One injury or death on our roadways is one too many," he said.

Police Const. Mig Roberts noted that 85 per cent of collisions would be prevented if those using the roadways obeyed traffic rules.

"If pedestrians, cyclists and motorists were all doing what they're supposed to do, we'd see a definite decrease in collisions," he said.

Other concerns raised include the fact that many motorists confuse regular traffic lights with transit-only signals - most often along roads with streetcar rights-of-way and the fact that pedestrians often dart in and out of busy traffic without paying proper attention. This can be particularly dangerous when pedestrians run on streetcar rights-of-way. Last year, 13 people were struck by streetcars on Spadina Avenue alone.

"Our job here at the TTC is to figure out how to make the TTC the safest possible system," Giambrone said. "But everyone has to do their part."