October 23, 2017
The City of Toronto is reminding all road users – pedestrians, cyclists and drivers – to be more aware of each other, especially as we enter a season when daylight hours are greatly reduced.
To help remind the public to slow down and to be aware, the City of Toronto has produced two new Please Slow Down lawn signs that remind road users to drive carefully as they travel in local neighbourhoods with older adults (orange sign) and school children (blue sign). The new signs include graphics of older adults walking and two children playing. The public can help spread this safety message by picking up signs at their local councillor’s office and displaying them in their neighbourhoods.
“We all have a responsibility to share our streets in a courteous and safe manner,” said Mayor John Tory. “One pedestrian death is one too many. I hope these signs will help remind drivers about the need to slow down in neighbourhoods.”
"The safety of Torontonians needs to be everyone’s priority. We must be diligent about encouraging motorists to slow down on residential streets to ensure the safety of our local communities," said Councillor Jaye Robinson (Ward 25 Don Valley West), Chair of the Public Works and Infrastructure Committee. “Together we can eliminate traffic fatalities and serious injuries on our streets.”
More details about this safety initiative are available at http://bit.ly/2gviJWx.
This initiative is part of the City’s Vision Zero Road Safety Plan, approved by Toronto City Council in 2016, which contains a series of measures and strategies aimed at eliminating deaths and serious injuries on Toronto streets as well as improving safety for all road users. Among the key issues addressed in the plan are safety for seniors and school children, pedestrian and cyclist safety as well as aggressive and distracted driving.
Since Vision Zero began, Transportation Services staff have accelerated safety changes including:
• installation of 837 speed-limit signs along 39 corridors where speed limits have been reduced by 10 kilometres per hour • installation of zebra markings in School Safety Zones, Senior Safety Zones and pedestrian safety corridors to enhance pedestrian safety • activation of 104 accessible pedestrian signals to assist people with disabilities to cross at signalized intersections • equipping 95 signalized intersections with longer pedestrian crossing times to allow more time for pedestrians to safely cross the street • physical changes at 28 intersections, including curb radius reductions and intersection re-alignments, to reduce pedestrian crossing distances and help reduce aggressive driving, and • red light cameras at 65 new locations, with plans to add 10 more by the end of 2017.
The City's Vision Zero website includes a mapping tool that shows existing safety measures and future planned work as well as safety tips for all road users aimed at making streets safer: http://www.toronto.ca/VisionZeroTO.
This news release is also available on the City's website: http://ow.ly/H4c130g4A1O.
Toronto is Canada's largest city, the fourth largest in North America, and home to a diverse population of about 2.8 million people. It is a global centre for business, finance, arts and culture and is consistently ranked one of the world's most livable cities. In 2017, Toronto is honouring Canada's 150th birthday with "TO Canada with Love," a year-long program of celebrations, commemorations and exhibitions. For information on non-emergency City services and programs, Toronto residents, businesses and visitors can visit http://www.toronto.ca, call 311, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, or follow us on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/TorontoComms and on Instagram at http://www.instagram.com/cityofto.
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Media contact: Cheryl San Juan, Strategic Communications, 416-392-4391, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.