Major Tory acknowledges complaints; council will examine it this month
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Toronto’s ActiveTO program is being reviewed after traffic complaints from local residents, according to Mayor John Tory.
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The program, introduced during the pandemic, closes major streets such as Lake Shore Blvd. and Bayview Ave. to traffic so cyclists, runners and rollerbladers can take over the pavement.
“I had a full briefing on that this week,” Mayor Tory told CP24 Breakfast Wednesday.
“There’s no question it had a bigger adverse impact on traffic over that time. There are some concerns from local residents.”
But Tory said any changes to the ActiveTO map would take into account people’s traffic concerns.
“We also have to be mindful of the fact that people have to get around, business has to carry on, neighborhoods have to be kept safe and come and go from their own houses,” he said.
“All I can say is that we are very carefully examining those results of data, real evidence.”
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A data review of the program in June 2021 measured the impact on travel time along several routes, including Lake Shore Blvd.
“When measured against weekends with no closures, the data shows that the ActiveTO closure is popular for those who use them, and that there are significant traffic impacts on the surrounding community,” the city report said.
“When the ActiveTO vehicle closure is in place, traffic data on the Gardiner Expressway and The Queensway shows travel times up to two and three times versus conditions with no ActiveTO closure.”
City council will take a look at the data later this month.
“Staff have continued to review ActiveTO on a case-by-case basis,” the city said in an email statement.