At least 58 people died on Toronto's streets this year — a 'failure' for Vision Zero, advocates say

Toronto is still failing to meet its Vision Zero goal, as at least 58 people were killed on the city's roads and 183 more seriously injured in 2021.

The deaths include a beloved couple killed by a speeding driver on Parkside Drive and a teenager struck by a driver at a crosswalk near her Scarborough high school.

And just this week, six pedestrians and a driver were raced to hospital after a crash sent an SUV flying onto a downtown sidewalk. Their injuries aren't yet included in the city's statistics.

Road safety advocates continue to call on the city to do better — four years after Toronto officially launched the road safety plan with the goal of zero traffic-related deaths and injuries. 

"Our Vision Zero program is essentially a failure," said Jessica Spieker, a Friends and Families for Safe Streets spokesperson. 

She continues to endure chronic pain and a brain injury after she was struck by an SUV in 2015 while riding her bike to work. 

"When you've been on the inside of road violence and you understand how painful and devastating it is to survive a severe injury or to lose your spouse, to lose a child, the lifelong agony is overwhelming — especially in comparison to how easy it is to prevent this human carnage," Spieker said.

The city has made some progress this year by making bike lanes permanent, issuing thousands of tickets through its photo radar cameras and making small tweaks like giving pedestrians advanced walk signals.

The transportation services division told CBC News it has also reduced speed limits on local roads in Etobicoke, North York and Scarborough, installed 350 school safety zones and piloted left-turn speed bumps in eight intersection, among other initiatives.

The city defended its Vision Zero efforts in a statement, saying it is a long-term plan and "sustainable results are often not immediate."

"The success of Vision Zero depends on long-term behavioural, cultural and structural changes — both for the city and for the public as well," it said.

In response to stunt driving becoming a serious issue on emptier roads, the province toughened penalties in June. Opposition NDP MPPs are pushing the government to go further and pass Bill 54, it's proposed "Protecting Vulnerable Road Users Act."

There was a moment of hope in 2020 that Toronto's roads were overall becoming safer, said University of Toronto urban planning Prof. Matti Siemiatycki. Less people were driving and walking due to the pandemic lockdowns and fatalities dipped to 40, the lowest since 2011. 

This year also began with lockdowns and lower numbers — just four people died in the first three months of the year, according to the city's data. That started changing in June. Since then, at least four road users have died every month.