Toronto $26M over budget on snow-clearing last year as auditor warns accountability tools missing

The story at a glance: 

Toronto's snow-clearing operations were plagued by equipment and personnel shortages as well as a complicated GPS rollout that initially prevented hundreds of vehicles from being tracked, the city's auditor general found in a report headed to city council next week.

Three separate reports, including two from auditor Tara Anderson, raise serious questions about how the city's contracts — worth nearly $1.5 billion over the next decade — were largely won by two companies and their joint venture, and how the transportation staff responsible for them are overseeing the work.

Meanwhile, an operating variance report shows the city spent $26.4 million more than anticipated on snow-clearing this winter. And the auditor makes it clear that due to issues with GPS installation and poor accountability practices, there's no way to ensure the city got the work it paid for.

Scarborough Coun. Jamaal Myers said city staff worked hard, but snow clearing did not go well last winter.

"I'm not going to sugarcoat it," he told CBC Toronto.

"This contracting fell well below the standards that I think most people expect and most people deserve. And we have to do better."

Last winter was the first in a new system that has two companies and their joint venture handling all of the snow-clearing in Toronto, except for the Willowdale area, the Don Valley Parkway and Gardiner Expressway.

The auditor general looked into the awarding of that contract and found while it "generally unfolded according to the rules," city management created a complex and confusing process that created time pressures that in turn led to a safety risk for Torontonians. 

Why does this matter? For one, the city still doesn't have this right, according to the reports. The auditor noted hundreds of machines still lacked GPS sensors at the end of this winter season. 

In Toronto, private contractors handle the majority of snow-clearing work, including on 5,780 kilometres of roads, 7,400 kilometres of sidewalks and 770 kilometres  of bike lanes and major trails. 

The main work of in-house staff is sidewalk plowing — 1,460 kilometres in total. 

This winter didn't pack the same punch as 2022, but city staff say in an operating variance report it was still worse than previous years. As a result, city hall spent $26.4 million more than planned.

Councillors were told when signing the new winter contracts that they could expect to save $41 million per year.