City of Toronto to spend $5.6M to install side guards on city trucks
Posted November 20, 2024 6:18 pm.
The Mayor of Toronto is pledging to spend millions of dollars installing side guards on city-owned trucks as a way to protect pedestrians and cyclists.
The push for side guards gained momentum in November 2011 after the death of 38-year-old Jenna Morrison. The yoga teacher and expectant mother was on her way to pick up her five-year-old son from school killed when she was clipped by a turning truck, trapping her beneath the back wheels of the truck.
Mayor Olivia Chow, a federal MP at the time, put forward a private members bill to require side guard implementation.
“I promised Jenna Morrison’s husband and young son, who is likley big now, that I would do my best. But we kept getting defeated over and over again,” she said, pointing the finger at lobbyists for the trucking industry for the safety measure not being legislated for all trucks.
As the Mayor of Toronto, Chow can require side guards on the city’s fleet of 500 vehicles at a cost of $5.6 million. One lawyer who represents cyclists says the cost to do it is a good idea.
“One lawsuit alone against the City of Toronto could exceed that for a family member seriously injured,” says David Shellnutt.
In response, the Ontario Trucking Association tells CityNews any move to make side guards mandatory for private vehicles is not supported by evidence, adding Transport Canada has determined they do not reduce injuries or fatalities.
The city says it hopes to have side guards installed on all its vehicles by the end of 2026.
