Today, Mayor Tory officially launched the City of Toronto’s Quick Clear Squads during the morning rush hour to fix problems causing temporary lane blockages on the Gardiner Expressway and the Don Valley Parkway. The Quick Clear Squads are part of the new traffic measures announced in September.
“This is the kind of common sense approaches to traffic and congestion management that Toronto residents expect of City Hall,” said Mayor Tory. “Over the last three years, we have finally focused on fighting traffic in Toronto and improving commute times. I am determined to build on the progress we’ve made and continue the fight each and every day.”
The launch is the result of a two-month pilot by the City’s Transportation division over September and October. During the pilot, two Quick Clear Squad shifts were created to allow staff to monitor lanes along the DVP, the Gardiner, and major arterial roads and respond to the scenes of accidents or stalled vehicles. Crews provided onsite traffic control using the crash truck and sign board, cleaned up debris, assisted tow truck drivers and made any necessary repairs in order to reopen the road.
Data is still being tabulated, but early indications are positive. During the pilot, crews:
• Responded to 330 calls.
• Attended 150 incidents of disabled vehicles.
• Responded within 30 minutes or less during the new shift times. Previously, response times could take several hours.
• Assisted Toronto Police Service, Toronto Fire Services and Toronto Paramedic Services with approximately 120 incidents where the crash truck was used to direct traffic and provided additional onsite safety measures and as a result, first responders were able to release staff from the scene quicker.
• Laid 58 charges for illegal lane blocking due to contractors leaving work materials in the road or utility vehicles illegally blocking a road during rush hour.
When staff on the Quick Clear Squad are not attending an emergency or incident, they monitor the DVP and the Gardiner and make maintenance repairs required to keep the roads in a state of good repair.
This news release is also available on the City’s website: http://ow.ly/hvhc30gnDX3
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