The City of Toronto confirmed it had laid a total of six bylaw charges in connection with a garbage bin put in a Bloor St. bike lane near to where a 24-year-old female cyclist lost her life on July 25 after being hit by a dump truck.
Mass Contracting Ltd., which was the general contractor for the nearby parking lot restoration work, faces an encumbering of streets charge, while the disposal bin company Ontario Trucking and Disposal Ltd. faces encumbering of street, placing an object on a street, causing dangerous conditions, unauthorized street occupation and failing to provide proper signage warning public of an obstruction in the street, said the city.
“Temporary occupation of any portion of the public right-of-way during a demolition, renovation and/or construction permit requires a street occupation permit,” said the city in an emailed statement.
“There was no street occupation permit issued for this location.”
The city confirmed the bin was located at 150 Bloor St. W., just east of Avenue Rd., but neither they nor Toronto Police, which had not laid any criminal charges yet, knew how long it had been in the location.
“City of Toronto staff meet frequently with agencies and associations that represent builders and contractors and to provide education and information on various topics pertaining to building on the right-of-way,” said the city in an emailed statement.
“Enforcement of street occupation permits fall under the jurisdiction of the City of Toronto. Enforcement officers conduct regular patrols to identify any such issues and respond to service requests and will issue notices of violation where warranted.”
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Requests for a comment from Mass Contracting Ltd. and Ontario Trucking and Disposal Ltd. on the bylaw charges and the alleged lack of a street occupation permit had not been immediately responded to by Wednesday evening.
The crash happened just before 9 a.m. on July 25. The 39-year-old driver of the dump truck remained on the scene.
The day after the fatal collision, Friends and Families for Safe Streets spokesperson Jess Spieker, who visited the crash site, advocated for cameras to record garbage bins left in biking lanes and other infractions.
Spieker said five cyclists have been killed so far in Toronto, up from last year’s total of four, which she said was the highest number in the last decade.
She partly blamed congestion, not having enough room for more cars and “very badly designed streets with arterial roads that allow for high-speed car travel, so if a pedestrian or cyclist is struck they are very likely to die or their life be ruined by the extensive injuries that they receive.”