A small memorial of flowers, candles and a Superman toy with the message “Ride in Peace” is tethered to a poll outside the Royal Canadian Legion on Lake Shore Boulevard West near Jameson Avenue.
The display sits steps from where a five-year-old boy, who is being identified as Xavier Morgan, died while riding on the Martin Goodman Trail Wednesday evening. Somehow he fell off his bike and into traffic.
The city-wide trail is a gem for those who like to bike, run, walk and roll along the lake. For the most part there is a wide separation from the traffic on the arterial route, but not on the stretch near Jameson Avenue. There, the trail sits no more than a sidewalk’s width away from the road, where the speed limit is 60 km/h.
READ MORE: Boy, 5, dies after being struck by car in Toronto’s west end
“It’s a downhill slope,” said Patrick Brown, an avid cyclist who is with Bike Law Canada.
“But there’s no corridor, it’s right next to a high volume Lake Shore commuting driving route. Right next to it.”
Brown and other cycling advocates are calling on the City of Toronto to do something about it. He suggested installing a barrier and adding buffer space at the least. He even went so far as to suggest the city could remove a lane from Lake Shore to make that possible.
“People who ride bikes can easily go off the path. That’s not abnormal, that’s just human nature. It’s part of behaviour.”
Global News ran the idea by several cyclists in the area of the tragedy Friday afternoon. It received mixed reviews.
Steve Isgar suggests a barrier is a no-brainer, especially with the strong winds that often cut across from the lake.
“Look how close the traffic is to the path. It is absolutely an oversight and it needs to be fixed.”
Sam Nigro, a cyclist for more than 40 years, said a barrier would protect not just children, but inexperienced cyclists of all ages.
“If someone loses control, he goes right on the lane. Just (like) what happened,” he said.
While no one suggested the boy’s death isn’t a tragedy, other cyclists feel the idea is an overreaction.
“This trail has been here for years and I don’t know if I’ve heard of an incident like this before,” said Peter Gold.
“I don’t know if we’re going a little overboard.”
Paul Greene said he felt the incident was “a bit of a one-off.”
“Unfortunately this terrible incident happened here, but if you really look into it I’m sure there’s a bunch of spots like the Queens Quay area … There’s lots of unsafe places there too.”
Councillor Jaye Robinson, chair of the City of Toronto’s Public Works Committee, told Global News “the data shows that we have not had a lot of previous incidents there.”
READ MORE: Cyclists call for more safety, infrastructure in Toronto
But she admitted Wednesday’s fatal collision “has shone a spotlight on this problem,” prompting her to ask city staff to look for a quick solution.
The City’s own multi-use trail design guidelines recommend that trails like the Goodman, adjacent to high-volume or high-speed arterial roadways, should have a barrier.
Section 6.4.1 reads: “Where an appropriate distance (from traffic) cannot be achieved, guide rails and a physical separation such as a fence or landscaping are recommended.”
Robinson wasn’t in office when the Martin Goodman Trail was opened in 1984, but she said she plans to bring the guidelines to the attention of staff.
“Absolutely, this speaks to this issue perfectly,” Robinson said.
Members of the city’s cycling community are planning a memorial bike ride in the Morgan’s memory on June 3. It will begin at Matt Cohen Park at Spadina Avenue and Bloor Street West at 10 a.m. and will end at the site of the collision. Participants will leave a white ghost bike as is done whenever a cyclist is killed in Toronto.
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