Toronto city officials say new “traffic agents” will be deployed to busy downtown intersections to keep people moving and to improve safety for pedestrians, cyclists, transit riders and drivers.
After successfully securing permission from the Ontario government, Toronto is the first city in the province to have traffic agents on its streets, city officials said. The city has hired 16 full-time agents to manage the intersections.
Traffic agents are placed at intersections with evolving traffic demands, high congestion and a need to improve safety, the city said. Either one or two traffic agents will be at a location depending on the size and complexity of the intersection, the City of Toronto added.
Under the provincial Highway Traffic Act, only police officers are allowed to manage traffic at signalized intersections and so in working with the province and Toronto police, traffic agents were ensured special constable designation for this program, the city said.
Here are the 11 key intersections that have been prioritized by the city for traffic agents to manage:
- Front Street West and Bay Street
- Front Street West and Simcoe Street
- Front Street West and University Avenue/York Street
- Adelaide Street West and University Avenue
- Adelaide Street East and Jarvis Street
- Queen Street West and Bay Street
- Wellington Street West and Simcoe Street
- Lower Jarvis Street and Lake Shore Boulevard East
- York Street and Gardiner Expressway (on-ramp)
- Bloor Street West and Bay Street
- Bay Street and Richmond Street West
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The City of Toronto says as the program evolves, other locations across the city — outside of the downtown core — could see traffic agents.
“Actively managing intersections is a proven and effective way to keep traffic moving by ensuring all road users comply with the traffic signals, helping to reduce potential collisions and reducing occurrences when vehicles are stopped in the intersection after the signal has changed which prevents on-coming traffic from travelling through (known as ‘blocking the box’),” the city said in a news release issued Wednesday.
The City of Toronto said despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, there are still increasing traffic volumes as well as new peak traffic times.
The “Toronto Traffic Agents Program” is part of the city’s MoveTO plan and Vision Zero road safety plan.
“Traffic Agents will make a difference on our streets. These agents have been proven as an effective way to keep traffic moving by ensuring motorists, cyclists and pedestrians comply with the traffic signals; by helping reduce potential collisions; and by reducing the blocking of intersections,” Mayor John Tory said.