We’re only in the fourth month of 2016 and there have already been 13 pedestrian deaths involving distracted drivers.
Pedestrian deaths in Toronto are up this year with seniors accounting for a majority of the fatalities ( 70 per cent). In the last year alone there were 38 pedestrians killed on city streets.
In order to combat the city’s growing concern for pedestrian fatalities, the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) has started its “Stay Focused, Stay Safe” campaign, which is supposed to encourage pedestrians to pay more attention.
Throughout the city you can see several different posters carrying warnings about jay-walking, wearing dark clothing at night, or using your phone while crossing the road — pinpointing things that have yet to be a factor in pedestrian deaths this year and singling pedestrians out instead of distracted drivers.
Luckily, to shed some light on the situation (and not blame the wrong people) Metro News has begun tracking pedestrian and cyclist deaths across Toronto for 2016 by creating an interactive map which points out where the latest fatalities have occurred.
This comes as police search for a hit-and-run driver that struck and killed a 56-year-old woman near Markham Road and Nashdene Road just last week.
In order to keep the city safe and informed, here are the 13 most dangerous city streets so far in 2016.
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1. Kennedy Road & Ellesmere Road
Sunday, January 3rd: A 39-year-old man was hit by a driver and killed while crossing Kennedy Road, south of Ellesmere Road.
2. Sheppard Ave East & Chichester Place
Sunday, January 17th: A 79-year-old man was hit by a driver and killed while crossing Sheppard Avenue near Chichester Place.
3. Bayview Ave & Eglinton Ave East
Friday, January 15th: An 85-year-old woman was hit by a driver while crossing Bayview Avenue at Eglinton. She later died in hospital.
4. Dufferin Street & Armstrong Ave
Saturday, January 30th: A 90-year-old woman was hit by a driver and killed while crossing Dufferin Street, south of Armstrong Avenue.
5. Dundas Street West & Poplar Ave
Thursday, January 28th: A 49-year-old woman was crossing Dundas St. West when she was hit by a left-turning driver in a private bus. She was taken to hospital and succumbed to her injuries on February 2nd.
Thursday, March 31st: A 56-year-old woman was attempting to cross Markham Road when she was hit and killed by a black Mercedes Benz. The driver fled the scene.