Toronto city council approves first ever road safety plan

Toronto city council approved aroad safety plan on Thursday that sets an ambitious goal of reducingthe number of road fatalities to zero.

Mayor John Tory applauded the five-year plan, saying it isthe first of its kind in the city.

"What we've got here is many,many preventable deaths," Tory said.

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The plan would reduce the speed limits on several downtown streets. Other proposalsincludebetter enforcement of the speed limit in school and construction zones anddoubling the fines for speeding and other infractions in school zones.

Council, as part of the plan, intends to askthe Ontario government to ban pedestrians from using handheld wireless devices while crossing the street.

Councillorsagreed to consider the cost of fast-tracking the plan so that it's accomplished in two years instead of five.

A staff report prepared for the city said Toronto had 65 traffic-related fatalities in 2015, which was a 10-year high.

Jared Kolb, executive director of Cycle Toronto, said he is encouraged by council's unanimous endorsement of the plan.

He called it an "incremental, strategic" plan, but noted the its effect may not be seen for several years.

"Sadly, we are still going to see more pedestrian and cyclist deaths," he said. "There is still a lot more to do."

The big issue is speed, he said.

"It's something that we got to get under control in the city."

Coun. Mike Layton, who represents TrinitySpadina, said he is in favour of fast-tracking the plan.

"There's a growing number of fatalities on our roadways. We need to do everything we can to stop them," he said. "We do need to set our sights on zero deaths."

Laytonvoted against the motion to ask the province to ban pedestrians from using their cellphones while walking across city streets.

"That's a bit of a stretch," he said. "But you need to keep your head up when you're on the roadway."