Toronto councillor calls for Metrolinx safety review after woman critically injured by dump truck

A Toronto city councillor is calling for a review of safety plans for Metrolinx projects after a woman was critically injured last Thursday when she was struck by a sub-contractor's dump truck working on the Ontario Line subway.  

The incident happened Thursday afternoon in East York at the intersection of Pape Avenue and Mortimer Avenue, Toronto police said. 

The woman was hit when the driver of the dump truck made a right turn from Pape Avenue onto Mortimer Avenue. She was taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries, police said. 

Coun. Paula Fletcher, who represents the area, said the dump truck wasn't using an approved route for construction vehicles working on the Ontario Line project. 

She said specific haul routes were designated as part of the transit agency's plan for the project. 

She wants Metrolinx to investigate why, and whether it's been happening often. 

"You've got to come clean to the community," she said. 

A spokesperson for Metrolinx said an internal investigation is underway into the incident. 

"We will continue to work with our partners at the City of Toronto to ensure the safest and most appropriate routes are being used at all times," the spokesperson said.

Previous concerns 

Construction on the Ontario Line, a 15.6-kilometre subway route with 15 stops, began in December 2021 and is expected to be completed by 2031.

Residents of the area have previously raised concerns about the additional traffic the large construction site has brought to the area. 

Fletcher said she's heard from residents who've complained that the project has made the area "basically a construction zone for Metrolinx." 

"This is something everyone's been worried about for a long time, that with these large trucks barrelling around the neighborhood, that somebody is going to get hurt and they were," Fletcher said. 

The frightening incident was troubling but not surprising for some East York residents. 

"I'm only surprised it took this long for something like this to happen, because you see these trucks coming up and down all the time," said James Terrett. 

"There's a lot of traffic and not a lot of room on Pape in the best scenario, so when it gets all closed off, it definitely does make things a lot less safe," said Ben Caughran.

"There's not a lot of space for everyone, there's not a lot of visibility too, cause there's a lot of large trucks and barriers up."

Fletcher said she wants Metrolinx to "bring the hammer down" and make sure everyone working on the project is treating the community with respect. 

"They need to make sure their trucks are going very slowly. They need to respect the community in which they're working, and I don't think people feel that they are."