Item - 2021.TE29.73

The Toronto and East York Community Council:

1. Requested the General Manager, Transportation Services to undertake an updated review of the Yonge/Bloor Pedestrian Priority Phase intersection, and to provide recommendations for changes, if warranted, to the signal operations.

The Pedestrian Priority Phase (also known as the pedestrian scramble phase) at the intersection of Yonge Street and Bloor Street is one of the enhanced pedestrian features included in the City’s Sustainable Transportation Initiatives, and supports the policies and objectives contained in the City’s Official Plan and TransformTO's climate action strategies around transportation.

However, members of the neighbourhood have raised that the changing context at Yonge and Bloor raises some concerns for the safety of vulnerable road users, and community and business organizations have expressed concerns about the flow of vehicular traffic through the intersection.

Some of these recent changes include the ActiveTO cycle track installation on Bloor and Yonge, upcoming construction at the Yonge-Bloor subway station, and the general impacts of COVID-19 on traffic and all modes of transportation throughout the city.

While it is not the intention of this inquiry to eliminate the scramble, I do want to ensure it remains relevant to our goals to protect the safety of our most vulnerable road users and to make adjustments if there are flaws.