Item - 2026.EC27.14

The Economic and Community Development Committee did not adopt a procedural motion to add this new business item to the agenda for consideration.

Emergency services vehicles are and must be equipped with sirens and air horns to warn pedestrians, cyclists and drivers to move aside when the emergency services vehicles are responding at speed to an emergency. Unfortunately, in dense downtown areas such as Ward 11, there are a large number of emergency calls 24/7, and therefore a high and growing frequency of middle-of-the-night sirens and air horns.

Ward 11 constituents who live close to EMS or fire stations or hospitals report that the frequent, piercing noise from these sirens and air horns is causing serious and chronic sleep disruptions for residents many storeys above the road. As No More Noise Toronto has documented, chronic sleep disruptions have serious health implications for those affected, and can reduce the safety of third parties by degrading the professional performance of doctors, pilots, and others affected by such sleep disruptions.

Noise is difficult to control in a dense urban area, but our sleep-deprived constituents deserve to know that everything possible is being done to focus necessary warning sounds from emergency vehicles on other road users, and to prevent such sounds from adversely affecting nearby residents.