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Toronto has seen an increase in traffic fatalities so far this year with more pedestrian and motorcyclist deaths compared to last year, and police say the trend is concerning.
A crash between a car and a parked dump truck that left a 63-year-old man dead in Etobicoke on Monday evening brought the total number of fatal collisions in the city this year to 23, Toronto police say.
The number of fatal collisions in Toronto from Jan. 1 to June 1 in 2026 represents a 28 per cent increase from the same period last year and a 44 per cent increase from the same period in 2024, according to police statistics.
Speed was a factor in many of the crashes but distracted or careless driving also played roles, Sgt. Murray Campbell, of the police’s traffic services unit, said in an interview Tuesday.
“A good portion of these fatals were caused by distracted or careless driving — people not paying attention and doing maneuvers that they should not be doing.”
Fatal collisions happened all over city, police say
Murray said the cooler spring weather may have been a factor too, adding drivers might not have been expecting motorcyclists to be out on the roads.
“Driving is a shared responsibility on the roadway and they have to share that responsibility with pedestrians, with cyclists, with motorcyclists and other road users,” he said.
“Driver awareness, pedestrian awareness, cyclist awareness — it doesn’t matter whether you’re right or wrong, getting involved in a collision is going to hurt. It’s either going to hurt your wallet, or it’s going to hurt by injuring somebody or taking a life. People need to be aware of that.”
Murray said fatal collisions this year have not only happened on roadways, but also in parking lots, on private property and all over the city.
A crash between a car and a parked dump truck that left a 63-year-old man dead Monday in Etobicoke brought the total number of fatal collisions in Toronto this year to 23, according to police. (Jacob Estrin/CBC)
Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow said at an unrelated news conference that speed cameras were effective in reducing speed in the city, however the Ontario government implemented a ban on speed cameras last November.
“It would be nice if we get our speed cameras, 150 of them, so we could lower people’s speed, especially in school and community zones and in local neighborhoods,” Chow said.
Advocate not surprised following speed camera ban
Jess Spieker, spokesperson for the advocacy group Friends and Families for Safe Streets, said the province bears some responsibility to keep pedestrians safe.
A ban on speed cameras by the Ford government took effect last November. (Michael Wilson/CBC)
Spieker said Premier Doug Ford gave drivers “carte blanche” to speed without any consequences.
“I am appalled to say that I’m not at all surprised,” Spieker said Tuesday when asked about the increase in traffic fatalities.
“It’s exactly what advocates were warning about when our premier killed our speed camera program, that our streets would get a lot less safe for pedestrians, and that seems to be exactly what’s happening. It’s contributed to a very toxic driving and car culture that we have in Ontario and people are paying for it with their lives.”
CBC Toronto reached out to the provincial government for comment, but has yet to hear back.