Recommendations for reducing cycling injuries and death
Prepared by:
W. J. Lucas, M.D., C.C.F.P.
Regional Coroner for Toronto
July 1, 1998
Introduction
During the summer of 1996, two cycling-related fatalities attracted
considerable public attention. On July 22, 1996, Ms. Erin
Krauser died at the intersection of Queen and Bathurst Streets. On July
31, 1996, Ms. Martha Kennedy died at the intersection of Cherry
and Commissioners Streets. Both deaths involved cyclists coming in contact
with the rear right wheels of large trucks.
A press conference was held at Toronto City Hall on August 2,
1996, by Toronto Mayor Barbara Hall and the Toronto City Cycling Committee. Representatives
from Toronto Police Service, trucking associations, cycling planners and
the regional coroner's office took part. It was decided that a cooperative
effort would be required to examine the issues affecting cycling safety
in the city.
The purpose of this report is to review cycling fatalities that have
occurred within the former Metropolitan Toronto Region (now the City of
Toronto) over an 11 year period, with a view to drawing some conclusions
and making recommendations aimed at enhancing cyclists' safety in the city
for the future. It is hoped that the recommendations presented with this
report will go some distance towards achieving that goal.
Ad-hoc committee and review process
An ad-hoc committee was formed to review cycling-related fatalities that
had occurred over a 11 year period within Toronto between January 1,
1986 and December 31, 1996. (The last year for which complete statistics
are available). The committee consisted of representatives of a number
of organizations including:
- Advocacy for Respect for Cyclists
- City of Toronto:
- Works and Emergency Services
- Urban Planning and Development
- Community Services (Public Health)
- City Council
- Cycling Committee
- Toronto Police Service, Traffic Services
- Toronto Police Service, Training and Education, Police Vehicles, Operations
- Toronto Transit Commission
- Independent Bicycle Dealers Association
- Insurance Industries representatives
- Metropolitan Toronto Injury Prevention Coalition
- Ontario Cycling Association
- Ontario Ministry of Transportation
- Ontario Trauma Registry
- Ontario Trucking Association
- Truck Training School Association
It should be noted that these committee members were brought together
because of their knowledge and experience related to cycling, cycling collisions
and cycling injuries, so that their views and experiences could be shared.
They did not necessarily represent the positions of their respective committees,
agencies or associations.
A review of all documented cyclists' injuries, as well as fatalities
was initially undertaken by the committee. Files from the Office of the
Chief Coroner included 72 cycling-related deaths during the sample time
period. A number of those deaths resulted from circumstances occurring
outside Metropolitan Toronto, where the victims had been transferred to
Toronto tertiary care hospitals for medical care. These deaths were eliminated
from the study as the precipitating event had occurred outside the city
boundaries, reducing the total number of cycling-related deaths within
the city to 47. Cycling fatalities that involved cyclist-pedestrian crashes,
or cyclist alone not involving a collision with a motor vehicle were further
eliminated, as many of these were off-road situations. The resulting final
study group totaled 38 fatalities during that 11 year period. Although
this sample size was small, similarities in patterns of collisions where
fatalities had occurred versus where only injury was encountered gave the
committee a certain comfort level in reviewing the deaths and being able
to draw conclusions from them.
In addition to input from the Committee members, a literature search
was also used. Many excellent studies have been conducted in the past into
the issues of bicycle usage, safety, collisions and injuries. It was not
the intent of the Committee, nor did it have the resources, to attempt
to replicate these studies. Nor was the literature review exhaustive. The
reader is referred to the Bibliography/References
section of this report for further reading.
After careful analysis and discussion, issues arose which led to several recommendations to improve cycle safety both in Toronto and the Province of Ontario at large.
