Thundertype

Email Alert: Write an MP, Prevent Cyclist Deaths

Transport Canada has written off the need for truck sideguards again.

I’ve been talking about this simple, no-nonsense improvement for years, but The Globe & Mail has again highlighted the need for truck sideguards in the wake of another cyclist death in Toronto this week.

Right-hand-turn deaths tend to be the most common for cyclists, and a simple, absorbable, one-time expense for the trucking industry would prevent needless fatalities across Canada (there were 65 cyclist fatalities in Canada in 2007, many of them in large, busy, truck-lined cities).

Transport Canada doesn’t need to study this. The City of Toronto found that sideguards would be effective in its 1998 Coroners’ Report, and the provincial coroner in Ontario will most likely recommend the same measure in the upcoming report on cyclist fatalities.

While we wait years and years (and years) for on-road cyclist safety measures, like barrier-separated lanes, the federal government has a one-off opportunity to make things better now.

The trucking industry has a powerful lobby and will fight any efforts to impose new safety costs on fleet owners. Please articulate your thoughts to your local MP and, most importantly:

Minister of Public Safety, Vic Toews - vic.toews@parl.gc.ca

Minister of Transport, Denis Lebel - denis.lebel@parl.gc.ca