“I’ve seen cars backing up in my driveway.  I’ve seen road rage on my road, I’ve seen screeching tyres, fast moving traffic and (the) local council and the police won’t do anything,” said James, who did not want to be named to protect her privacy, he told CP24.com.
James and his family moved into a house on Rochdale Avenue in the Caledonia-Fairbanks area of ​​the city in 2016.
Since then, he says there have been nonstop speeding and traffic violations due to cars swerving onto his street to bypass LRT construction near Eglinton Avenue and Dufferin Street.
“…They just see our neighborhood as an obstacle course, not where people live, not where children play, not where there are schools, not where there is daycare, but just a place to get through as fast as they can because they want to to get to Dufferin or they want to get to Eglinton,” James said.
The area has been in a state of construction chaos for years due to work at Fairbank Underground Station for the Eglinton Crosstown LRT, a massive 19-kilometre subway line being built with 25 stops from east to west Toronto.
James said drivers are not allowed to make certain turns in the area and are therefore being re-routed onto his road and surrounding roads, but not obeying the 40km/h speed limits.
“They get Keele, they get Caledonia … if you’re standing there during rush hour, you’re taking your life in your hands because you’ve got very fast traffic going in both directions,” he said.
In addition to building the LRT, the city is installing new storm sewers in its neighborhood to manage stormwater flow and prevent basement flooding.
James said this has further exacerbated issues in the Fairbank community.
“This has closed down some streets in my neighborhood, most notably Harvey Ave.  and Kitchener, two streets that have taken the brunt of it all, such as the excess traffic that has come from the LRT construction around,” he said.
Frustrated and concerned with the numerous speeding and reckless drivers, James said he has contacted his district councilor, Ana Bailão.
He would like the city to create a plan to mitigate traffic flow problems, install speed bumps and have the police provide traffic enforcement in his area.
“Countless complaints to the local council and 13 ward have resulted in zero measurable effort in either case.  To be fair, the people at 13 Division, they visited my street a total of three times a few months ago…and they ended up issuing tickets for all kinds of things, speeding, driving the wrong way on a one-way, all of that,” he said. James.
Bailão’s chief of staff, Deyan Kostovski, told CP24.com in an Oct. 5 email that her office has received concerns about traffic issues and has visited the area on “several occasions,” including last week, to examine and make observations.
He said that for speed bumps to be installed in the area a petition would need to be signed by affected households with a strong majority in favor of installing the bumps.
“A benchmark of 50%+1 is consistent with city policy regarding changes in a neighborhood.  In exceptional circumstances, the consultant may exercise some discretion and may initiate an investigation or immediately submit a proposal to the Community Board for settlement,” Kostowski wrote.
“Requests for more robust measures such as chicanes are usually considered after an investigation and as part of a road reconstruction.  There is no planned work on Rochdale Avenue at this time,” he added.
Kostowski said feedback from local residents was provided to the city’s Department of Transportation Services in May, along with a request for a new round of traffic counts.
“We also outlined the process for creating a traffic management committee, which enlists street representatives to help build community support for a more comprehensive area transportation study,” he wrote.
As for speeding vehicles and non-compliant vehicles zooming along James Street, Kostowski said that is a police issue brought up by Bailao’s office in the 13th Precinct.
James said he has contacted the 13 Division several times and has been told there are not enough officers to provide consistent traffic enforcement in the area.
“I don’t want to make this an argument with the police.  But if they don’t have the resources to do their job, that’s a problem.”
CP24.com has contacted the police about this matter, but has yet to receive a comment.
Last month, Metrolinx, the provincial transit agency overseeing the construction of the LRT, announced it would not be able to meet a previously soft September goal of actually completing the project.
Metrolinx did not provide a new target date.
Meanwhile, storm sewer installation in the Fairbank community is scheduled for completion in 2026.