Bus riders demand changes to ‘suicide stop’

Frequent users of a TTC bus stop straddling the Markham and Scarborough border say changes are badly needed to the area after a 21-year-old died this week crossing the street.

The stop, just east of Eastvale Drive on Steeles Avenue East, is not lit. Passengers dropped off on the south side of Steeles have a field at their backs and two lanes of busy traffic to dodge to get to the other side.

Craig Harper says drivers can’t see bus users like himself when they are forced to cross Steeles Avenue every night in the dark.

“Even myself when I get off the bus I tell my bus driver you just dropped me off at a suicide stop,” Harper said. “Not knowing one day that something would happen. Well something did happen.”

A 21-year-old woman died Sunday after she was struck crossing Steeles shortly after getting off the bus just east of Eastvale Drive around 10 p.m.

Harper says the incident was particularly disturbing because he brought his safety concerns to the city about the stop back in March 2017, telling them the area needed a stop sign, more lighting or even a crosswalk.

“I was like really? It’s tough,” Harper said. “You see people everyday. You wave at them everyday. ‘Hi, how are you’… and the next day they’re gone.”

“If we would have had the resources at the time, I don’t think this would have happened.”

CityNews has learned the city did perform a traffic study on the area back in 2015. It determined no traffic signals or pedestrian crossover were needed.

CityNews tried to get results of that audit but were told it was an internal report and that the traffic volumes simply didn’t meet the threshold for changes.

Sunday’s incident was the first fatality in this area and the mayor’s office says it is now looking into changes.

“The death of a 21-year-old woman on our roads earlier this week was tragic. We are dedicated as a City to working to prevent pedestrian deaths,” read the statement sent to CityNews. “My office received an email about this incident that raised concerns about the intersection. We have brought those concerns to the attention of City staff. Transportation Services will be reviewing this area and they have asked hydro officials to also look at lighting in the area.”

Newly elected councillor Neethan Shan says something needs to be done to address the phenomenal growth in the Scarborough/Markham border.

“It’s used by a huge amount of cars. It needs to have the lighting. It needs to have the pedestrian safety element to it. And it’s unfortunate we lost a life,” she said.

On Wednesday, the TTC posted an ‘out of service’ sign at the ‘suicide stop’, a day after CityNews inquired into it’s safety.

CityNews has learned they will conduct their own safety assessment. There was no timeline given on when of it service at the stop will resume.