Toronto residents are experiencing slippery commutes this morning after temperatures dropped overnight.
Puddles of melted snow froze overnight resulting in slick sidewalks and roads coated in treacherous ice this morning.
Earlier this week, the city saw warmer weather, with daytime highs up to 7 C – which melted some of the snow banks left from big snowstorms two weeks ago.
Now Toronto hit the streets to ask locals how they’re grappling with the slippery sidewalks.
“I slipped three times already. I couldn’t imagine if I had mobility issues, what that would be like,” Niki Brown said.
“I’ve noticed frozen melt water on a sidewalk near my home, and nearly slipped on it. I decided that it was far more prudent to walk down the middle of the street than continue further on the sidewalk,” Nigel Allen said.
“Lots of black ice… lots of ice. Everyone’s trying to catch their fall. Thank God I have the stroller, I definitely missed a few falls,” Jasmine F. said.
Meanwhile, Torontonians have taken to social media to warn others about the slippery sidewalks, sharing their frustrations and near-miss falls.
“Almost gave a complete stranger a hug trying not to wipe out this morning,” one user on Reddit said.
“Had to awkwardly shuffle my entire walk to the subway because I’d slip as soon as I lifted up my foot, the sidewalk was completely covered in ice,” another user commented.
The slippery conditions come after Mayor Olivia Chow’s press conference on Tuesday, urging the city to “act quickly” as she’s concerned about dangerous sidewalks due to dropping temperatures and icy conditions.
“People will get very hurt, and we’ve seen that happen before,” Chow said.
Read More
Chow has also been vocal about urging city officials to review snow removal contracts due to its “unacceptable” response to the back-to-back snowstorms.
“We want to do a full review of the winter maintenance operations, including how to optimize the resources and review the contracts. Let us look at the options, including renegotiating or breaking the contracts,” Chow said on Tuesday.
