NDP bill would require Ontario to track and report dooring incidents

TORONTO — Ontario NDP Transit critic Jessica Bell (University—Rosedale) has announced a new private member’s bill that would require the province to start keeping track of how many people are ‘doored’ each year.

‘Dooring’ occurs when someone is hit by a person in a vehicle opening their door. As it stands, the Ministry of Transportation is not required to track dooring incidents or report them in the annual Road Safety Report, because doorings do not qualify as collisions under the Highway Traffic Act.

“The Highway Traffic Actsays that dooring is an offence, and that it’s punishable by a fine,” said Bell. “But there’s no provincial requirement for anyone to report it or measure how often it happens.”

Bell held a press conference this morning to announce the bill. She was joined by advocacy groups Friends and Families for Safe Streets and Share the Road Cycling Coalition, as well as community resident Holly McLellan, who spoke about her experience of being doored while riding her bike and the injuries she sustained.

“We know that dooring is a regular risk for cyclists and pedestrians, and that it makes people feel unsafe on our streets,” Bell said. “We also know that what gets measured, gets done. If we truly want to make our roads safer for all, we need to make sure we’re tracking and reporting these incidents.”

The introduction of Bell’s bill is timely. November is usually the most dangerous month for cyclists and pedestrians, due to shorter daylight hours and the onset of winter weather.