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Thursday, June 27, 2019

People are upset that FedEx keeps parking in Toronto bike lanes

It's every downtown cyclist's prime annoyance (aside from maybe getting bugs in the eyes): Finding a vehicle smack dab in the middle of your bike lane.

Whether it's an Uber driver dropping someone off, an impatient motorist trying to turn right, or a TTC bus pulling over for passengers every two blocks, there's often no safe choice for bike riders other than to simply wait.

It's another story, however, when a driver parks in a bike lane, gets out of their vehicle and just leaves it there unattended. Cyclists are forced to swerve into traffic — a move that could prove deadly — as there isn't even anyone in the driver's seat to hear their dings.

Delivery trucks are widely known as the biggest offenders in this regard, and FedEx drivers are particularly well-represented in bike lanes across North America (though, to be fair, this could be related to the sheer size of the company's fleet.)

The issue came to a head in Toronto on Wednesday afternoon when a FedEx truck was left in the middle of a bike track on Peter Street during the afternoon rush hour.

"Numerous $150 [tickets] have been given to this vehicle but without any compliance or consideration from the driver," wrote Toronto Police Service Parking Enforcement Bike Officer Sabrina Kloetzig of the truck. "So today...."

Kloetzig shared two photos from the scene — one of them showing a tow-truck lifting the FedEx vehicle, presumably to be towed. The other showed a FedEx employee standing next to the truck.

"We expect our couriers and service providers to abide by all traffic laws during the course of providing services to our customers and address any violations that occur," said Federal Express Canada spokesperson James Anderson when asked about the incident.

"Parking in congested city locations can be a challenge, but we work hard to abide by local parking ordinances," he continued.

'"FedEx also participates in programs many cities have to more efficiently manage parking while loading and unloading shipments on behalf of our customers and we are open to collaboration with municipalities addressing this issue."

Of course, FedEx is far from the only courier company annoying Toronto cyclists with its liberal interpretation of parking laws.

A quick scroll through any TPS PEO's Twitter feed shows numerous offences from the likes of UPS...

Canada Post...

Purolator...

And others.

All in a day's work, I suppose.


by Lauren O'Neil via blogTO

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