An auto accident is an untidy business, and the carnage sometimes extends beyond the people and vehicles.
For a good example of where the rubber meets the road, take a look at the mess at an entrance to Highway 427 in Etobicoke, where traffic signs and even a pedestrian guard rail were mowed down by a vehicle.
The proximity of traffic signs and pedestrian safety measures to the street makes them vulnerable when a car crosses over the curb, but the scale of the destruction in this case is exceptional.
These signs serve a vital function, helping drivers not familiar with the area find their way or avoid obstacles. When they go missing, it could lead to yet another accident.
Danny Apple sent us an email that included two photos of the remnants of a sign at the entrance to the southbound 427 from westbound Burnhamthorpe Rd.
His note said that the sign was felled last August and has yet to be removed or replaced.
We went there and found half of the sign that says “427 south” on the ground, along with one of two posts that had held it up.
But as we looked around, it was obvious that the damage extended far beyond the 427 sign.
A guard rail to protect pedestrians using the sidewalk where it runs between the on-ramp and Burnhamthorpe Rd. had also been partially knocked over and was marked by pylons.
And two yellow-and-black warning signs for motorists had been plowed over, with one on the ground and the other wedged into a hole in the pavement, as if someone figured out how to press it back into service.
The driver responsible for it should take up bowling; they’d be a champ.
STATUS: Rob Burlie, who’s in charge of road operations in that area, emailed to say the guard rail will be replaced, and that a provincial roads official has been alerted to the downed signs so they can be replaced.
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