York Region roads a mess Thursday with 40 collisions by 9 a.m.
Police note roads are 'really bad out there'
Yorkregion.com
Dec. 11, 2014
By Lisa Queen
By 9 a.m. Thursday, there had already been as many as 40 collisions on York Region’s roads due to the weather and York Regional Police are bracing for more.
OPP responded to more than 50 calls by 8 a.m. this morning - mostly single-vehicle spin outs and vehicles in ditches.
Meanwhile, York Region’s public and Catholic school boards have cancelled buses for the day but schools remain open.
GO Transit is reporting delays on many of its routes.
With 1,100 km of regional roads to get to, York Region was advising patience as crews - on the road since 2 a.m. plowing, salting and sanding - worked to clear roadways.
“Traffic is really bad out there,” Staff-Sgt. Kelvin Chantiam said.
“We’re doing the best we can but it’s hard to move region-wide.”
Earlier in the morning, police in Vaughan were only responding to emergency calls but that has since been lifted, Chantiam said.
Keep up to date with the weather in York Region.
The 30 to 40 collisions so far have been minor, he said.
“There have been a few accidents but nothing major. A lot of small injury accidents,” he said.
Many drivers involved in accidents are expected to report to the police collision reporting centre in Richmond Hill today, Chantiam said.
“I know for sure our Richmond Hill reporting centre will be inundated,” he said.
“The roads are in extremely poor condition."
Stranded commuters could also expect up to one-hour wait times for assistance from CAA, which expected its call volume to top out at 6,000 compared to its usual 3,000 calls on snow days.
A special weather statement from Environment Canada issued yesterday remains in effect for today.
“Significant snowfall for parts of southern Ontario today,” its website said.
Some areas of the region could see as much as 35 cm by the time the storm ends, it said.
A low pressure system over New England is continuing to bring snow to the Greater Toronto Area.
