Read on Twitter
Here is a thread on response to our open letter of Friday. Thanks to all who have commented in support, and raised attention. Thank you to @m_layton and all the Toronto city councillors who took time to read our letter on the holiday weekend. 1/11 https://twitter.com/manneharris/status/1248709649551032320?s=20">https://twitter.com/manneharr...
Yesterday we received a response letter from @epdevilla and are grateful for the quick turnaround given the holiday and so many other burdens carried by @TOPublicHealth during COVID-19. 2/11
You could ask your city councillors to see a copy of the response ( @joecressy was cc’d and we understand @JohnTory& #39;s office sent copy to reporters), but we don’t post addressed correspondence w/out consent (colleague etiquette). 3/11
Response is a qualified “no” but with an invitation to remain in dialogue. 4/11 See public comments here: https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2020/04/13/can-you-keep-your-distance-on-toronto-sidewalks-this-viral-video-shows-that-can-be-literally-impossible.html">https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/...
Primary concern is induced demand, where availability of space to walk and bicycle could be seen as encouraging out-of-home activity. We remain concerned that sidewalk and bicycle travel are viewed as an “option” rather only essential mode for some Toronto residents. 5/11
Explicitly included in response is the need to constantly re-evaluate dynamic considerations and an invitation to contribute as things evolve. Here are some ways we can help with that 6/11:
1) We can help advise community orgs collecting data on unsafe locations that may be affected by physical distancing (e.g. stepping into live traffic to give distance). Incidental observations only, we don& #39;t want anyone leaving home for purposes of collecting data rn. 7/11
2) We will try to help w/ traffic injury surveillance. This is very tricky to engage proactively because some of the best data sources are lagged by months or even >year. But we can all keep an eye on police/media- reported injuries. 8/11
3) Let’s all watch what happens in the cities allowing space: do they see induced demand or effectiveness of physical distancing? If these cities can demonstrate good epidemic control while rebalancing streets, this supports action here. 9/11
4) We will continue to highlight this issue, and watch as situation around distancing evolves, doing our best to warn where we see potential for unrecognized risk. 10/11
As always, we support #stayhome 
https://abs.twimg.com/hashflags... draggable="false" alt=""> and #flattenthecurve. We support the hard work of @torontopublicbealth and @epdevilla even if we might have differing approaches on this particular issue. Thanks, all! 11/11
