Toronto City Council has voted to install a “scramble intersection” at Yonge and Eglinton streets The motion, introduced by Councillor Josh Matlow, also called for one to be installed just further north at Yonge Street and Roehampton Avenue/Orchard View Boulevard. However, council has requested they evaluate this intersection before implementing it at the second intersection.“Yonge and Eglinton has become one of the busiest intersections in the city and I want to make it safer and more manageable,” said MatlowA scramble intersection, also known as a Pedstrian Priority Phase, means that at certain intervals, the traffic lights will stop all vehicles in every direction. That allows pedestrians to cross in any direction, including diagonally, relieving some of the volume on sidewalks. According to the city, an average of about 4,500 pedestrians cross Yonge and Eglinton every hour. Lee Scott is part of a community group called Walk Toronto who have been advocating for a scramble intersection since last year. “And so we get pushed off and then we’re waiting for the directional change to go with the cars. There’s often cars that are kind of pushing ahead of their green lights. And so they actually go even into pedestrians who are walking on their walk signal,” said Scott.The intersection is set to be installed in 2027.But there are some concerns with the proposal.“It can cause increase in delays for drivers because it adds an additional light cycle that’s for pedestrians only. And so it really depends on how it’s implemented and how all the other lights around it are timed and synchronized,” said Matti Siemiatycki, Professor of Geography and Planning at University of Toronto.As a part of the motion, council directed Transportation Services to undertake coordinated signal timing optimization for the Yonge Street corridor to minimize impacts on traffic operations.“What city staff have advised me is that we can coordinate the signals at Yonge and Eglinton so that cars are going to get through, pedestrians are going to get through, but in a way that makes it work for everyone a little better,” said Matlow.Siemiatycki said another consideration will have to be those with visual impairments or other disabilities and how they can safety navigate this space.“It’s about understanding this is now a really busy pedestrian environment in a place that now has probably among the best transit connection in all of Canada,” said Siemiatycki. It’s become a true midtown for the city. And I think ensuring that pedestrians are recognized and given priority in this space can just ensure that it thrives even further.”