Well, it could have been serious, but thankfully wasn’t. It was however a bit of a different situation for police on Toronto area highways.
Toronto traffic is congested at the best of times, and with the new PanAm games “HOV” lanes, Toronto Police are patrolling the highways for unauthorized people using the lanes. These are lanes reserved for “high-occupancy” commuter vehicles with 3 or more passengers, and for all Pan Am games vehicles.
The Don Valley Parkway is one of the heaviest travelled roads in the country.
On Sunday morning police received calls from motorists saying a bunch of cyclists were riding along the shoulder of the highway.
A motorcycle cop already on the DVP was then sent to check on the situation and found nine Brazilians in bike racing uniforms riding along.
The communication was a little difficult but the cyclists soon understood that it was rather dangerous and against the law for cyclists to be on the DVP.
Apparently the team was out on a practice ride and turned down a ramp to enter the DVP not knowing exactly what they were getting in to.
The cyclists were apologetic and very co-operative, a police spokesman said. The police escorted them to the next exit and then to a road where they could continue their practice. No tickets were issued, and the spokesman quipped, “at least they weren’t using the HOV lanes.
Thousands of athletes and officials from across the Americas are in Toronto for the PanAm and ParaPan games.
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