Fuel spill shuts down part of Hwy 9 closed in Orangeville

A "significant" fuel spill has a section of Hwy 9 closed east of Orangeville this morning.

Ontario Provincial Police responded to a call around 2:26am that a truck carrying gasoline had rolled at Hwy and Airport road.

OPP Const. Stephanie Hammond told reporters that it was a "significant fuel spill". At least 23,000 litres of gas had been dumped on the roadway, with some having leaked into the ditches and catch basins.

The Ministry of the Environment and Hazmat teams were on scene early Tuesday to oversee the cleanup.

“We have a pumper truck that is down there presently obviously to pump out what fuel they can visibly see as well as digging out the ditches to remove the soil that’s got the fuel in it as well,” says Const. Hammond.

Highway 9 is currently closed between Airport Road and Mono-Adjala Townline.

Police expect the clean up operation to take several hours, with the road not expected to reopen until late Tuesday afternoon at the earliest. Since the collision site is in a low lying area, damage to the environment is expected to be contained.

No injuries were reported following the incident. Police are investigating the causing of the collision, but speed does not appear to be a factor.

Hwy 9 is currently closed between Airport Road and Mono-Adjala Townline due to a "significant" fuel spill

Police seeking witnesses in weekend Milton crash that left teen critically injured

Halton Police are seeking witnesses to a single vehicle crash Sunday morning that left a Milton teen critically injured.

At around 2:19am on March 5th, police responded to a call that a Mazda, travelling eastbound, had left the roadway on Britannia, just west of Hwy 25. According to officials, the car had gone into a ditch, colliding with several trees before coming to a rest back on the road.

A 17-year-old female passenger in the rear seat suffered critical injuries, and was rushed to Hamilton General Hospital. She is currently listed in critical but stable condition.

The driver, a 22-year-old Mississauga man, and 17-year-old passenger in the front seat both suffered minor injuries. They were sent to Milton District Hospital, and have since been released.

The cause of the crash is still under investigation, however alcohol and road conditions have been ruled out as factors.

Witnesses are asked to call the Halton Police Collision Reconstruction Unit at 905-825-4747, ext. 5065.

.@HaltonMedics207 transport female to #Toronto trauma center after serious single vehicle collision on Britannia Rd in #MiltonON pic.twitter.com/maWOuSWaqq

— Andrew Collins (@ACollinsPhoto) March 5, 2017

Where to get free transit this New Year's Eve

It's almost 2017. As you head out to party, don't forget to plan your safe ride home. Here's all the GTA transit services who will you be offering you a free ride on New Year's Eve.

GO Transit

GO will be offering free service on all routes after 7:00pm. They will be running a regular Saturday schedule, with special late trips being offered on the Lakeshore, Milton, Kitchener, Barrie, and Stouffville lines. Click here for details.

TTC

Take a free ride on the Rocket from 7:00pm to 7:00am, whether you're taking the bus, streetcar, or subway. Subway service sill be extended to 4:00am to get you home safely, and overnight Blue Night service will run until the beginning of subway service on New Year's Day. PRESTO users should not tap their cards on New Year's Eve.

YRT

York Region Transit and VIVA will be offering starting at 7:00pm until the last bus of the day. Head over to their website for their full extended service list.

Mississauga MiWay

The city of Mississauga will be running free trips from 7:00pm to 4:00am on a Saturday schedule with extended evening service. Grab full details here.

Durham Transit

New this year, DRT will be offering free service until 3:00am. Check out the full list of extended service here.

Brampton Transit

Travelling around B-town this NYE, you an ride on Zum for free after 7:00pm. Grab the full extended service schedule here.

Oakville Transit

Ride for free around the old Oak starting at 7:00pm until 3:30am. Additional late night train meet service will be departing the Oakville GO Station at 2:30 and 3:30am.

Hamilton Transit

The Hammer will be offering free bus service after 6:00pm on most routes.

Burlington Transit

Unfortunately, Burlington will not be offering free service this NYE. However, they will be offering extended service until 2:00am on select routes. See schedules for details.

Milton Transit

Milton still has not confirmed its transit schedule for New Year Eve, though they have stated there will be no service on New Year's Day. Unfortunately, it looks like they will not be offering free or extended service this year. Stay tuned to their Twitter feed for updates.

Taxi & Uber

Of course, taxis will not be free. Beck is planning to be very busy, so expect extended waits. Uber is warning riders to expect the highest surge prices between midnight and 3:00am. So transit is probably your better bet. Hotel is another option, but many rooms will likely be booked out already. But a friend's couch is always free.

Truck crash shuts down westbound 401

A collision has shut down a portion of the 401 this afternoon.

Shortly before 1:00pm police to reports that a truck had collided with a bridge in the westbound express lanes at the 400.

When they arrived on scene, crews discovered a dump truck had left its box up, and had become wedged under the bridge.

All westbound express lanes remain closed at this hour. Cleanup continues, but police say they are unsure when the highway will reopen. 

The westbound collector lanes are open, but traffic is backed up as far as Bayview. In town routes are also heavier than usual. The 407 is currently the best alternate.

UPDATE:COLLISION: #Hwy401 WB Express lanes remain CLOSED just after Keele St (Basket weave) due to a collision. Collector lanes remain open

— OPP GTA Traffic (@OPP_GTATraffic) December 29, 2016

All your GTA Santa Claus Parades

I'm a bit late off the gun with the Christmas season this year. Hard to believe we're already almost halfway through November.

If you're looking to boost the holiday spirit, here's a full list of Santa Claus parades happening around the GTA, along with routes and road closures. If I've missed one, mention it in the comments and I'll add it to the list.

A lot of hard working volunteers put months of effort into creating the magic, so get out, support them, and have a great time. Don't forget you can also catch most of the parades on either Rogers TV or Cogeco TV. Check your local listings.

November 19th, 2016

Oakville Santa Claus Parade @ 9:00am

• Lakeshore from Allen to Kerr
• Kerr from Lakeshore to Stewart
• Stewart from Kerr to Maurice Drive
• Felan Avenue from Stewart to Rebecca
• Rebecca Street from Dorval to Forsythe
• Robinson Street from Navy to Allan

Newmarket Santa Claus Parade @ 11:00am

• Starts at Lorne and Eagle
• Travels east along Eagle to Main
• North on Main, ending at Ontario Street

Acton Santa Claus Parade @ 11:00am

• Hwy 7, downtown Acton

Hamilton Santa Claus Parade @ 4:30pm

• Starts at Main and Queen
• East along Main to John
• North on John to King
• West on King to Bay
• Ends on Bay at FirstOntario Centre

Georgetown Santa Claus Parade @ 5:00pm

• Starts at Guelph St & Sinclair, travels along Guelph to Charles.
• Up Charles Street to Fairgrounds

Brampton Santa Claus Parade @ 5:00pm

• Starts Ken Williams Drive & Sproule, continues along Sproule to Main.
• Down Main St/Hwy 10, ending at Elgin Drive. 

Richmond Hill Santa Claus Parade @ 6:00pm

• Leslie Street from 19th Avenue to Major Mackenzie. 

Oshawa Santa's Parade of Lights @ 6:00pm

• Starts at King and Stevenson
• East along King to Simcone
• North on Simcoe to Bond
• West on Bond to Stevenson

November 20th, 2016

Toronto Santa Claus Parade @ 12:30pm

• Parade Starts at Christie Pits and Travels along Bloor to Avenue
• Down Avenue Bloor to Wellington
• Along Wellington from University to Jarvis
• Ends at St. Lawrence Market

Milton Santa Claus Parade @ 1:30pm

• Starts at Main & Scott Blvd
• Continues along Main Street to ending at Milton GO Station. 

November 25th, 2016

Markham Santa Claus Parade @ 11:00am

• Markham Road between Hwy 7 and Bur Oak Ave.

November 26th, 2016

Pickering Santa Claus Parade @ 10:00am

• Starting at Vaughan Willard Public School
• Travels east along Glenanna Road between Dixie and Pickering Parkway.

Ajax Santa Claus Parade @ 6:00pm

• Starting at Bayly and Mackenzie Avenue
• Travels east along Bayly then north on Harwood, ending at Ajax Town Hall

Santa Under the Stars Parade Aurora @ 6:00pm

• Yonge from St. John's Sideroad to Orchard Heights
• Yonge from St. John's to Wellington 
• Old Yonge Street from St. John's to Twelve Oaks Drive
• Yonge from Orchard Heights to Industrial Parkway South
• Englehard Drive from Edward to Industrial Parkway

Flamborough/Waterdown Santa Claus Parade @ 6:30pm

• Starts on Hamilton Street at Rockhaven
• South on Hamilton to Dundas
• East on Dundas to Main
• North on Main to Parkside Drive
• West on Parkside, ending at Hamilton Street

November 27th, 2016

Streetsville Santa Claus Parade @ 1:00pm

• Queen Street, downtown Streetsville

Santa Fest in Maple Parade @ 2:00pm

• Major Mackenzie from the 400/Canada's Wonderland to Vaughan City Hall, east of Keele.

Weston Santa Claus Parade @ 2:00pm

• Starts at Weston and Church
• Heads south on Weston ending at Sidney Besley Cres. 

December 3rd, 2016

Etobicoke Lakeshore Christmas Parade @ 10:00am

• Starts at Dwight Avenue, and continues along Lake Shore Blvd West

Dec 3rd: Whitby Santa Claus Parade @ 10:00am

• Route TBA

Dec 4th: Burlington Santa Claus Parade @ 2:00pm

• Starts at Prospect Street and Guelph Line
• South on Guelph to New Street
• West on New Street to Brant
• North on Brant, ending at Caroline Street

Dec 3rd: Bolton Santa Claus Parade @ TBA

• Parade route TBA

Deadliest Labour Day weekend in 20 years, OPP

This was the deadliest Labour Day weekend in 20 years according to OPP.

Fourteen people died on provincially patrolled highways over the long weekend. This includes single vehicle crash on Hwy 17 near Wawa, which claimed four lives early Monday morning. The vehicle hit a rock cut before catching fire. Investigators are still trying to determine the cause of the collision.

Police have also released statistics for their distracted driving blitz, and they're not good.

800 charges were laid despite an aggressive campaign to get motorists to put their phones down. That brings total distracted driving charges laid this year up to 8,800.

OPP are reminding motorists that distracted drivers are twice as likely to get into a collision than even impaired drivers.

"While both of these driving behaviours are equally threatening to the safety of road users, this latest data has the OPP calling for a heightened awareness of the prevalence of distracted drivers and the risks they pose on our roads. The OPP is also calling on Ontarians to develop a similar level of public intolerance of these dangerous drivers that exists of impaired drivers."

Failure to use turn signals more dangerous than texting, study

Driver's who refuse to use their turn signal are twice as likely to get into accidents than those who drive distracted. 

That's according to new data from Society of Automotive Engineers, which stated that failure to signal causes 2-million collisions per year.

The study found drivers in the United States use their turn signals only half the time when changing lanes, and a 75% of the time when making a turn. 

Engineers are recommending that authorities need to crack down on repeated offenders. They also suggested that new cars should be equipped with a warning system to remind driver.

Source: CBS Philadelphia