Video of smoking garbage truck draws fire from Toronto councillor
A privately owned garbage truck caught on video belching black smoke has drawn condemnation from a Toronto councillor and sparked debate about the future of the city’s curbside collection contract.
Councillor James Pasternak says the two-minute video, which shows a truck with a GFL logo making the rounds at Wilson and Keele barely visible at times through its own exhaust, is unacceptable.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
“You can’t have a vehicle out on the road smoking like that,” Pasternak told CTV News. “We expect all of our subcontractors, especially in solid waste, to have safe, well-maintained vehicles on the road.”
In the video, shot in mid-February by a concerned citizen who provided it to CTV News, the driver is confronted and asked, “Why don’t you fix your truck?” The driver appears to acknowledge there is an issue, but continues driving.
A privately owned garbage truck was caught on video with an abundance of black smoke coming from its exhaust on March 28, 2024, drawing the attention, and commotion, of a local Toronto councillor. (Jon Woodward / CTV News)
GFL told CTV News it typically would fix trucks in that situation quickly, and a city spokesperson confirmed that the province’s Ministry of Transportation contacted GFL and was presented with documentation that it was fixed.
“The contract with the City stipulates that all vehicles supplied by the contractor must comply with the provincial Motor Vehicle Safety Act,” a city spokesperson said.
The city’s outside workers union likened the smoking truck to a smoking gun, saying that it’s evidence the contract with GFL shouldn’t renewed when it expires in 2026.
“The video and images released today show that our environment will continue to be harmed by relying on profit focused private sector operators,” said Toronto Civic Employees Union Local 416 in a statement.
Toronto is a city divided when it comes to trash pickup. Bins east of Yonge St. are typically picked up by city crews. West of Yonge St., trash is generally picked up by GFL.
Some councillors have pushed for that GFL contract to be assumed by city workers.
“In the long run, I think we should look at bringing it back in-house because our city workers basically can do the job just as well or better than the private sector, and you have more control,’ said Councillor Mike Colle on Wednesday.
Pasternak said it may be unfair to judge a whole company on one belching truck.
“I get very few complaints about our garbage pickup,” he said. “We’re in the area east of Yonge, with GFL. Performance seems to be good. We can’t keep jumping back and forth from insource to outsource,” he said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Trump confronts repeated boos during raucous Libertarian convention speech
Donald Trump was booed repeatedly while addressing Saturday night’s Libertarian Party National Convention.
No sign Canada has a plan to reach NATO defence spending target: U.S. NATO ambassador
The U.S. ambassador to NATO says she has seen no indication that Canada has a plan to reach the NATO spending target of two per cent of GDP on defence.
This type of screen time has the worst effect on kids: experts
According to some experts, there is one type of screen time that is continuously excessive, and it's having a severe effect on our children.
Family of toddler found dead at small-town Ont. daycare no closer to answers after year of investigation
A year has passed since two-year-old Vienna Irwin was found on the property of a home-based daycare in small-town Ontario, but her family says they are no closer to answers of what happened that day.
Fire at a baby care centre kills 7 infants in India's capital, a fire officer says
A fire broke out in a baby care center in India's capital Saturday night, killing seven infants, a fire service officer said.
More seniors are using homeless shelters. Here's why, according to experts
One of the country’s homeless shelters has seen an uptick in the number of people through its doors, including more older adults over 50.
Grayson Murray, two-time PGA Tour winner, dead at 30
Two-time PGA Tour winner Grayson Murray died Saturday morning at age 30, one day after he withdrew from the Charles Schwab Cup Challenge at Colonial.
Man or machine? Toronto company finds a way to determine how real audio clips are
The Toronto-based research arm of life sciences technology firm Klick Health has found a way to analyze voices in a manner that’s so granular, it can tell whether it's a person or an artificial intelligence-powered machine.
Humboldt Broncos crash victims and families react to decision to deport truck driver
The family of one of the victims of the Humboldt Broncos bus crash in 2018 says they are 'thankful' for a decision by a Calgary immigration board to deport the driver of the truck involved.