The company building the Eglinton Crosstown LRT has had difficulty getting paid-duty officers to help with traffic management, NEWSTALK 1010 has learned.
Metrolinx confirms that Toronto police has recently not been able to provide officers at Eglinton Ave and Allen Rd, which is already a trouble intersection, because of a lack of officers volunteering for that paid-duty work.
Officials with the transit agency say that Crosslinx, the constructor, asks for officers on an as-needed basis.
Metrolinx says this has been an ongoing issue, not just for them but other construction projects as well.
Toronto Police Association president Mike McCormack says sometimes requests cannot be filled, and it's becoming a more common problem.
"We have over 500 fewer police officers than we had five years ago," he says. "They're working more, they're getting burned out, so yes, there's definitely a decrease in the amount of police officers able to do pay-duty functions."
Metrolinx spokesperson Anne-Marie Aikins insists this is not affecting the timeline of the LRT project.