On Sunday evening, 616 candles illuminated the south lawn of Queen’s Park, each representing a life lost to traffic violence in 2023, the latest year for which data is available. The vigil, organized by Friends and Families for Safe Streets (FFSS), aimed to raise awareness about road safety and honor the victims of collisions. Community members gathered to listen to speeches from advocates calling for enhanced traffic safety measures, including speed cameras and bike lanes. They also marched around the park, holding candles and photos of those who have died. FFSS spokesperson Jess Spieker emphasized the significance of each candle, stating, "Each candle represents a person robbed of their future, a family robbed of their loved ones, an empty spot at the table, the devastated, grieving family suffering with pain and loss beyond what I can put into words. Their loved one’s life mattered, and we will never stop fighting because the right thing to do is to save lives." This year’s event marked the second consecutive vigil at Queen’s Park and coincided with the International Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims. During the ceremony, Spieker read aloud the names and ages of individuals killed in Ontario collisions, a list she compiled herself. It took her ten minutes to read the names. Spieker, who was severely injured in a collision in 2015, has been an active member of FFSS since her recovery. She criticized the Ontario government’s approach to road safety, stating, "Killing our speed safety camera program and making it nearly impossible to build lifesaving complete streets anywhere in the province is a guaranteed death sentence for more Ontarians. The fact that the government would do this instead of trying to save lives is utterly maddening in the face of that much human carnage and devastation." As the ceremony continued, Vanessa Gentile, a friend of traffic victim Alex Amaro, spoke about her loss. Amaro was killed while biking home from Dufferin Mall in 2020. Gentile expressed her determination to challenge Bill 60, which would limit municipalities' ability to create new bike lanes. "The pain will never cease, but I am here to challenge Bill 60 in honor of my best friend. Torontonians and all humans deserve to get home safely to their loved ones," she said. Alex Bonenfant, a cyclist from Oakville, attended the vigil following the recent death of an eight-year-old girl struck by a driver whose SUV jumped the curb. He voiced his frustration with the government's lack of action on road safety, saying, "You would expect the government would try and make our streets more safe, but it seems like the opposite is happening." Spieker highlighted the broader issue of road violence, noting that in addition to the fatalities, thousands suffer from life-altering injuries due to collisions. She stated, "All road violence is preventable and safety measures that have been implemented thus far, like pedestrian streets, bike lanes or speed cameras, are intended to keep people alive and unharmed. It’s not an attack on motorists, it’s about who lives and dies on our streets."