Man causes Toronto e-bike crash with shopping cart

A video shared this week continues to gain traction online, showing a man pushing a shopping cart into a bike lane in Toronto and sending an e-bike rider crashing to the ground.

David Shellnutt, a cyclist advocate who goes by The Biking Lawyer, uploaded the surveillance footage on X. He says the incident captured on camera happened on Danforth Avenue near Monarch Park Avenue on Tuesday morning.

The video shows a bald man wearing a black jacket with sunglasses pushing an empty shopping cart on the sidewalk. He approaches the e-bike rider, who isn’t immediately captured in the frame, and aggressively pushes the shopping cart in their direction.

The footage then shows the cart hitting the rider, who violently falls to the ground. The culprit looks and eventually walks off.

Shellnutt said the rider was injured, and a passing rider stopped to assist him.

“We are asking the community to help identify this individual and report to TPS. Please be vigilant out there, stay safe and look out for each other,” Shellnutt wrote on X.

“While we don’t know the cause of this senseless violence, we know that Premier [Doug] Ford and others stoking anti-cyclist rhetoric and tensions amongst road users have dangerous consequences.”

Police confirm assault call on Danforth

Toronto police couldn’t verify the video, but did confirm to The Leader Spirit that officers were called to the Danforth Avenue and Monarch Park Avenue on Tuesday for an assault.

“A report was taken from the victim, and it is being investigated,” police said. “The investigation is ongoing, and if we have any further information to release, it will come through a news release.”

Ford addressed the topic of bike lanes at a press conference on Wednesday. He criticized a judge who recently ordered the province to pause the removal of some bike lanes in Toronto until a constitutional challenge is decided.

“Don’t judges have anything better to do than worry about bike lanes?” Ford asked. “What right do they have [as] unelected, politically appointed judges determining our budgets?”

Ford noted the government plans to appeal the decision in court.

The premier’s government passed legislation last year to remove sections of bike lanes on Bloor Street, Yonge Street, and University Avenue. The move sparked citywide controversy and protests, with Mayor Olivia Chow voicing strong opposition.