For months now, people on the verge of homelessness have been living in a carpool lot at Townline Road near Highway 401 in Cambridge. That changed on Wednesday when the Ministry of Transportation showed up with private security and tow trucks to remove the fleet of RVs and trailers that were using the site as a safe refuge. “We got notice five days ago that all the trailers had to be moved out of the parking lot because someone gave a complaint against the parking lot,” said a woman named Debbie who had been living at the lot. The notice said, in part, “Maintenance staff of the Ministry of Transportation has identified your vehicle as being unattended, abandoned or a non-commuting motor vehicle.” It went on to say the parking lots were not intended for long-term storage of vehicles or trailers. The lots also have signs posted saying vehicles left for longer than 120 consecutive hours will be tagged and towed. “Which I don’t understand, because no one here did anything wrong,” Debbie said. “It was a quiet area. We cleaned up after ourselves. We’re working people and stuff like that, so I can’t see what the complaint was.” Others, however, had a different view of the situation. “If they were clean and tidy, I guarantee nobody would complain if they were doing their own business,” Kevin, a man who lives nearby, told CTV News. “Clean and tidy, kept everything organized. But they don’t, right - like they just don’t. That’s my problem.” Kevin said he called law enforcement and the Ministry of Transportation in the past, but nothing was done until Wednesday. “I understood that people need help, but they took advantage of the help,” he said. While some of the trailer owners left over the last few days, others agreed to be towed Wednesday morning. “We tried to talk to the security about giving us a couple extra hours to try and figure stuff out,” said Ruben, another person who was living at the lot. “They say they’re not going to be unreasonable, but they’re also like, ‘Get out.” Some of the trailer owners said they couldn’t afford the fees needed to take their vehicles to a campsite, leaving them with no other legal options. “We literally have nowhere else to go and they offer free tows,” Jeremy, a resident, said. “Where are they going to tow us?” Some of the residents previously told CTV News they moved into the parking lot to try to save money during tough economic times. Several people said they had some form of employment, but it wasn’t enough to cover the high cost of living. “[The parking lot] fit the criteria of what I needed, which was just a place to be able to save up some money so I could go do some work, save up some money and get back into a house or an apartment,” said George, another person who had been living at the lot. Trailer owners are now left to look for a new place to park, with the prospect of living at an encampment is a very real possibility.
