Toronto's abused shopping carts

Hamilton Spectator - stolen shopping carts costs us all

2012-01-29T06:30:00.000-05:00

Mark McNeil
Thu Nov 17 2011

Shopping carts: Pushed around, stolen and sold for scrap

Shopping cart losses are becoming such an epidemic that grocery stores are hiring contractors to hunt down abandoned buggies before salvagers try to cash in by taking them to metal scrap yards.
Tony Russo, the assistant manager of Food Basics at Mohawk Road East and Upper Gage Avenue, says the store loses close to 200 carts a year, even after hiring a contractor to drive around in a pickup truck collecting them on a daily basis.
“We have been losing buggies for a long time, but it has just been getting worse and worse,” he said.
Russo says some customers, who don’t have a car, use carts to wheel their groceries home and then abandon the buggies. After that, someone on behalf of the store picks them up and brings them back to be used by other customers, or they become collected for scrap or are vandalized.
It becomes a question, he says, of who gets to the discarded buggy first.
Russo uses “Alex the Buggy Man” to pick up and return carts. Each day, Alex returns between 10 and 15 to the store.
“There are individuals who drive the streets in the evening picking up shopping carts and selling them to scrap dealers,” said Hamilton police Constable Frank Bogdan.
“They sell them as shreddable. Some yards will not accept them, but there are a few in Hamilton that will,” adds Bogdan, who was the department’s scrap theft investigator until April.
Bogdan’s replacement, Detective Constable Chris Gates, could not be reached for comment.
Bogdan says he put out a memorandum to scrap yards telling them not to take in shopping carts unless there is a “letter of authority from owner of carts. But a couple are ignoring it.”
He says he charged someone in the spring with four counts of theft after a man tried to sell a couple of dozen shopping carts to a scrap yard.
Bogdan says all those carts were collectively only worth about $40 to the salvager. Yet they were worth several thousand dollars as grocery carts.
John Scott, president and CEO of the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers, says shopping cart theft “is an ongoing problem and a major issue ... Stores have a lot of money tied up in buggies.”
Many supermarkets, he says, hire contractors to collect stray carts.
“It’s worth their while to have a company go around and pick up the carts.”
He says carts cost between $175 to $300 to buy new and they would normally last five or six years before rusting out.
“But depending on the location, a supermarket might lose as much as 20 per cent in one year.”
Alex the Buggy Man was reluctant to talk about his cart-collecting business. He says he has numerous grocery store clients in the Hamilton area. He’s been at it for 16 years and got the idea of doing it full-time after being laid off from a steelmaking factory job.
He says each day’s combined haul for all of his clients is about 200 shopping carts.
Scott says stores that use carts with quarter-operated locks have better success at keeping them. “Believe it or not, people actually take it back to get that quarter back.”
Scott says he was unaware of carts being shredded for scrap. He thinks the bigger problems are vandalism, and people using them without authorization.
“You see people who are down and out wandering around the streets with them. Superintendents in apartment buildings sometimes use them. You have to realize that some poor supermarket has paid for this guy to have a buggy.”
The industry is also fighting back with technologies that use GPS systems to locate carts and wheel-locking mechanisms that engage when someone tries leave the parking lot. In other cases, buggies are equipped with alarms or horizontal poles that keep the carts from passing through the door and leaving the store.

shopping carts originate from Highland Creek....

2010-03-19T16:49:00.001-04:00

The picture below shows the trash we collected, dragged and carried to the top of the
Scarborough Bluffs in April 2008.
Over 3500 kg of trash !!

Few weeks ago I walked from East Point Park towards Guildwood.
I couldn't believe my eyes the shoreline below East Point Park is littered again with trash,
tires and SHOPPING CARTS.
The access to the shoreline is very limited.
Removing large and heavy items from the lake presents a major problem.

After speaking with Ken Sharpe, Parks Supervisor, City of Toronto
I learned that shopping carts and other trash originates from Highland Creek.
Strong lake currents caused by stormy weather distribute trash from Highland Creek
along the shoreline of Lake Ontario to our Guildwood Village.

Shopping carts on the beach pose a threat to all of us as well as deer and fox.

two more stolen shopping carts..

2009-11-22T11:32:00.000-05:00

Walmart cart in this neighbourhood?
There is no Walmart store here,
next store is located over 10 km on Morningside Rd. and Highway 401.

Mother and daughter stealing this Metro shopping cart !!

six shopping carts ...Metro, Walmart and Home Depot

2009-11-21T13:57:00.000-05:00

Today I found this collection of six shopping carts at a local motel on Kington Road.

The Legacy Of The Shopping Cart

2009-10-28T16:28:00.002-04:00

One more..

2009-09-04T05:59:00.000-04:00

....one more shopping cart at East Point Park, beach area.

Shopping Cart By-Law Goes into Effect in Halifax

2009-04-27T20:36:00.002-04:00

Shopping Cart By-Law Goes into Effect

The Halifax Regional Municipality has enacted amendments to Bylaw N-300 the “Nuisance Bylaw”.
The By-Law prohibits the removal or abandonment of shopping carts.
Owners of shopping carts must permanently affix to the front of each shopping cart a weather proof sign with the following information: name of shopping cart owner or business or both; a valid published telephone number and address for returning shopping cart to owner; and notification that removal of a shopping cart from the owner’s premises, unauthorized possession of a shopping cart and abandonment of a shopping cart on public or private property is not permitted. Owners of a business shall have a proactive shopping cart recovery service retrieve abandoned shopping carts within 24 hours of receipt of notification, through a dedicated phone line, at the owners’ expense. The Municipality may impound abandoned shopping carts and charge an impound fee to owners upon release. The Municipality may sell or otherwise dispose of any impounded shopping carts not retrieved by the owner within 7 working days following the date of impoundment with any expenses incurred recovered as a debt due from the owner. Violations may result in penalties of one hundred to one thousand dollars for each offense and imprisonment of up to sixty days for default of payment.

And what is the City of Toronto doing?
Just noticed City owned pickup trucks cruising our neighourhood and trying to collect abandoned shopping carts.
Encouraging the theft of shopping carts..great job!!

Highland Creek-- Lake Ontario shoreline

2009-04-05T14:00:00.000-04:00

2008 Earth Day event ...

2008-04-29T06:34:00.000-04:00

11 shopping carts where found along the shoreline below East Point Park.

below East Point Park beach area..

2008-04-09T20:27:00.001-04:00

shopping carts litter the shoreline of Lake Ontario below East Point Park.

Markham to crack down on roaming grocery carts

2008-04-04T08:21:00.003-04:00

Congratulation to the Town of Markham to the new bylaw.

Markham to crack down on roaming grocery carts

Last Updated: Wednesday, April 2, 2008 9:13 AM ET
CBC News
The town of Markham, Ont., has a new bylaw aimed at getting tough on store owners who don't take measures to keep shopping carts on their own property.
Peter Veiga, supervisor of waste management operations, says it's common to spot half a dozen carts during a 30-minute drive.
"People can trip on them, people can drive into them, maintenance vehicles, plows can hit them, so it's quite a hazard to public safety, and so we want to see them off the roads," said Veiga, adding "and they don't look nice in the community."
The bylaw was passed in early March, so road crews have been collecting them since then, but for now they're not enforcing any penalty, just returning them to the stores.
Under the new bylaw, "Markham now requires all shopping carts to have clear and permanent ownership signs," said a news release on the municipality's website.
From now on, instead of destroying the anonymous carts, "the required signs will enable carts to be returned, rather than having them litter public property."
Stores will have six months to put in place a system that makes sure their carts stay on their property.
Starting in September, every cart road crews find on local streets will be returned to its owner, along with a $50 fine.

dumped in the snow...

2008-01-24T16:13:00.000-05:00

At Lawrence and Midland
in Scarborough

City of Missisauga one step ahead of the City of Toronto

2008-01-08T11:52:00.000-05:00

Shopping cart courtesy of the local Walmart store..

When will the City of Toronto follow the City of Mississauga
and have their own SHOPPING CART BY-LAW ??

THE CORPORATION OF THE CITY OF MISSISSAUGA
SHOPPING CART BY-LAW NUMBER 368-94
(Amended by By-law 473-95)

Shopping Cart By-Law

The purpose of the Shopping Cart By-law is to prohibit the removal of grocery carts from any store property, or to abandon them on public property, including parks and creeks, or on any private property.

It is an offence under the By-law for any person to deposit any shopping cart on any private property without the permission of the owner.

It is also an offence under the By-law for any person to deposit any shopping cart on any premises owned by the City of Mississauga, including any park or recreation area, any watercourse, or any boulevard.

For business owners, it is an offence to allow shopping carts to be taken from their business premises. Business owners who are or have experienced problems with illegal shopping cart removal are encouraged to take steps to secure the carts against removal from the business premises and/or utilize a shopping cart retrieval service.

Abandoned shopping carts may be collected by City of Mississauga staff, and be subject to either a retrieval fee or disposal.

The maximum fine for failing to comply with the Shopping Cart By-law is $5,000.

This information is for convenience and quick reference only.
For specific information or to register a complaint, contact the By-law Enforcement office at (905) 896-5655.

a success story at our local Dominion store..

2008-01-08T10:52:00.001-05:00

Today I spoke with Kirk Spears, manager at our local Dominion grocery store on Markham and Kingston Road. I asked him about the new shopping cart system which prohibits the removal of shopping carts from his store.
Kirk told me that he is satisfied with the new security system and he is loosing not many carts anymore.
Hopefully other stores will implement the same security features very soon.

Shopping cart theft at our local grocery store

2007-11-24T22:03:00.000-05:00

This Dominion Store located at Markham Road lost 30 - 40 shopping carts a week through theft. Many of their carts can be found at a later time discarded in our parks, streets and shoreline.
Dominion has now installed a shopping cart system which combines a
digitally-encoded radio frequency locking signal, embedded perimeter antenna,
and self-braking wheels to prevent shopping carts to be removed from their property.

You Tube video - removing a shopping cart from the beach

2007-09-19T11:00:00.000-04:00

2007 TD Shoreline Cleanup in Guildwood

2007-09-19T10:58:00.000-04:00

we found more discarded shopping carts along the shoreline of Lake Ontario - an uphill battle..

Exhibit at Toronto Free Gallery www.torontofreegallery.org ..abused shopping carts

2007-09-04T18:00:00.000-04:00

picture from Martin H. Reis http://tino.ca/

Lake Ontario source of our drinking water

2007-08-30T05:56:00.000-04:00

Millions of people depend on the Great Lakes drinking water.
The Great Lakes region is home to approximately 33.5 million people, a majority of whom depend on one of the five Great Lakes for drinking water.
The region has been subjected to decades of pollution, threatening the integrity of the Lakes and the purity of the water for consumption.

Mayor Miller said May 2005:
I can tell you plainly and simply what I want for Toronto's piece of the Great Lake System:

I want people to be able to go swimming at all the beaches and parks that line Toronto's 46 kilometres of shoreline.
I want to take my children fishing, and let them catch their supper in Toronto Harbour.
I want Torontonians to be able to dip a cup into Lake Ontario and take a drink.

Is Mayor Miller dreaming?? Yes, he is..

near Spadina in Toronto

2007-08-26T20:51:00.000-04:00

lovely waterfront decorated with shopping carts

2007-08-25T09:05:00.000-04:00

photos by Martin H. Reis

left on the beach in Guildwood

2007-08-17T20:55:00.000-04:00

let's see if we can remove the shopping cart during our shoreline cleanup in September.
For our cleanup: men with strong arms and muscles needed:-))

The End

2007-07-06T14:34:00.000-04:00

one more...

2007-07-02T06:44:00.000-04:00

The Moss Cart

2007-06-21T13:22:00.001-04:00

Likely an art project.
Downtown Toronto

In the loading dock of Queen West’s newest.

2007-06-03T06:08:00.000-04:00

thanks for posting the picture
source: shopping carts in the ravines..

If I drive across the city with a camera crew and filming all the discarded shopping carts in our rivers, parks, ponds, alley ways, playgrounds, beaches and ravines, it would take days to view all the pictures.
But the City of Toronto does not take any action.
The store owners claim, we collect all our the carts after the customer use them to deliver their groceries to their home.
Well, we all know, that is not true or the store owners can’t count.

free barbeque ...

2007-05-31T14:10:00.000-04:00

FREE BBQ Grills. . .

check out the list of stores.

As everyone knows it's time to get ready for that all important cooking technique of the south---outdoor Grilling!

I have found several stores (not just in the south) where you can get a FREE Bar-B-Q Grill!
You can get a free BBQ grill from any of the following stores:

A&P
Albertsons
Costco
Dan'sFood
LionFry's
Kroger
Macey's
Big Lots
Brookshire's
Lowes
Publix
Safeway
Sam's Club
Target
Vons
Wagner
Hardware
Wal-Mart
Winn-Dixie

Don't forget the local stores: Dominion, NoFrills, Zellers, Value Mart, Sobey's and many more..

Just make sure to get a metal one...the Plastic one's don't do so well.

I especially like the higher rack - which can be used for keeping things warm!

Metal on Metal

2007-04-24T14:53:00.000-04:00

at the beach Lake Ontario

2007-04-22T04:23:00.000-04:00

stuck in the sand...

shopping carts thrown over the Scarborough Bluffs

2007-04-09T18:00:00.000-04:00

Today, I found quite a number of shopping carts thrown over the Scarborough Bluffs in Guildwood . Besides six shopping carts are fridges, washer, sofa, children toys, computer parts and tires below the condominium townhouses on Livingston Rd.

The six shopping carts originate from valumart (?) in our Guildwood shopping plaza. The last picture shows a new valumart cart.

What do you think....

2007-04-02T10:09:00.000-04:00

Question:

What do you think when you see a stray shopping cart?
Bottom line, I’m paying for that lost cart in my grocery prices,
or those stray carts make the neighborhood look awful and are a danger to motorists.
These are justified concerns.
But, how can we address these concerns?
Who is responsible for stray & stolen carts?
The business or store owner?
The City of Toronto?
The resident who finds one in his yard or lot?
Please leave your comments, thanks.

more carts found at the same location..

2007-03-09T20:54:00.000-05:00

Friday, March 9, 2007

Morningside and Ling Road more stolen shopping carts waiting for City pickup.

The yellow carts belong to the local
nofrills store on Morningside and Kingston Road.
The same store who claims to have shopping carts with locking devices.
Well, the locking devices don't work.

now there are seven (7) shopping carts...

2007-03-05T14:00:00.000-05:00

Date: March 5, 2007
Time: 12:54 p.m.
Location: Morningside Ave. and Ling Street
Just checked the same location again and found two more shopping carts.
Representing a value of about $1750 and nobody seems to care?
Hopefully, the City will send a truck to collect the carts, move them to a Loblaws property
in the Mississauga for further distribution.
In the meantime, adding to the air pollution and using up natural resources,
gasoline, engine oil and tires....

Sunday March 4, 2007 ..shop till you drop...

2007-03-04T20:46:00.000-05:00

Shopping carts from local nofrills store, Walmart and Dominion Stores
found at Ling Street and Morningside Ave.

There are lot more dumped shopping carts to be found around residential buildings.

The abuse and theft of shopping carts costs us all.

When will the City of Toronto stop the abuse of shopping carts??

more carts dumped in the snow

2007-02-18T20:21:00.000-05:00

Local Newspaper Support

2007-02-09T09:45:00.000-05:00

....feasibility of creating a City by-law

2007-02-05T19:57:00.000-05:00

Dino Eleuteri
Supervisor, Operations Co-ordination
Transportation Services
Road Operations District 3

Dear Mr. Eleuteri

Thank you very much for taking the time to respond to my letter on January 13th, 2007 concerning the abuse of shopping carts in our City.

Abandoned shopping carts constitute a nuisance, create potential hazards to the health and safety of the public, interfere with pedestrian and vehicular traffic within the City of Toronto, not to mention the budgetary burden on the city to eventually finance clean-up.
The accumulation of wrecked, dismantled and abandoned shopping carts on public
or private property also tends to create conditions
that reduce property values and promote blight and deterioration in the City.
Lower property values also have a negative effect on the city’s tax base.

This problem exists all across Toronto, and is not restricted to specific locations.

Numerous shopping carts can be found in secluded areas such as city parks
and the Scarborough Bluffs, around dumpsters and behind apartment complexes as well.

Store owners should be strongly encouraged to take measures to prevent the removal of shopping carts from store premises.

May I suggest the following measures:

The management of every store that uses shopping carts should be requested to develop and implement a specific plan to prevent customers from removing carts from the business premises. This plan should include the following elements:
(a) Notices to Customers
· Written notification should be provided to customers that removal of carts from the premises and parking lots is a violation of law and violators may be prosecuted. This notice can be provided in the form of flyers, warnings on shopping bags, or any other form of written notification that will effectively notify customers.
(b) Signs
· Signs should be placed in pertinent places near door exits and near parking lot exits to warn customers that cart removal is no allowed and constitutes a violation of law.

(c) Physical and Other Measures
· Specific physical measures should be considered and implemented to prevent cart removal from the business premises. These measures may include, but should not be limited to:
o attaching disabling devices on carts
o posting of security guards to deter and stop persons who attempt to remove carts from the business premises
o installation of chains or invisible fences around the business premises to prevent cart removal
o security deposit requirements for use of all carts
o the rental of carts that can be temporarily or permanently used for transport of purchases and returned within 24 hours.

I am asking our Mayor Miller and the City Councillors of Toronto to consider my suggestions and the feasibility of creating a City by-law to ensure that shopping carts are kept on‑site.

Sincerely

Gisela H. Bach
Toronto, Ontario

stealing a $250 shopping cart from a store

2007-02-03T05:12:00.000-05:00

Should there be a difference between stealing

a chocolate bar worth 75 cents and stealing a $250 shopping cart from a store?

There seems to be a difference, because shopping carts can be seen everywhere in our City of Toronto.

The question is : WHY?
WHY are store owners letting customers steal their shopping carts?

Shoplifting is a common or street term which usually refers to the offence of theft under the value of $5,000.

It means taking something out of a store without paying for it.

What are the penalties for customers who are convicted of theft as a summary offence?

A person convicted of theft under $5,000 as a summary offence

can be fined up to $2,000 or imprisoned for up to six months or both.

Along Bloor Street

2007-02-02T11:28:00.000-05:00

Keele & Wilson

2007-01-31T08:08:00.000-05:00

stuck in snow ...

2007-01-30T13:11:00.000-05:00

this one is from Zellers

2007-01-30T13:09:00.000-05:00

Clean City Beautiful City

2007-01-24T09:44:00.000-05:00

January 24, 2007 I wrote an e-mail to our Mayor Miller of the City of Toronto
including City councillors Paul Ainslie and Glenn deBaeremaeker
--------------------
From the City of Toronto Website:
"A clean and beautiful city reflects the pride and engagement of the people who live there.
This is a two way street - urban beauty fosters civic pride,
and civic pride helps residents stay engaged and look after their city."

Dear Mayor Miller!
I love our City and will do my best to keep our City clean, but I need your help with my new initiative.
Please take a look around in our neighbourhoods,
here you will find stolen shopping carts in our streets, parks, ravines and beaches.
It is time to stop the theft and abuse of shopping carts in Toronto .
I have started a new blog concerning shopping cart abuse in Toronto.
The new blog can be found under:http://abandonedshoppingcarts.blogspot.com/
Please support my new initiative.Thank you.
Gisela Bach
http://guildwood.blogspot.com/

-------------------
(Logo from the City of Toronto website)

Miami-Dade County, Florida, USA

2007-01-23T21:39:00.000-05:00

Here is another example,
how the City of Toronto could draft a bylaw concering stolen shopping carts.

From Miami-Dade County, Florida, USA

Shopping Carts
On January 27, 2005, the Board of County Commissioners
adopted Ordinance 05-20 requiring warning notices regarding
the removal of shopping carts to be affixed to shopping carts
and posted on signs in parking areas.
What are the notice requirements for shopping carts?
The following notice shall be affixed to all shopping carts
and shall be clearly legible in English, Spanish and Creole

WARNING

Any person who removes a shopping cart from the premises of the owner,
or is in the possession of any shopping cart,
shall be presumed to be in possession of stolen property
and is guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree,
punishable by a term of imprisonment of up to one (1) year
as provided by Sections 506.509 and 506.513 of the Florida Statutes.
Who is responsible for complying with the shopping cart notice requirements?
Every retail sales establishment that utilizes shopping carts
in the operation of its business.
Shopping cart is defined by Section 506.502(10), Florida Statutes,
as a “basket mounted on wheels or a similar device
which is generally used in a retail establishment
by a customer for the purpose of transporting goods of any kind”.
What are the notice requirements for signs in parking areas?
Clearly legible signs in English, Spanish and Creole must be posted
at the entrance(s) and exit(s) of parking areas c
ontaining the same warning notice required
to be affixed to shopping carts (see item #1 above).
As an alternative, universal language signs designed
to convey the warning required may be used.
Who is responsible for complying with parking area sign requirements?
Every owner of a stand-alone retail sales establishment
that utilizes shopping carts or owner of a shopping center
in which one or more of the retail sales establishments
utilize shopping carts in the operation of its business.
When is the law effective?The law became effective on May 27, 2005.
Are identification signs still required on shopping carts?Yes.
Every retail sales establishment that utilizes shopping carts
in the operation of its business must also affix an identification
sign with the name, address and phone number
of the retail establishment on each shopping cart.
Who enforces the shopping cart and parking area signage requirements?
The Miami-Dade County Consumer Services Department.
What is the penalty for violating these laws?
Violations of these laws carry a civil fine of $100 for each violation.
What is the County’s procedure for shopping carts f
ound on public property?
The Miami-Dade County Department of Solid Waste Management
will collect shopping carts found on public property
and will notify the owner of the shopping cart as designated
on the shopping cart’s identification sign.
The owner of the shopping cart will have ten (10) days
from receipt of notice to retrieve the cart.
If the owner does not retrieve the cart within those ten (10) days
or if the cart has no identification,
Solid Waste Management will dispose of the cart.

more carts...

2007-01-23T06:56:00.000-05:00

just received...

2007-01-22T15:35:00.000-05:00

Shopping cart as garbage collector

party time

2007-01-21T17:54:00.000-05:00

an alternative...

2007-01-21T17:31:00.000-05:00

Yes, there is an alternative to shopping cart theft:

Buy one of these handy and sturdy carts.
Ideal for carrying groceries or laundry.
Holds up to 100 lbs!!!
Weighs only 9 lbs.
Available at stores like Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Canadian Tire, Zellers and many more...

damaged cart

2007-01-21T17:25:00.000-05:00

on Ellesmere and Scarborough Golf Club Road

2007-01-20T13:49:00.000-05:00

...found the stolen shopping carts within one mile along the road and apartment building.
The red cart is from a nearby IGA grocery store.

Shopping carts be gone... in the City of Riverdale California

2007-01-20T07:05:00.000-05:00

Shopping Carts Be Gone!
Representatives from the Public Works Department,
California Grocers Association,the Chamber of Commerce and retailers,
shopping center ownersand managers
met recently to discuss this thorny problem.
The result is an amendment to the city ordinance
that requires retail owners to develop and implement
a specific planto prevent customers from removing carts
from the business premises.
The prevention plan must include
1)Notice to Customers;
2) Signs;
3) Physical Measures;
4) an Evaluation Report.
Failure to submit and implement a prevention plan
to result in the owner being required to place
disabling devises on all carts owned, leased, and/or used by the business.
Any owner fails to submit an evaluation report
byJanuary 1 of each year or fails to place a disabling devise on all carts,
if applicable, shall be subject to a $1000.00 fine,
plus an additional penalty of $50.00 for each day of non-compliance.
To view this ordinance, visit the city of Riverside's website at www.riversideca.gov
under e-services, municipal codes, Title 9, Chapter 9.58.

pictures are from various sources

2007-01-20T07:00:00.000-05:00

SAM’S CLUB™ CANADA

2007-01-20T06:40:00.000-05:00

SAM’S CLUB™ CANADA
MEMBERSHIP CONDITIONS AND REGULATIONS

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
Every Member using a shopping cart to carry purchases from the SAM’S CLUB location to their vehicle has the obligation to return said cart.

Members are expected to return the cart to the enclosure identified in the parking lot for this purpose.

What happened, if the member doesn’t do it?

SAM’S CLUB shall not be and cannot be held responsible for damages or losses caused by a shopping cart to any vehicle of a Member or any guest.

How about stolen carts from SAM'S CLUB or Wal-Mart? Who is responsible?

not only in Canada

2007-01-20T06:06:00.000-05:00

Shopping carts become hell on wheels when they're stolen
Tampa Bay Business Journal - March 29, 2002
You see them everywhere -- stolen shopping carts on roadways, in alleys, maybe even lurking in your business storerooms.
The Food Marketing Institute in Washington, D.C., reported that shopping cart theft costs the retail industry a whopping $800 million a year.

The local angle:
The Associated Press recently announced plans to recognize Chris O'Connell, Bay News 9 senior reporter, for his story dishing the dirt on shopping carts.
In June 2001, he spotted 180 stolen and abandoned carts throughout the Tampa Bay area. They cluttered sidewalks, apartment complexes and even rested on front porches.
Lakeland-based Publix Supermarkets Inc. is planning to battle back.
It currently is testing two electronic anti-theft devices. The Carttronics and Gatekeeper systems allow grocers to put locking wheel devices on carts. When carts reach the store's designated boundaries, the wheels automatically lock.

Lansdowne & Bloor

2007-01-15T17:04:00.000-05:00

Liberty Village

2007-01-14T22:31:00.000-05:00

Toronto shopping cart abuse

2007-01-14T09:23:00.000-05:00

source of pictures from Blog shoppingcarts in ravines

shopping under water

2007-01-14T07:56:00.000-05:00

Not just in Scarborough

2007-01-13T17:26:00.000-05:00

Keele North of Dundas West today

The Scarborough Mirror Article January 12, 2007

2007-01-13T08:00:00.000-05:00

SCARBOROUGH
THE MIRROR
FRIDAY, JANUARY 12, 2007

Local resident takes on shopping carts
The abandoned shopping cart has been part of Toronto’s landscape for too long, says a Guildwood woman who’s fighting to keep them out of city’s parks and ravines.
· On her blog, Toronto’s Abused Shopping Carts
http://abandonedshoppingcarts.blogspot .com,
Gisela Bach seeks a city bylaw holding store owners responsible for the carts.
· She’d also settle for a sign in stores reminding shoppers
taking a cart is theft.
· “I think a lot of people don’t consider it as theft.”
· Bach, who co-ordinates shoreline cleanups along the Scarborough Bluffs, displays pictures on the blog of carts embedded in beach sand or rusting in the gullies of Guildwood.
She is inviting residents to send her more evidence of shopping cart abuse.
_______________________
I thank Mike Adler of the Scharborough Mirror taking the time to listen to me and writing the article.
_______________________

picture from our last shoreline cleanup

2007-01-12T07:43:00.000-05:00

This shopping cart was found at a hiking trail leading
from Morningside Ave. and Guildwood Pkwy. to the beach below.
Picture was taken during the Great Canadian shoreline cleanup September 2006

location of shopping carts Scarborough Bluffs (east)

2007-01-07T14:23:00.000-05:00

location of the abandoned shopping carts
below the Scarborough Bluffs in Guildwood

shopping carts from nofrills grocery store

2007-01-07T14:14:00.000-05:00

Guildwood Bluffs 2 shopping carts are found

2007-01-07T14:07:00.000-05:00

Sunday, January 7, 2007
2 more shopping carts originally from one of our nofrills grocery stores
where abandoned and thrown over the Scarborough Bluffs.
Both carts are linked to gether with chain links and need to be cut apart before removal.

City of Thompson, Manitoba - bylaws

2007-01-06T14:01:00.000-05:00

Just found the following bylaw from the City of Thompson, Manitoba.
Good excample for the City of Toronto.

SHOPPING CARTS
No person shall remove a shopping cart from the property of its owner nor shall any person abandon or leave a shopping cart in any location other than within the boundaries of its owner’s property.
Shopping carts found abandoned or unattended on any public or private property other than the property of their owner shall be impounded by the City and an appropriate fee charged to the owner for their redemption.
It is the responsibility of owners of shopping carts to provide proper storage area(s) for shopping carts and also for the proper return of them to their designated storage areas after each use.

location of shopping carts along the lake

2007-01-06T07:57:00.000-05:00

Map shows a 6 km stretch of Lake Ontario shore line in Guildwood.

If I can find so many discarded and

stolen shopping carts in Guildwood,

how many are in Toronto? Perhaps thousands?

found at the Scarborough Bluffs

2007-01-06T07:55:00.000-05:00

hoisted from the bottom of the Scarborough Bluffs

2007-01-06T07:51:00.000-05:00

two more shopping carts at the same hiking trail

2007-01-06T07:48:00.000-05:00

along the Doris McCarthy hiking trail

2007-01-06T07:47:00.000-05:00

ready for pickup by Toronto City staff

2007-01-06T07:43:00.000-05:00

step two...

2007-01-06T07:42:00.000-05:00

step one...

2007-01-06T07:41:00.000-05:00

this shopping cart was removed

2007-01-06T07:36:00.000-05:00

embedded in the landscape

2007-01-06T07:35:00.000-05:00

Guildwood lake shore ...

2007-01-06T07:33:00.000-05:00

found at the Ontario lake shore

2007-01-06T07:29:00.000-05:00

shopping carts dumped in the lake

2007-01-06T07:14:00.000-05:00