Toronto commuters on the QEW, usually enraged by the morning gridlock, had an unexpected treat the morning of March 20th – ringside seats to a rodeo. They must have felt like they were extras on a western movie set instead of in Canada’s largest urban centre on a major highway.

At 6:40 AM on March 20th a pickup truck with a trailer attached containing 6 cows rolled over on the ramp from Highway 427 southbound to the QEW. As a result the cows got out of their trailer and were roaming free on the westbound lanes of the QEW. The Ontario Provincial Police and Animal Control officers were immediately called. Very astutely the police also called in someone with rodeo experience.

The westbound lanes of the QEW were closed at Dixie Road while the cows were being rounded up. The object was to herd the cows off to the shoulder of the road and then off the road all together. By 9:00 AM the cows were moseying around a residential neighbourhood just off the highway and 2 of them were seen in someone’s backyard grazing on the grass without an apparent worry in the world. Operation Rodeo was very efficient and all lanes of the QEW were reopened less than 1 hour later. None of the drivers were injured. However one of the cows was hit by a car. And unfortunately another had to be destroyed after it injured 2 people and couldn’t be safely contained.

I haven’t heard if any fancy riding, roping, and wrangling were involved. But, I’m sure that it was indeed a sight for the morning commuters. And it provided a more than creative excuse for showing up late at the office.