Toronto Transportation System

Driving in this morning (June 12, 2007), there was a huge fire at a recycling plant alongside the 407 toll highway in Brampton. From the west-end of the GTA, thousands of commuter's got back-logged on the alternate route of the 401. Well, today at least, the 401 was playing as the alternate. This post comes in light of our transportation system here in Southern Ontario, and surrounding the GTA. As a West-end resident, my daily commute to Mississauga (just west of Toronto), has increasingly got worse. What normally would be a 15 minute drive on a Sunday, turns out to be 45 minutes to an hour - at best - during the week. With the growing traffic, the growing suburbs and the growing number of cars, why is the government not making it more accessible for commuters? I would take the GO train in, but there isn't a stop even close to where I work. Even with a bus transfer, I am looking at about the same amount of time for my commute. So why would I start using the GO train? I'm sure the majority of workers in the GTA travel right into downtown, but there is a large core of people that work in industrial areas of Brampton, Mississauga, Oakville (yes Oakville), Markham, Pickering, Oshawa and Newmarket. Where is the transit for these people? Also, a lot of these jobs have higher turnover rates - especially in manufacturing - and many workers are being forced to move closer to their jobs just so they can keep them - rather than make a two hour commute from west-end to east-end or vice-versa.

I was talking to a few people about this, and they said there are lots of places in North America with this problem, just look at LA. Thing is, LA could do a lot better with ground rail, but that's about it, they can't build a subway system because the lay of their land with all the faults that lay beneath them. But whats with Toronto? We have a subway system, but who does that serve? Unless you live right on the line, or relatively close, your fucked. 3 stinky buses, and two transfers later, you finally made it to the subway line. Then probably more transfers once you get to your subway stop.

Now I've been to London, England in the last few years, and their subway and train system is disgusting (as in good). You can get to virtually any point in the city via subway or rail connection (including the manufacturing belts). Granted the cars are packed, but isn't that what you want? More affordable, faster and cleaner for the people of your city. Yes, London is a lot older than Toronto, larger, and has had that much more time to build their subway system, but why can't Toronto start to at least plan this sort of infrastructure?

The money? How much taxes do we pay a year? How many more people are moving out of the city into new homes being built in new and growing suburbs like Milton and Whitby. New houses = more money via taxes.

In light of the horrible fire that happened this morning, and the traffic that it created, the city and the province has to take a good hard look at our transportation system. Expand the subway lines, make more of them, and when you start getting out to the suburbs, add some more connecting rail lines. It should be possible for people in the Kitchener/Waterloo area and Oshawa/Whitby area to easily, and quickly commute to either end of the city.

Recycling Plant Fire = Commuter Nightmare

London Tube Map

The Intricate Toronto Subway System