Categories
Cycling Toronto

More thoughts on cycling infrastructure

In Torontoist last week, I mapped the new and improved bike lanes proposed for 2016. There are some great new additions – more contraflow lanes in the east end and through Kensington Market allow cyclists to take direct routes along quieter residential streets. There will finally be a pilot of the long-demanded Bloor Street bikeway; at least between […]

Categories
Maps Toronto

Mapping Toronto’s Legal Rooming Houses

Rooming houses are often-overlooked in Toronto, but they provide an essential form of affordable housing in a city that struggles with the issue. In Torontoist, I looked a little more closely at this issue and created a map of all licensed rooming houses located in the City of Toronto. (The list from which the map was […]

Categories
Cycling Travels

A Simcoe Day ride from Georgetown to Newmarket

A few weekends ago, on Simcoe Day (Civic Holiday), I cycled a new route, taking 90 kilometre ride between Georgetown and Newmarket. Just over half of the roue took me on the Caledon Trailway, a beautifully-maintained rail trail between Terra Cotta and Tottenham. From Georgetown to Terra Cotta and between Tottenham and Newmarket, I mostly […]

Categories
Election Politics Toronto

A quick guide to the Toronto Ward Boundary Review

The variance in ward populations in 2018; new ward boundaries will address the population inequities shown above. Back in March, I wrote about the City’s plans for new ward boundaries, outlining the history of Toronto’s post-amalgamation council and the need for fairer representation. While Toronto’s population continues to increase, most of the growth is concentrated […]

Categories
Cycling Toronto

Exploring Toronto by bike: A circle tour around the city

A friendly deer passes me as I make my up the Humber River trail One of my favourite things to during the summer s taking long weekend bicycle rides. A few of these rides have been multi-day trips, such as the Niagara Region Circle Route tour I took on Victoria Day weekend, or my ride from Hamilton to Port […]

Categories
Brampton Politics Transit

Updated: The Toronto Star’s shameful reporting on the Hurontario-Main LRT

As of Tuesday, July 28, the Toronto Star has not published any letter to the editor responding to last Tuesday’s front-page article by San Grewal questioning the ridership of the northern section of the Hurontario-Main LRT, or any corrections. I find myself very much disappointed by this. I know I was not the only reader […]

Categories
Brampton Politics Transit

Why Brampton’s Main Street needs the LRT

For the first twenty-five years of my life, I lived in Brampton. I still have family and friends who live there, and while I was happy to move to a place of my own in Toronto (first in North York, later to the old City of Toronto), I still have a soft spot for my […]

Categories
Politics Toronto

Gardiner East: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Megacity

On Thursday, June 11, Toronto City Council voted to maintain the Gardiner Expressway between Jarvis Street and the Don Valley Parkway, endorsing the “hybrid” option by a vote of 24-21. The previous vote, a motion to support the remove/boulevard option, was defeated by a 19-26 vote. The two inconsistent votes were by Councillors Anthony Perruzza […]

Categories
Cycling Travels

Riding the Niagara Circle Route

The Friendship Trail, part of the the Greater Niagara Circle Route Back on Victoria Day weekend, I took advantage of GO Transit’s summer weekend train service to go for a two-day ride around Niagara Region, on a circle to and from Niagara Falls via the Niagara River, the Welland Canal, and a rail trail connecting Port Colborne and […]

Categories
Politics Toronto

Gardiner East update: a close vote, but one Tory is likely to win (updated)

Projected Gardiner East council vote as of Monday, June 8. (Updated 5:00 PM, June 8) With Councillors Jon Burnside and Raymond Cho coming out in support of the “Hybrid” option for the Gardiner East, and Councillor John Filion supporting the Removal/Boulevard option, here’s the latest map. Only seven councillors are considered “unknown” in their intentions for […]