Category Archives: Infrastructure
One hundred years of Ontario’s provincial highways
On February 26, 1920, Ontario’s provincial highway network was born. That year, 16 highways were established across southern Ontario, between the Ottawa and Detroit Rivers. These highways, previously maintained by townships and counties, connected the province’s largest cities and provided … Continue reading
Viva Rapidways: hurry up and wait
A broken system When York Region Transit was formed in 2001, it promised great things for the large, growing suburban region north of Toronto. It amalgamated four local transit systems, and took over local services provided by GO Transit, and … Continue reading
Deadly by design: Supertest Road
On Tuesday, January 21, a 26-year-old woman was struck and killed by the driver of a tractor-trailer at the corner of Supertest Road and Alness Street in North York. According to police, the truck driver was making a right turn … Continue reading
Zero vision in suburban Toronto
Though the city of Toronto has made some progress towards safer streets recently, the lack of police enforcement of traffic laws, the reluctance to spend serious money on road redesign, and the attitudes of some city officials continue to be … Continue reading
O-Train impressions: this is what LRT looks like
Confederation Line train approaching Tremblay Station Last weekend, I visited Ottawa to check out the new Confederation Line LRT. Canada’s newest rapid transit line, delayed by two years, finally opened on Saturday, September 14. It is the second LRT to … Continue reading
Dysfunction junction: the Union Station malfunction
Looking west to Union Station, August 2019 Last year, the City of Toronto hastily installed Jersey barriers in front of Union Station. This was a response to a tragic criminal act on Yonge Street in North York on April 23, … Continue reading
Ontario’s new ride: ION LRT opens in Kitchener-Waterloo
On June 21, 2019, Ontario’s first modern light rail transit (LRT) system opened to the public. The launch of ION in Kitchener-Waterloo represents an important milestone for both the region and for the province as a whole: additional light rail … Continue reading
