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About me Intercity Rail Ontario Transit

Transit Summit in Guelph this Saturday, November 9

Coach Canada bus to Hamilton, September 2009 This Saturday, I will be joining fellow transportation advocates and experts in Downtown Guelph for the First Annual Transit Summit & Town Hall organized by Transit Action Alliance of Guelph (TAAG).  I’ll be speaking about the gaps in regional and intercity transit in Guelph and Southwestern Ontario. In the 1980s, […]

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History Ontario Travels

The long way to Pembroke

A few weeks ago, I went for another long-distance bus trip. I started my journey in Downtown Toronto, and continued on to Peterborough and Pembroke, before arriving in Ottawa late in the evening.  Apart from the Toronto-Peterborough leg aboard a packed, delayed bus, this was the most pleasant of all my long-distance bus trips. Greyhound’s […]

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Infrastructure Ontario Transit Travels

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 open in Ontario this year; Waterloo Region’s ION service opened in June. The new 13-station […]

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Ontario Roads

The north needs roads

Nipigon River Bridge, August 2019 In January 2016, a bridge over the Nipigon River failed. Located roughly 100 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay, it formed part of the Trans-Canada Highway. The only east-west link between Western and Eastern Canada was severed, with the only detour through the United States. Climate change, road safety, and access […]

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Intercity Rail Ontario Travels

Trekking across Northern Ontario

VIA RDC train about to depart Sudbury for White River Last month, I embarked on a journey from Toronto to Thunder Bay, a distance of over 1,300 kilometres. My journey took me nearly three days as I opted to travel by bus and rail, rather than by car or by air. Though I had to […]

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Ontario Parks Politics

The province’s attack on conservation authorities

The Ford government’s attack on Conservation Authorities has nothing to do with fiscal responsibility. It’s about ideology and payback. 

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Canada Intercity Rail Ontario Travels

Passenger trains of Northern Ontario

Southbound Northlander train arriving at Gravenhurst, March 2012 In a few weeks, I will travel from Toronto to Thunder Bay by bus and by train, stopping at cities and towns like Sudbury, Chapleau, White River, Marathon, and Schreiber. I expect to write about the experience and the challenges of getting around Northern Ontario without a […]

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Infrastructure Ontario Transit

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 systems in Ottawa and Toronto will open in the next few years, while other systems […]

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History Infrastructure Ontario Roads

How the QEW made way for Ontario’s transportation innovation

Queen Elizabeth Way looking east towards Dixie Road in Mississauga Eighty years ago, the Queen Elizabeth Way was officially dedicated by King George VI and Queen Elizabeth (for whom it was named). The QEW, which connected Toronto with Hamilton and Niagara Falls, was not only Canada’s first superhighway, it was also the longest divided highway […]

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Cycling History Ontario Roads

Punkeydoodle’s Corners and the world’s highest numbered address

Last weekend, I went for a ride in Waterloo Region, particularly in Wilmot Township, to the west of Kitchener-Waterloo. Despite some deceptively difficult hills and a strong headwind going back east, it was a very pleasant ride. Outside of Toronto, motorists seem to be quite courteous towards cyclists, with most giving me plenty of room. […]