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History Toronto Travels

I went back to Toronto

Toronto, Ohio, that is.

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About me Politics Toronto

Sean’s strong mayor agenda for a new era

Who knew, just two weeks ago, that Torontonians would be returning to the polls to elect a new mayor of Toronto? Looking back on John Tory’s last eight-and-a-half years in office, the biggest disappointment might have been that he spent so little of the political capital that he had accumulated after decades as a backroom […]

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Intercity Rail Maps Ontario Transit Travels

Ontario intercity transportation at the end of 2022: More choices, fewer routes

On December 7, I took a trip out to Kingston to ride the newest coach operator to arrive in Ontario: Red Arrow. A division of Pacific Western, Red Arrow is the latest carrier to stake a claim to the busy Toronto-Kingston-Ottawa route, which is now served by five private companies. Between Toronto and Ottawa, five […]

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Election Maps Politics Toronto

Mapping the results of the 2022 Toronto municipal election

As has become my tradition after Toronto’s municipal elections, I mapped out the poll-by-poll results of the mayoral race and some of the more interesting council races. After creating maps for the 2014 election and sharing those on social media, it was suggested that I have a website to host these maps. That is how […]

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Infrastructure Transit Travels

Why the future of transit might be found in Dayton, Ohio

Dayton, Ohio is probably best known as the hometown of Wilbur and Orville Wright, the two bicycle mechanics who made the first successful controlled heavier-than-air flight. The city has remained a centre of the aviation industry. The US Air Force (and its predecessors) have operated a major base in Dayton for over a century, which […]

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Infrastructure Maps Ontario Politics Roads Toronto Transit

GO Transit is broken – and other transit updates

GO Transit is broken. So far, I have seen no initiative from Metrolinx or any level of government to fix it. That should outrage all of us.

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Infrastructure Roads Toronto Transit

A front row seat to Toronto’s Carmaggedon

The new Union Station Bus Terminal doesn’t work with Toronto’s weekend traffic. On Saturday, July 2, it took nearly an hour to get off the Gardiner and into the terminal.

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Canada Development Maps Ontario Toronto Urban Planning

Mapping Toronto’s population growth

On February 9, data geeks across Canada rejoiced when Statistics Canada released the first round of data from the 2021 Census of the Population. The data was released at all levels of geography made available by Statscan. At the federal level, Canada grew by 5.2% since the 2016 Census, with a total population of 36,991,981. […]

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Intercity Rail Ontario Transit Travels

A transit tour of central Ontario

A round trip from Toronto via Guelph, Owen Sound, and Barrie is the longest trip one can take using only local and regional transit services. Despite these new links, there is room for improvement.

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About me Design Infrastructure Roads Toronto

Shining a light on Toronto’s streetlamps

Street lighting is an important, yet overlooked, part of any city’s standard infrastructure. For over seventy years, Toronto’s streets were lit with an elegant and increasingly unique streetlamp design. But modern standards and a desire for standardization will see this change, just as Toronto’s streetcars and street signs have. Toronto Hydro, which is responsible for […]