There seems to no longer be a way to get into Toronto. Between 9am an 9:30 we made it from the suburbs to the level of Lakeshore exit off the QEW/Gardiner highway. Then the traffic stops and one is allowed to progress at 10km/hr at the most, so staying on Gardiner is not an option. Everyone is trapped from that point until the Spadina exit, sitting in their cars, barely moving at all, for about 45 minutes. Lakeshore is one option, but since everyone has learned their lesson on Gardiner, this route too is averaging 10-20km/hr and today a construction has added more hassle and further reduced progress, cutting 3 lanes to 1. Are we really reduced to 1 lane from the three on Gardiner, now unusable, and three on Lakeshore? This is the only major route from the entire west suburbs.
Leaving even earlier form the highway, one could take Parkside, but that is only one small exit and the traffic is often at standstill. Then one has to make a very slow progress through the city, not much of an option either. The only other major route is the north end of the city, on 401, far out of the way and no less packed with cars. It seems that the city has decided to cut itself off the rest of the world, making it just impossible to commute in. Perhaps this is the only way to force people to live within its confines. (For an explanation on why I don’t take the public transit, see earlier post on the topic.) Personally, I would far prefer to work and live in the suburbs, so if I would have to choose to work in Toronto or in the suburbs, there would be no contest. I am just waiting for a chance to stop working downtown.
Since the exodus from the city, the suburbs became nothing like the old stereotype. We have far more entertainment and shopping options than anyone in Toronto, yet ironically, entertainment access is still the biggest argument of Torontonians for why some of them still stay in the city. If I want to get to the movies, I can pick from 3 to 5 theatres in the nearest area and many more fairly close by, all with convenient parking and a slew of restaurants and other entertainment, such as laser quest or mini golf, etc., etc. In Toronto, we actually gave up on going out at the thought of having to park or use TTC, which stops running at 1 am anyway. Not to mention that it is so much safer in the suburbs (another point on which Torontonians are somewhat deceiving themselves. The level of dissociation became from “not in my neighborhood” to “not on my block” to not reading the stats, which in any case became hard to come by these days. Not knowing has become the new option.). In the suburbs, I have so many restaurants to choose from. We have at least three a walking distance away, including a pub. Not to mention services such as a hair dresser, a store, a coffee shop, three different ethnic European bakeries and cafes, etc. The design and accessibility to services has greatly improved since the early subdivision designs. I find the selection of theatres and art centers comparable, if not better, and much more accessible.
Another benefit of being in the suburbs is that there is far less concrete, so we don’t face the heat that the concrete absorbs and then gives off, making Toronto an oven. I also don’t miss the inescapable noise, something one gets used to and blocks out while living in the city and only realizes its presence coming to the city from the suburbs in the morning. I suppose Toronto is bearable for the single person that can bike around, but once children come and car becomes a necessity (I can’t imagine taking a sick child to the doctor on a bike in the winter, or grocery shopping for the family, with kids in tow, on a bike), living in Toronto gets progressively less enjoyable and less feasible. Not something I would have said fifteen years ago, but so much has changed since then. Not necessarily the fact that I am no longer a young university kid, but the way that the livability of the city has changed. Except for one of my married friends, who has no children, all have moved out of the city.
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