evanroberts.com

This morning, while on my way to work, the bus was sitting at King and Dufferin for a bit, and I considered getting off the bus and heading over to the Hasty Market to see if they had the Premier Nutrition Protein bars I love. The light was taking a bit to change, so I opted to go for it.

Attempting to get off at the rear doors, I found them to be locked, so I walked towards the front of the bus. It was at this time that some dude decided to pick up all his hockey gear, and shuffle forward, so I had to skirt around him, and got to the driver before the light changed. I had my headphones on, and didn’t hear what he said initially, so I took them off and asked if I could get off the bus.

He looked up at me, and said “Waited long enough!”, and opened the doors. As I started off the bus, I then replied “I usually do with the TTC.”, which may or may not have been fair to say to him, but he was being an asshole, and I have issues with the TTC overall. For example, before I got onto his bus.

Standing at the Dufferin station bus stop, it is a common thing to see two or more buses arrive at the same time. I don’t know if it is due to traffic congestion as they claim, or if the bus drivers are just lazy and unorganised as some others claim, but it is somewhat irritating, as it usually leads to longer wait times. This morning, two buses showed up, but the driver of the first bus decided to stop in front of the station doors rather than down at the indicated bus stop where we were all waiting. The second bus stopped behind the first bus. So, all of us were standing at the designated spot, yet watched as people at the end of the line suddenly became the people at the front of the line. Bullshit. I then decided to walk down in front of the first bus so it couldn’t go anywhere, and along the side towards Dufferin St. so the second bus couldn’t go anywhere either, while at the same time avoiding the HUGE crowd gathering in an attempt to get on the first bus. Seems that others took my cue and did the same, as both buses couldn’t leave for a bit. In this instance, good.

I can understand that being a bus driver is probably not the best career in the world, but it is a job, with the TTC being one of the better paying transit organisations, as far as I’ve been hearing. The citizens of Toronto put up with a lot of their shit when they decide to go on strike, which has happened a number of times in recent years, so it leads me to wonder where their attitude is coming from. If you don’t like driving a bus for a living (because, let’s face it, who as a kid dreams of being a bus driver), then get a different job. Sure, there will be the odd jackass who will blame a bus driver for their travel woes, but I don’t blame the driver specifically, I blame the management of the TTC who are directing them to suddenly go out of service, or haven’t figured out yet how to properly manage a transit system as large as the one we need in Toronto. Still, just because a TTC employee has to deal with the odd jackass doesn’t mean that they have the right to snap at every other transit rider.

I don’t need attitude from a bus driver just for wanting to get off the bus while the light is still in our favour. I wasn’t holding anyone up, most certainly not like how the TTC holds up people each and every day.

It’s been a topic of Toronto for years: Should the Gardiner come down or not?

Personally, I think that the Gardiner is not only a landmark of Toronto, but it is also extremely valuable to Toronto as a means of transportation. There are some that say that it is ugly, or a barrier from the waterfront. Well, it’s a HIGHWAY. It’s not meant to look pretty, it’s meant to be practical and functional. It is also NOT a barrier to the waterfront; the actual barrier to Toronto’s waterfront is what my Father calls the “Berlin Wall of Condos”.

The Gardiner handles TONS of traffic each and every day, and that is not including Lake Shore Boulevard which runs below it for at least 2/3rds of it’s length. To bring down such an artery of traffic into Toronto only cause the city to suffer a mild heart attack, in terms of this analogy. Traffic would be snarled up all the way back West to where the QEW and the 427 meet up. The DVP would become what previously was just a nickname during rush hour: The Don Valley Parking Lot. All the roads that took the traffic from the exits prior to reaching the Gardiner would be flooded, and the lines to get off at those exits would stretch for at least a kilometer. Essentially, traffic within Toronto, which is already congested as it is, would become worse, and road rage would increase. All because David Miller has been brainwashed by the condo development companies into thinking that bringing down the Gardiner is the best way to develop more of the waterfront.

But, with all this said, something has to be done about the traffic situation on the Gardiner. On it’s busiest day, the Gardiner is usually at a standstill. It can’t be expanded, as all those condos now line to each side. Putting the Gardiner underground is the next best option, but in our politicians’ minds, that would require bringing the Gardiner down before anything could be done. Far be it for them to ever consider digging a new tunnel UNDER the Gardiner, which would make the most sense (if they can dig under the English Channel, I’m betting that digging under the Gardiner would be a tad easier). They focus on the costs of such a project, which is well beyond what they’re willing to commit to; it’s much easier, and cheaper, to piss everyone off by bringing down a highway, than to tunnel under it, and slowly transition between the two. Wake up guys: Sometimes, the cheapest alternative isn’t necessarily the best one. I’d be willing to pay more taxes for such a project.

Anyway, enough ranting.

Owen let me know that I apparently sent a letter to the Toronto Star with regards to this very issue. I must say, I sound quite articulate:

The wisdom of removing a section of the Gardiner Expressway must be evaluated by its concrete benefits and drawbacks. The abstract claim of “removing a barrier” ignores the roughly 10 lanes of pedestrian-level traffic that a grand boulevard would create.

We must ask ourselves: How is the Gardiner a barrier and how does removing it remove that barrier? A close examination will reveal that traffic and multi-stage crossings on Lake Shore Blvd. are the true barriers to waterfront access.

Evan Roberts, Toronto

Not bad, eh?

Thing is, while I told Owen that, yes, I submitted that letter (hey, I was bring praised about my vocabulary!), I must confess: It wasn’t me. Looks like there is another “Evan Roberts” residing in Toronto who seems to be on top of current events as well, yet appears to have been educated at a better school than I. I’d like to think that I can be as eloquent as that other Evan Roberts, but alas, my blog speaks for itself.

However, I’m sure that this other Evan Roberts and I have the same stance when it comes to the Gardiner; bringing it down is not the most viable option when it comes to dealing with this issue.

Breakfast

• Protein shake
  • 1.5 scoops of Weider 90% Protein Soy - chocolate
  • One banana
  • 250ml 1% skim lactose-free milk
  • Mix of frozen strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries

Lunch

• Three hard boiled eggs

Snacks

• Three light Babybels

Dinner

• Small chicken Caesar salad with real bacon bits - (Dominion - 250g)
• Light Caesar dressing

Snacks

• A bowl of buttered and salted popcorn
• One of Linda’s Lollies - lemon lime