Action Jackson
New Member
Now, I imagine I may be about to get a load of crap here, but what the heck, I'm going for it in any case.
I've been a lurker here for some time, and I just took the time to register. Before I go on, I'll explain that I am a 25-year-old college student (business, marketing major) who lives in Oshawa, out in the sticks. That said, as my job and my social life sees me in the city at least twice a week and often more than that, I think this sticks dweller can comment on Toronto.
This election is an interesting one, but one which to me had shown that we have a division problem in Toronto, as it seems that the suburbs seem to be very unhappy over the Miller years in Toronto and want things changed, and the result of this has been intelligent, center-right candidates like John Tory, Sarah Thomson and Rocco Rossi being runover by the big-mouth fatass from Etobicoke. My reading here has figured that this forum rather dislikes Rob Ford, and I can sympathize - he's known more for Toronto Sun headlines and PR stunts than actual policy. This is idiotic, as far as I am concerned on the part of the suburban voters. But what I am seeing here is that people here are thinking that the status quo is the only option. That doesn't make sense either. The rise of Ford is because of Miller's excesses. Its only been fifteen years since Bob Rae was replaced by Mike Harris. Do people who voted then regret that now? Yep. So why are we hating on Ford? And beyond that, why does this gap between the suburbs and the city exist?
How about thinking for everyone?
I oppose Transit City for this season. What Toronto needs is not a vast system of light rail. It has its place and purpose, but on Eglinton what is needed is a subway. The city needs a downtown relief line. Fixing the Sheppard Subway is needed, too. But one of Ford's major appeals is that he wants to make life easier for drivers - though removing streetcars (and buying several hundred buses to fix the capacity loss) is idiotic. But did Miller and company ever even care about this? Nope. They acted as if increasing traffic congestion was the goal.
Can we not figure out a way of working on this problem? How about looking at how to expand capacity on the roads we've got and removing bottlenecks? Syncing traffic lights, more one-way streets, removing on-street parking in places, keeping bike paths off of the heaviest-traffic roads?
For transit, if subways are too expensive and LRT is too slow or too small, what about going up, using elevated rail or even monorails? And for routes that stay buses that are too crowded, what about going for double-decker buses?
The overall question is simple - if the city has been focusing only on the core for the past seven years, as many people clearly believe, why is it right to swing the pendulum back and let downtown areas rot? It shouldn't be, if you ask me.
Let's start thinking of everyone who lives in the city. Forget "sticking it" to anybody. Hate isn't healthy, or so I have been told.
I've been a lurker here for some time, and I just took the time to register. Before I go on, I'll explain that I am a 25-year-old college student (business, marketing major) who lives in Oshawa, out in the sticks. That said, as my job and my social life sees me in the city at least twice a week and often more than that, I think this sticks dweller can comment on Toronto.
This election is an interesting one, but one which to me had shown that we have a division problem in Toronto, as it seems that the suburbs seem to be very unhappy over the Miller years in Toronto and want things changed, and the result of this has been intelligent, center-right candidates like John Tory, Sarah Thomson and Rocco Rossi being runover by the big-mouth fatass from Etobicoke. My reading here has figured that this forum rather dislikes Rob Ford, and I can sympathize - he's known more for Toronto Sun headlines and PR stunts than actual policy. This is idiotic, as far as I am concerned on the part of the suburban voters. But what I am seeing here is that people here are thinking that the status quo is the only option. That doesn't make sense either. The rise of Ford is because of Miller's excesses. Its only been fifteen years since Bob Rae was replaced by Mike Harris. Do people who voted then regret that now? Yep. So why are we hating on Ford? And beyond that, why does this gap between the suburbs and the city exist?
How about thinking for everyone?
I oppose Transit City for this season. What Toronto needs is not a vast system of light rail. It has its place and purpose, but on Eglinton what is needed is a subway. The city needs a downtown relief line. Fixing the Sheppard Subway is needed, too. But one of Ford's major appeals is that he wants to make life easier for drivers - though removing streetcars (and buying several hundred buses to fix the capacity loss) is idiotic. But did Miller and company ever even care about this? Nope. They acted as if increasing traffic congestion was the goal.
Can we not figure out a way of working on this problem? How about looking at how to expand capacity on the roads we've got and removing bottlenecks? Syncing traffic lights, more one-way streets, removing on-street parking in places, keeping bike paths off of the heaviest-traffic roads?
For transit, if subways are too expensive and LRT is too slow or too small, what about going up, using elevated rail or even monorails? And for routes that stay buses that are too crowded, what about going for double-decker buses?
The overall question is simple - if the city has been focusing only on the core for the past seven years, as many people clearly believe, why is it right to swing the pendulum back and let downtown areas rot? It shouldn't be, if you ask me.
Let's start thinking of everyone who lives in the city. Forget "sticking it" to anybody. Hate isn't healthy, or so I have been told.