ehlow
Senior Member
I see a lot of great ideas, one in particular is the idea of closing down a street for the benefit of those on foot. IMO a large downtown pedestrian plaza is vital, and we have the enormous numbers of pedestrians to prove the viability without having to do some feasibility study. We need it, our sidewalks are oftentimes too narrow (especially during events, but even at rush hour), and it makes sense. It's a damn shame we had that nasty sack of crap for a mayor in the last term, whining on his radio show how his "constituents" can't drive their '98 Sunfire on Gould. Big whoop. A few weeks back I flipped through my Unbuilt Toronto, and I recall a rendering showing roads tunneled downtown, with the street above open to pedestrians. I'd say why not?
Another idea that I think is great, and makes sense since Toronto was chosen for its harbour and waterfront, is to use the water for our transport advantage. In Unbuilt Toronto there's mention of a "Toronto and Georgian Bay Ship Channel". Although that would be pretty cool had it been built, I was thinking more along the lines of ferries or more use of personal watercraft. I know Tory was laughed off for mentioning ferries as a transit solution in our future. But with a developed Port Lands and Keating District, I don't see why it couldn't work for intra-Toronto/GTA travel. Or even without the ferry, to take a jet ski from the Shipping Channel at Leslie to downtown...that'd be pretty sweet.
In a way the Islands are our Staten Island ferry commuter island, although on a much smaller scale. Imagine the Leslie spit grew to envelope the existing islands?
But yeah, ferry to the port lands would be cool. It would be cool if it went to the tip of the Leslie spit too, so that once you bike or ran to the end you could take the ferry back.