METROPOLIS

W
The Metropolis Team.
Octavian Lacatusu

Foreword

ithout a doubt, commuting is a part of our daily lives. Though repetitive, moving from A to B is the very highlight of our survival; as students and workers, as parents and children. We drive, we ride and we walk to our destinations. On roads, across bridges and below in tunnels, Metropolis sets out to discover the stories of what changed and continues to change Torontos commuting landscape.

Originally from Romania, Octavian Lacatusu always loved his cars. Frankly, any vehicle that moved and made a cool noise was enough to excite him as a kid. He enjoys automotive and scenic photography and is a die-hard fan of classic eras. Despite having a strong pull towards writing and photography, hes an avid gamer and Lego enthusiast. In fact, throughout his experience with Metropolis magazine, hes built a fully functioning replica of the Bloor Viaduct entirely out of Lego. Unfortunately, the train ran underneath it only once.

Deeanna Charrion
As a constantly evolving spry Scarberian, Deeanna Charrion is an urban explorer utilizing a bike and a metropass to discover what Toronto has to offer. Constantly evolving like the city, Deeanna has always found good music, food & drink and hidden places in the concrete jungle to share with people on walking tours. After a stint in art & design at George Brown College, she returned to writing at Centennial College with the Toronto Observer. She also loves hockey (Go Leafs!) and baking.

Nicholas Pescod
In addition to contributing to Metropolis Magazine, Nicholas Pescod has spent time writing for the Toronto East-York Observer and is the host of Radio Nation, an award winning online radio show (www.radionation.ca). Pescod was also a writer for his high school newspaper (Iroquois Ridge High School) and attended the University of Guelph before transferring to Centennial College. He is an avid traveler, photographer and a huge fan of the Toronto Blue Jays. Pescod has lived in British Columbia and Kemptville, Ontario and currently resides in Oakville, Ontario. Follow him on twitter @npescod

Thanks to: Zoey Hallman, Josh Skinner, Mark Osbaldeston, John Mende, Phil Masters, Karen Bowman, Alvin Lau, Sgt. Dennis Falcioni, Tersia Prins, Malon Edwards, Chris Upfold, Frank Murphy and Aiden Bryant. Special thanks to: Ted Barris, our editor and our families that supported us.

Innovation

Future Electric Vehicles, Today..........Page 4 Union Station Revitalization..........Page 6 The Truth Behind Car-sharing..........Page 8 Riding The Waves..........Page 10

Infrastructure

Thinking Big..........Page12 Shifting Gears..........Page 14 Clearing The Way..........Page 15 Jammed: A Necessary Evil?..........Page 16

Environment

Smooth Operator..........Page 18 Carpooling..........Page 19 Low-flying modern warfare at Billy Bishop..........Page 20

Technology

Under Control..........Page 24 Smarter Way To Pay..........Page 26 Signalling Change..........Page 27 Distracted Driving..........Page 29

MetropolisGTA

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METROPOLIS 4

Innovation

BY OCTAVIAN LACATUSU

electric vehicles, today

ne day soon, when Brian Kirk commutes to Toronto from Newmarket, north of the city, hell use very little gas. In fact, his Porsche will use none at all. With a regular car, you cant fuel it at home, so you have to go a gas station, Kirk said. But for an electric car, especially as a commuter, every day you go home and plug in. Its a no brainer. Hybrid cars in recent years have attempted to liberate commuters from the gas pumps. However, common hybrids and electrics such as Nissans Leaf and Chevys Volt have yet to impress, as affordability and performance are not appealing enough to consumers. For enthusiasts such as Brian Kirk, founder of Singular Motion EV based in Newmarket, this is a missing spot in the auto market. The problem now is just availability. Lets say you want an electric Porsche, well you cant buy one, so youre going to make one yourself, Kirk said. Theres only a bunch of OEM (original equipment manufacturer) cars that you can buy, some of which are really expensive or some that you may not really like, he said.

Future
O

Kirk, 27, is in the process of completing his companys first ever project, a plug-in electric Porsche 944. Getting used to the idea, according to Kirk, will take some time, as motorists must adjust their driving ideology. I think its a matter of training, he said. But not all cars have go through a costly and tedious conversion. Emile Stevens, owner of eMilage, explained many customers come to him with existing hybrids to maximize their electric capability or to convert them to a plug-in. Since the vehicle is already designed to be a hybrid, providing more electricity to the system just allows you to use less gasoline. So typically, you can either improve your hybrid performance or extend your electric range, Stevens said. Converting and modifying commuter cars for over two years, Stevens said cash-strapped customers dont necessarily need a used hybrid or an electric conversion. According to Stevens, any car can be turned into a hybrid. The beauty of this system is that it doesnt matter if the batteries run out of juice, you just keep on driving because its a hybrid. The

Top: Darius Vakili holds his custom controller device for Brian Kirks (right) electric Porsche.
gas engine will kick in whenever its needed, he said. Electric vehicles are nothing new in Ontario. For decades, fully electric buses, known as trolleybuses, dominated Torontos transit landscape until the TTC replaced them with turbo-diesel buses in 1993. Today, theyve returned in hybrid form similar to their car counterparts, as the Biobus project was dropped by the TTC two years ago. As TTCs manager of vehicle engineering, Bill Brown, explained a fully electric bus isnt a solution any time soon. Range requirements are too high. Normal buses run from 350 to 400 kilometres per day. If you have to bring the bus back in to have it recharged, then it means you must have more equipment and more drivers to have buses come off the routes and back on again, he said. Brown outlined the possibility of buses going to the end of a

Photo By Octavian Lacatusu

line and when they turn around, they pick up overhead power so they can travel back to the other end. We dont have any lines like that in Toronto and it isnt feasible...unless they close down a section of downtown, Brown said. For others like Darius Vakili, however, the future is electric. Vakili, an engineer, specializes in building electronic components for electric vehicles such as cars, bicycles, scooters, boats, airships and Brian Kirks Porsche. A daily commuter of downtown Toronto on his electric scooter, Vakili explained the benefits of electric bicycles and scooters. My scooter is a very capable machine and very enjoyable, but the city has to change the regulations, because traffic regulations are geared more towards cars nowadays., he said. Im afraid when driving my scooter to work because cars dont care really. Nevertheless, Kirk believes people will accept an electric commute. Hybrids werent popular five years ago. Pretty soon, electric cars are going to be a lot more common, he said.

METROPOLIS 6

Infrastructure

By Deeanna Charrion

Photo By Octavian Lacatusu

r. Sandeep AgrawalusedtotraveltohisofficeatRyerson UniversityfromthesoutheastcornerofScarborough. Buttotakethe38HighlandCreekTTCbustotheScarboroughTown Centre, then rapid transit light rail to Kennedyfor thesubway to Yonge and down to Dundas was a two-hour hassle. As an alternatetime saver he tried GO Transit fromRouge Hill stop to Union Station. I did that for several yearsanditwasabsolutelyperfectbecauseIknewIwouldgetdowntown inexactly28minutesinacomfortableseat,hesaid. Agrawal, the directorofthemasterofplanningprograminthe

SchoolofUrbanandRegionalPlanningatRyerson,wasoneofUnion Stationsquarter-milliondailypassengers.Hesaidhewasntdelayed toomanytimes,butifatrainwasmorethan20minuteslate,itwouldbe cancelledand two train-loads of people doubledinthe next one. I hope it puts morepressure on the GO tomakesure everything runssmoothly to prevent crowdingboth on the train and in the Union Station concourse,Dr. Agrawal said. Thankstoa$640millionrevitalizationinitiativebytheCity ofToronto,theGOconcourseswillbeexpandedtoalleviatecommuter congestion.Thatmeansmoreentrancesandexitstoimprovepassenger

Union Station was built 84 years ago and hasnt been changed since then so imagine the population increasing and the way the space is used. - Nancy Kuyumcu

Artist renderings of Union Station and commuter concourses courtesy of City of Toronto.

flowmovingandreducecongestion. AccordingtoNancyKuyumcu,communicationsco-ordinator forUnionStationfacilitiestransformationproject,thestationmustcontinue servingthepublicandremainaccessible. UnionStationisthepremiergatewaytothecity.Withmore passengersdailythanPearsonInternationalAirport,UnionStationisthe busiestandmostimportantmulti-modaltransportationhubinCanada, Kuyumcusaid. Dr.MurtazaHaider,professorofsupplychainmanagementatthe TedRogersSchoolofManagementsaidPearsonInternationalhandles32 millionpassengersperyearsoUnionhasamuchhigherservicerateof65 millionpeopleannually. Youhavetoensurepeoplemovementissmoothandpedestrian corridorsarewelldesignedfor32millionperyear.Whenyoucomparethatto Union,whichhasmuchmorepedestriantrafficandthefacilitiesanddesignis stillintheStoneAgeoftransitdesign,Dr.Haidersaid. DesignatedaNationalHeritagebuildingbyParksCanadain 1975,UnionStationisCanadaslargestofthegreaturbantrainstationsbuilt intheearly20thcenturywhenrailwayswereexpandingacrossthecountry. Kuyumcusaiditsthefinestexampleofclassicalbeaux-artsarchitecture. IthasalsowitnessedtheriseofTorontofromaprovincial backwatertoaworld-classcity.Inthissense,UnionStationisasignificant partofTorontoshistoryandidentityandisajewelinthecrown(for)every Torontonian,Kuyumcusaid. WhiletheGreatHallwillgetnewcoatsofpaintandwalls refreshedintheupgrade,thetrainshedrehabilitationmeansitwillgetabright makeover. Lester Keachie, chief ofUnionStationRevitalizationsaysthe cityandGOTransitarejoiningforcestoimprovethetrainexperiencefor commuters. Wewillrevitalizethetrainshedareathatsbeendarkandgloomy forsometimewithanewcentreglassatriumandtheconcoursewillbe renewedfromits1980sstylewiththedarkbrowntilesandyellowishwall tileswillbeamuchmorecontemporarystyle,Keachiesaid. Dr.Haiderbelievesrevitalizationeffortsshouldbefocusedon makingcommutertrafficseamless. Beforebeingarchitecturallyfocusedonaesthetics,theyshould thinkaboutmakingpedestrianmobilityfrictionlessfirst,Dr.Haider said.Peopledontappreciatetheaestheticsofthetransitstation;itsthe functionalityofitbecauseitsnotamuseum. Theboardingareawillgetnewverticalaccessescalationand elevatorstothenewlyrenovatedconcourses.Thecityisalsocreatinga newPATHconnectiononthenorthwestcornerundergroundtoWellington inadditiontotheexistingundergroundwalkwayviaBCEPlaceandtheAir Canada Centre. Keachiesaidkeepingthestationopenforaprojectthissizeisthe biggestchallengewiththreedifferenttransitbodiesGOTransit,TTCand VIARailunderoneroof. Thatandkeepingthemainplayersinlineandmakingsure customersdontgetimpactedtoomuch.Wereadvisingthemaboutwhat weredoingsoprovidingthemwithasmanynewoptionstotravelthrough thestationbyshuttingdownotherdoors,openingupotherswhereverwe can.

METROPOLIS 8

Innovation

The Truth behind Car-sharing

By Nicholas M. Pescod

Autoshare and programs like it are becoming a popular option for many in the city.
When Alvin Lau and his family discovered their car Autoshare becomes our Plan B in a sense, he said. was going to need nearly $3,000 in repairs, they began We use it about once a week. President and founder of Autoshare, Kevin looking at commuting alternatives in Toronto. Lau considered different car-sharing programs and McLaughlin says Autoshare is designed for people who use public transit to commute to work, but who discovered that Autoshare was a viable option. sometimes need to use a car.The typical customer is We didnt consider Autoshare until the car broke about 30 to 40 years old, down, Lau said. We McLaughlin said. A ended up getting rid of classic example is going our old car because the to see Mom in Missismaintenance became too sauga or going to Ikea. much of an issue. Autoshare is not the only Laus daily commute car-sharing program in to work from south Etobicoke to Bloor Street Toronto. A Massachusetts company called Zipcar and Highway 427 takes has been operating in the 30 minutes using public city since 2006. transit. According to He says that when he McLaughlin, car-sharing uses an Autoshare car membership in the city he drives an average of 60 kilometres within the has increased from 2,500 Map Created By Nicholas Pescod based off Autoshare.ca to 25,000 over the last Greater Toronto Area A map showing the over 50 Autoshare locations in Toronto. five years. He attributes (GTA) and 150 kilometres part of the rise to the competition. outside of the GTA. About six years ago, our competitors from the The Lau family consists of two adults and two United States came into Toronto, he said. That really children. Alvin said he regularly plans out upcoming raised the awareness of car sharing. One of the downweeks so he knows when to rent a car.

Photo By Nicholas Pescod A special Autoshare parking spot located on Broadview avenue. Autoshare users can pick up cars at locations throughout the city.

sides to frequent car-sharing is that renting a car more than four times a month can significantly add up.Its still is somewhat costly, Lau said. You cant be using it too often. Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) says for someone who operates a Chevrolet Cruze and drives less than 18,000 kilometres a year, the average cost in 2011 is $17.09 a day. The pricing plan that Autoshare offers for a 24-hour rental period on a weekend is a minimum of $58 per day. If booked a week in advance Discount car rentals offer a full size car for $40 a day. According to Autoshares website, each Autoshare car removes up to 10 cars from Toronto streets. Furthermore an Autoshare user eliminates an average of 1.088 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year. A study in Quebec by the engineering firm Tecsult, found that the 11,000 members of car-sharing programs in the province avoided 11,791 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions each year. University of Toronto civil engineering professor Khandker Habib says that car-sharing programs can reduce the number of car owners and may reduce the number of cars on the road. The biggest impact is that it can reduce car ownership, Habib said. In most of the cases they are using car-sharing in off peak hours. Bruce Hawkins senior

communications co-ordinator for the City of Toronto said the city encourages condominium developers to build fewer parking spaces and incorporate car sharing within their buildings. Its the interest of the developer to build spaces for the car sharing program to save money, Hawkins said. That then means fewer people in the building will require a car because they will have access to a car sharing program. Alvin Lau said that car-sharing is about cost control. He enjoys that he doesnt have to take on the additional costs of owning or maintaining a car. Lau added that being without a car has been a positive adjustment. I dont really miss driving, he said. Its not like I go on the bus and wish I had a car.

Photo By Nicholas Pescod Alvin Lau, a user, stands with an Autoshare car at the Royal York road location.

METROPOLIS 10

Infrastructure

Riding the Waves

While many people commute by subway, train or bus commuting by ferry is no stroll on the deck.
By Nicholas M. Pescod
Island resident Tersia Prins is one of a handful of commuters who use the ferry service every day to commute to her work in downtown Toronto. While Prins may not have to deal with packed subways and clogged streets and highways, she often has to brave the elements on her bike just to get to the ferry terminal. She says she has to plan her life around the ferry schedule since moving to the island three years ago. Sometimes its hard to live on a ferry schedule, because if you miss one ferry you have to wait an hour for the next one, she said. Some schedules just dont mix with the ferry schedules. More than 50 years ago, Torontos waterfront was a busy place with many passenger boats, cargo ships and ferries plying the waters of Lake Ontario. Besides the ferries that went to Toronto Island, steamers and small cruise ships often transported people from Toronto to in 1998, Toronto parks, forestry and recreation, have operated the ferry service. The ferries transport 1.2 million passengers per year and about 900,000 of those are between July and August. Manager of Toronto waterfront parks James Dann has overseen the ferry service since 2001 and says the ferries operate on a seasonal schedule. Right now we are operating on our winter schedule, so we begin the ferry service from 6:30 a.m. until 11:30 p.m. all Photo By Nicholas Pescod week long. (Above) The Sam Mcbride sailing towards the island The winter presents a (Above Right) The Sam McBride been in use since 1939. big challenge for the city St. Catharines, Ont., or ries since the first boat as the ferries are often Montreal. set sail in 1883. delayed because of snow Ferries began to disapSince amalgamation and ice buildup either on pear from Lake Ontario, however, when cars became the dominant mode of transportation. Today, Toronto has a small ferry service that allows residents living on Toronto Island to commute to the city. There have been various operators of the fer-

the docks or when the harbour freezes. We are not able to maintain a regular operating schedule when there is ice. We have to run the boats safely and slowly and the ice can prevent that, Dann said. In the over 10 years that Ive been here there have been three times where the ferries were not able to maintain service. In the summer the city runs four ferries to and from the islands. As a result the main terminal at Bay Street and Queens Quay West often becomes packed leaving regular ferry users discouraged. There is a funnel of all these people coming into the ferry terminal, Prins said. Its a clogged

up, slow process. The current fleet of ferries is over 50 years old; that includes the Trillium, which is over 100 years old. Prins would like to see them run more frequently in off peak seasons. She also feels that the boats are too small for passengers. Definitely more space, she said. On some of the boats they were using they have made the aisles smaller due to safety reasons. In October the federal government approved the construction of a tunnel between downtown Toronto and the island airport. Toronto Port Authority archivist Jeff Hubbell said that 50 years ago ferries offered primary com-

muter service. One of the fastest ways for people to go for an outing was to get on a boat and go across the lake, he said. This was before most people had cars and before the 400 series highways opened up in the 1960s. Over 60 years ago, Toronto had aspirations of becoming a major port for cargo ships coming from Europe and the United States. We were going to bury Montreal in terms of being a port, Hubbell said. The St. Lawrence Seaway had opened up and ships wouldnt have to stop in Montreal to unload their cargo. In 2001 the Ontario government toyed with the idea of ferry servic-

es between Toronto and Hamilton to help relieve congestion along the Queen Elizabeth Way. From 2005 until 2006 there was a ferry service from Toronto to Rochester, N.Y., but it was cancelled by city council in Rochester due to operating costs. The issue of ferry services surfaced again in 2007 when the TTC looked into the possibility of running ferries from South Etobicoke and South Scarborough to downtown Toronto Aside from relieving commuting gridlock on Toronto streets, commuting by ferry has another benefit. Its a community, Prins said.You are always bumping into someone that you know.

METROPOLIS 12

n 1914, the architectural vision of John Lyle became a reality in eastern Toronto. He had designed a colossus that would connect the east and west sides of the city at 40 metres above ground. The proposal received plenty of opposition from Rosedale citizens who feared traffic noise and pollution. Toronto voters rejected the idea three times before it was finally passed. However, 1918 saw the unveiling of the Prince Edward Viaduct, today known as the Bloor Viaduct. Mark Osbaldeston, author of Unbuilt Toronto: the history that might have been, explained that Lyle had even bigger plans in mind. The bridge was open in 1918, but the subway didnt run across it until 1966. Lyle had a grand scheme to build a subway on the lower level, which wasnt actually utilized until 50 years later, he said. It really shows a lot of foresight in city planning. Romantic visions have often occupied minds of Torontos engineers and city planners: a highway network carrying traffic in and out of the citys core and a titanic bridge connecting two estranged parts of the city. Marta OBrien, an architectural historian, explained this love of the impossible at the turn of the 19th century.

Thinking BIG I
By Octavian Lacatusu

Infrastructure
The Edwardian Era was one of optimism in Toronto. Some grand buildings were erected in the Beaux Arts Style, which incorporated classical elements into new building types, she said. Fritz Langs 1925 Metropolis illustrated endless urban sprawl, suspended aerial highways and aircraft flying at dangerous altitudes between gigantic skyscrapers. But not all those predictions came true, according to OBrien. Some of the best things about Toronto have nothing to do with futuristic technology: our many green spaces and human-scale, walkable neighbourhoods are just two examples, she said. Despite its futuristic design, even the Bloor Viaduct had to adapt to its human surroundings. The viaducts path did not run straight onto Bloor as originally planned. According to Osbaldeston, the Rosedale communitys complaints changed its direction. You dont just go straight until you hit Bloor; you turn once you cross the valley, then you head south. The entire part of Bloor east of Sherbourne is actually part of the viaduct, he said. It was done on an embankment, so it doesnt look likes its part of the bridge, but its still part of the viaduct. That wasnt the only time the voice of the public charged a city plan. The proposed north-south Spadina Expressway was to run from Highway 401 to the Gardiner Expressway of today. However, there was strong public and political opposition and in 1971 Premier Bill Davis was forced to cancel the planned expressway. As they went south towards Eglinton, there was more organized opposition at the end of 1969, spearheaded by groups from the Annex and University of Toronto, Osbalteston said. Jane Jacobs, an American activist responsible for blocking the Manhattan Lower Expressway in New York helped shape the opposition to the Spadina Expressway. The resulting hybrid expressway became

Photo courtesy City of Toronto Archives fonds 1231 Item 44

Photo by Octavian Lacatusu

Allen Road, which comes to a dead end at the Eglinton intersection. Transit activist and writer Steve Munro believes 1971 was an altering year for Ontarios transit future. In theory, it changed the development of the expressway network. But also of downtown. If they kept building the Spadina
Top: A train travels down the median of Allen Road. As the train continues towards Bloor, below ground the expressway ends at Eglinton. In his original design of the Bloor Viaduct (seen left under construction in 1916), John Lyle envisioned a subway line below the street deck. The subway was added in 1960s and continues to run today. Right: 2011.

Expressway, there would be a second highway running through the city centre, Munro said. The bulk of those inner city highways were soon cancelled as well, along with Crosstown and Richview, he said. According to Osbalteston, Torontos transit vision seems to alter each time theres a change in the wind on provincial and local fronts. We still got (unrealized) subway plans that go back to 1910s. We had some groundbreaking plans for a subway line going back to 1994, Osbaldeston said. Now here it is 2011 and were talking groundbreaking plans for the Eglinton subway. You see history repeat itself with plans getting scrapped.

Photo by Octavian Lacatusu

METROPOLIS 14

Infrastructure
turning, dont try not to beat through intersections, Travers said. On those same city streets, cyclists who pedal for a living need to be quick on their wheels in order to make good on their deliveries. Luca Donoghuelangiano, a TurnAround courier who services downtown, is conscious of those risks when it comes to work and a livelihood. Couriers take their riding more seriously, but theyre conscious of the rules on the road than other cyclists. If a courier does something illegal, they know exactly why that is, he said Aiden Bryant, a Cyclemania store employee said couriers are a breed of commuting cyclists unto themselves. There are some couriers that are antisocial and have their

oe Travers bikes seven kilometres from home to work with relative ease, while traffic sits at a standstill during the morning rush hour. Departing from East York, he mounts his Trek 7200 hybrid road bike after 7 a.m. to go west on Danforth, one of the citys congested arterial roads, into the downtown core of Toronto. I leave my house around Woodbine to go across the Bloor-Danforth Viaduct and usually down Jarvis and west along Wellesley bike lanes to Bay Street, he says. I work right at that intersection and it takes about 30 minutes from home to get there.

Shifting Gears

Travers will still use his bike even if it rains. own clique, alienating If its not too heavy and its the summer, Ill usually bike other bicyclists, he said. through it. When the rain gets colder in the fall and spring, Im Bryant said particular intersections are notorious for less inclined to and would take TTC to avoid being wet and cold, bicycle riding because of negligent motorists. Travers said. Its unsafe for riding because drivers are extremely reckless If its not too cold, Ill just wear normal clothes and get especially turning off Mount Pleasant Road, the DVP onto Bloor wet. Im lucky that my workplace has showers so Ill take a change of and the Bloor-Danforth Viaduct; its very dangerous, he said. clothes. Im also lucky that I can keep my bike indoors both at home Donoghuelangiano agreed and recalled a time when one and at work. driver almost ran him off the road. The 2006 Long-Form Census states almost one million Ive had the most trouble on Jarvis where one road goes Torontonians ride bicycles, into Mount Pleasant and the including cyclists who pedal We need more biking infrastructure but mostly clar- other goes to Bloor. A lot of the to work or for work. Of that ity because bicycle lanes confuse drivers. (They) give the cars go on the side towards Bloor number, last years City of hoping to go onto Mount Pleasimpression cyclists are restricted to their own lane. Toronto Bicycle Count Report ant and when I go towards Bloor, - Donoghuelangiano, TurnAround Courier they honk and get mad at me. showed 19,162 cyclists entered the downtown core and 15,241 The courier said motorists usexited the core during the work week at rush hour peak times. ing the same lane are often aggressive towards cyclists. Travers works in research and evaluation at the College of Someone opened a door on me and I argued with the Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario. He hasnt gotten in an accident person because he destroyed my front wheel. I quoted the traffic act with his bike during his commutes, but he notices how some cyclists saying I could merge, but claimed I wasnt visible and ignored the take dangerous risks in commuter traffic. fact he clipped me, the courier said. Some cyclists think theyre in the Tour de France and The courier says miscommunication causes accidents and theyll pedal as fast as they can through an intersection, Travers Travers agrees that most of the conflict between different types of said. road users is downtown because there are more motorists, transit Travers, also the founder of bikingtoronto.com, says being users, cyclists and pedestrians. careful is key to manoevering city streets. If were all a little bit more civil to each other and underIm generally very cautious at intersections. I find if you stand were all trying to get somewhere, then it would go a long way do your due-diligence and be cautious when you know cars will be to making the streets friendlier, he said.

By Deeanna Charrion

Clearing theWay
Since 1999 the Whitby Area Scouts have voluntarily maintained a two-kilometer section of Highway 12 in Durham Region, as part of Ontarios adopt-a-highway program. All branches of the Scouts participate in the semi-annual cleanup along the highway between Roseland Road and Taunton Road in Whitby, Ont. Many of those that travel along the road use it to commute to Whitby GO station. Heather Nowell, road and trail Scouter has organized the adopt-ahighway cleanup since 2009. The Scouts find all kinds of things when cleaning up the road, such as bike parts, auto parts and glass. There will be several bags on each corner when its all over, she said. Its always a good feeling. According to the Ministry of Transportations website, individuals as well as groups can participate. The province will then erect a sign on the stretch of adopted roadway to recognize the volunteers. Lewis Williams, area quartermaster for the Scouts, introduced the idea of adopting a highway to the group as a way to give back to the community. It makes it safer for commuters, he said. Everyone is very pleased with the program. Besides programs such as adopta-highway that encourages citizens

The importance of keeping roads, sidewalks and pedestrian crosswalks By Nicholas Pescod clear.

to clean up roadways to help make just people going to school, Ootes commuting safer. Some cities have added. bylaws in place to ensure that more Although the city of Toronto has than just the road is clear. legally made it safer for pedestrians In 1999, the City of Toronto to commute during the wintertime, passed bylaw No. 530 which rethere is a section of the city where quires residents and crossing the road can be business owners to dangerous without the clear their sidewalks help of one dedicated citiand driveways free zen. of snow and ice Crossing guard Jack Alwithin 12 hours afdred, 87, began his duties ter snowfall. at the intersection of MorMyles Currie, ditimer and Carlaw avenues rector of transporta24 years ago. At the time tion services for the a lighted overhead crosswalk helped pedestrians to City of Toronto said cross safely. the bylaw is critical Eventually traffic lights for pedestrian trafPhoto by Nicholas were installed one block fic. Pescod Its very impor- A Whitby Scouts road sign west at the intersection of tant that we and the on Highway 12 in Whitby, Logan Avenue and MorOntario. timer Avenue that resulted citizens of Toronto remove the snow as quickly as pos- in the removal of the lighted crosssible, he said. We want to ensure walk. Aldred, 87 fought for over 10 that pedestrians have a safe and years to have it re-installed at the clear path to walk in during the intersection; this year Toronto city winter. council approved his request. Currie said in many cases the Instead of looking at the streetcity plows the sidewalks but in lights on Logan or Pape depending places where they cant, its up to on which they are driving from, the individual to ensure the sidedrivers will be focused on the walk is clear. crosswalk instead, Aldred said. At the time the bylaw was Pedestrian traffic at that intersecpassed, Case Ootes was deputy tion consists of students from mayor. Chester Elementary School, WestWe took in consideration evwood Middle School and Centenerybody who uses the sidewalk nial Colleges East York campus. whether its the postal workers or

Jammed:
a necessary evil?
By Octavian Lacatusu
ost of us have seen it. Traffic jams creeping up on major corridors due to ongoing construction, leaving entire lanes blocked. In the background, dump trucks loaded with shredded concrete and asphalt struggle to merge with a paralysed traffic. Ajid Mughal, a Toronto cabbie for 18 years says the city isnt active enough at planning alternate routes during construction projects. Once youre stuck in traffic, you dont have much of an alternate choice, you just sit completely stuck, he said. Most customers will just get out of the cab and start walking, but well still be there, not moving at all, Mughal said. City officials however, say that this is a necessary evil in preventing further damage to the infrastructure. John Mende, director of transportation and infrastructure management in the city of Toronto says the city is doing its best to minimize disruption to the public. Causing no disruption is unavoidable, but there are measures in place. We try not to close our rehabilitative roads; for example if we close down Avenue Road to do a construction project, wed have to make sure Bathurst, Yonge and Dufferin are not closed at the same time, Mende said. Yet some projects are built to last for weeks, even months causing major disruptions through the Greater Toronto Area. Acting manager for the structures and expressways technical department, Mike Laidlaw, explained some projects, unfortunately due to their size and

METROPOLIS 16

Infrastructure
complexity, require permanent lane restrictions in place, taking up several lanes at once. You really cant do anything in terms of accommodating higher capacity traffic at certain times. Theyre usually very substantial set-ups where you have a protection in place like a gate or a wall along with reduced speed signs. Laidlaw said. More complex projects bring different challenges to Nazzareno Capano, manager of operational planning and policy for Toronto, who was involved in the St. Clair reconstruction and implementation of the LRT (Light Rail Transport) system. It was a new concept as far as an LRT system. There was a lot discussion with the councillors and the community of what the final cross section would look like, what kind of amenities theyd want to see incorporated into this part of work or whether there was any planting of trees or begin in the first place. Mende explained his department also relies on the eye of the public to decide which project needs the most attention. We hear usually from either 311, our city network, or from a councillor and their constituency that their road is in terrible shape. We then provide details on how and when can it be repaired or built. Mende added that the urgency of the maintenance is what takes priority above every other project. Sometimes we advance specialized work because certain structures see an acceleration of damage, he said. If there is an increase in truck traffic on the Gardiner, that might require us to advance the rehabilitation of the structure. Maintaining an aging infrastructure goes back a long way, as Mende and his department is legislated by the province to make detailed inspections of major structures every two years. Regular inspections are performed everyday by city staff on structures used daily by commuters such as the Don Valley Parkway and Leaside Bridge. During our regular routines we check the concrete to see if there are any fissures or if its starting to crumble, any leaks leave water marks on the side of the structures, so that may indicate that there is some deterioration that we might have to address, Mende said. Despite the risks and challenges for his department, Mende says one of the biggest challenges has been coordinating with utility companies when work is set to begin. We have to communicate with the citys utility affiliates such as Toronto Hydro, Enbridge, Rogers or Bell. We dont want to repair a road and then later on to be forced to cut it up again because of some misunderstanding, he said. For taxi driver Mughal, traffic jams on Torontos roads are more than just a misunderstanding. These jams affect our business significantly; we simply cant drop off or pick up fares properly when nothing moves.

Photo By Octavian Lacatusu

shrubs or any treatments on the sidewalks, Capano said. As challenging it may have been on the surface, it was worse beneath the road itself. A lot of the poles had overhead wiring, so it was very difficult to get Hydro onboard to do all the wiring underground to put a whole new pole system up, he said. But how do such behemoth projects

METROPOLIS MAGAZINE

Photos By Nicholas Pescod

METROPOLIS 18

By Deeanna Charrion
Consider, if you will, a subway station totally deserted and a throughway leading to nowhere. If you ever rode a streetcar with Frank Murphy, a 32-year TTC veteran driver, you have just entered The Twilight Zone. In the late 80s Murphy would do a commentary complete with flicking the lights on and off on either side of the streetcar by the ferry docks. Id get out of Union Station and do my routine, he said. At that time, Queens Quay station was just roughed in, so we werent stopping there to let people on or off because behind the doors it was just a solid wall; they hadnt built the station in there at all at that point in time. When construction crews were on site, Murphy would point them out to the passengers. I would tell them the people with the funny hats on were tunnel rats! Wave to them, theyre friendly. One day theyll find their way out, he said. Sure enough one of them did; he told his buddies and left a cardboard welcome sign. Murphy added that he wouldnt get anyone in trouble for his harmless commentary, but the passengers seem to enjoy it. TTC driver Frank Murphy is just one part of the picture when it comes to commuting by public transit on any given day in Toronto.

And why Murphys commentary when he could just collect his paycheque and go home? Murphy said he just started doing commentary the first day on the job after completing training. Keeps me awake, keeps them awake so they dont sleep past their stops sometimes, he said. You get people laughing (and) theyre not mad at you. Id like to think I bring a little ray of sunshine into everyones life just for the heck of it. Kyle Iannuzzi, a George Brown College student, travels nearly four hours from Rexdale to get to class on a regular basis. He says driver privileges and compensation have increased over the years; consequently some have become disengaged with the public. Their responsibilities have diminished and theyve become more secluded from the ridership, Iannuzzi said. He thinks as front-line employees, TTC drivers need to be more engaged. There are some lines I travel on where I feel like Im entering a jet flight. Im getting a lot of jokes from the operator, having fun and smiling on my ride. There should be some sort of recognition program to inspire that culture among the rest of the staff. Murphys commentaries earned a lot of attention, not just from his supervisors but through word

Smooth

Operator

Environment

Photo Courtesy of TTC TTC Chief General Manager Gary Webster presenting streetcar operating veteran, Frank Murphy, for his 30 years of service.

of mouth on the streetcar system. First it was a couple from New Zealand who called the TTC to see when I was down at Harbourfront. They heard the spiel ... People from Texas, Newfoundland, all over the place, wanted to hear it. Chris Upfold, TTCs chief customer service officer said when the TTC receives a compliment or a complaint about a driver, he follows up. Hes all for an engagement strategy if everyones on board. Chris Upfold In 2011, the TTC introduced a customer liaison panel and an employee liaison panel. Any journey to customer service I cant help unless all our employees

believe in the same thing, Upfold said. Upfold and Iannuzzi agree that when a positive commuter culture is built everything seems to fall into place. We have independent agents who have some good and difficult conversations with operators about this cultural transformation its a threeyear and up process, but we need something now to visibly demonstrate recognition. In the meantime, Murphy just wants to keep operating his favourite 509 streetcar line before retirement. His 64th birthday is in January. He needs to keep working right up to retirement to maintain drug coverage for his wifes diabetes medication. But he loves what he does and it shows. At Harbourfront I get best of both worlds: Beautiful ladies and sailboats, he said.

few years ago Daphne Flatt found an economical way to get her two children to school each day. The plan also allowed her to get to work and enjoy more quality time with her family. Carpooling saved my life, Flatt said. Without it, I wouldnt of been able to work. It wasnt easy. Working as a single parent, Flatt said private limo services and kiddie cabs werent affordable options, so she began discussing with other parents in arranging a possible carpool network. Twos a party and threes a crowd, but not to carpoolers. In fact, the more the merrier. Carpooling may be the best solution of a new age, but for others, a necessity. Working as an occupational therapist at North York General hospital, Flatt continues to rely on a carpooling network of friends, neighbours and parents. You sit down, you have a meeting and you have the kids meet one another because you want them to get along, then have the parents sit down and look at what accommodations they can make, she said. In such a scenario, Flatt outlined the importance of getting three people onboard in cases when someone cannot make the trip due to illness or otherwise. Either a parent is sick or a child is sick and that throws everything off. She said. So if there are three of you, one of the two would pick

up the rest. Always have a backup plan. But Daphne Flatts plan isnt the only way to carpool. There are organized carpooling networks such as Smart Commute Toronto, a ride-matching database involving 110,000 employees from 30 large properties and organizations in downtown Toronto. According to Marco Iacampo, senior environmental planner for City Hall and with Smart Commute, the service tries to match commuters in the same neighbourhood. You would provide your profile, the specifics of your commute and you can customize which parameters you are comfortable with, Iacampo said. Its a free service and it allows people to carpool to work on some small arrangement they decide which best fits them. Since 2008, Smart Commute has worked with health-care networks such as hospitals, providing support to dedicated carpoolers in the city. Weve worked with them and their parking management at hospitals in order to dedicate a certain number of spots for staff who have made the commitment to carpool to work, Iacampo said. He added carpoolers can make great use of diamond lanes or HOV (High Occupancy Vehicle) lanes throughout the GTA. Remarkably, carpooling has existed not only in reality, but also in the mythology of commuting in Toronto. The live-to-air seven-minute drama was called The Diamond Lane and was produced for CBC Radio in the 1990s. It featured three characters carpooling together everyday: Trish, an investor, Len, a travel agent and Rowan, an x-ray technician. Carpooling may be the solution of a new age, but for Running for three years, the 50-episode others, a dire necessity. BY OCTAVIAN LACATUSU series was broadcast during the turbulent Mike Harris days of budget downsizing.

Carpooling saved my life.

|

David S. Craig, the plawright for the weekly series, said he was compelled to create something positive during a difficult time. The city was so politically active. Everybody was talking about what was going on. It was a wonderful time to be writing in the city, Craig said. It was an incentive to tap into the energy that was already there and try to release that energy in a positive way. David S. Craig Craig believed the series added comedic value to the an otherwise serious topic. He recalled during one episode, only two of the trio were inside the car, yet found a way to remain in the diamond lane. They were travelling to work (and) one of the guys didnt come that day. But they needed three people to drive on the diamond lane, so they had this inflatable dummy pretending theyre three people, he said. But for Daphne Flatt, carpooling isnt a weekly radio play; its a way of life, as her 11- year-old daughter still carpools to school. It became an integral part of my life for several years and Im still carpooling today, Flatt said.

Photo by Octavian Lacatusu

A diamond lane north of Pape and Mortimer. Drivers with three or more passengers are encouraged to use the lane during peak hours.

METROPOLIS 20

Environment

Low-flying modern warfare

lying away for the holidays sounds like the perfect its not very economical either. getaway from all the hustle and bustle of Toronto. Coun. Vaughan agreed that the shuttle isnt increasing the Recently, Julius Brown booked a holiday flight. capacity of patrons to the airports, its just managing how they get And the Hertz Canada lead location manager to the ticket counter. considered taking off from Billy Bishop Island Airport I think its an extraordinarily expensive way of at the for of Bathurst Street. He soon realized taking off doing it but I also think if thats the governments priority from the smaller airport has its downside. to moving people in this part of the city then it serves the needs of a few at the expense of many. Its just too much hassle so I cancelled the Metrolinx Media Relations Malon Edwards said urban flight and booked from Pearson instead, Brown said. planners in Toronto have been talking about a dedicated Until they have better parking facilities for people to Julius Brown rail link to and from Pearson for the past 30 years. park and actually get to the island airport, it doesnt According to the Dow Jones, of 25 financial appeal to me. centres surveyed, Toronto is currently the only city that does not Suzanna Birchwood, director of ground operations at have an attractive public transportation link from the downtown Billy Bishop, said the island airport has improvements in mind core to its major international airport. such as adding ground staff to ensure traffic moves smoothly and The Air Rail Link (ARL) was included in Torontos changing the drop off/pick up locations to improve flow. bid for the Pan Am however, the ARL is not simply for the In 2005 there were 25,000 passengers using the Pan Am Games. Instead, we hope it will provide a transportation airport. Just this year there is that many at least in a week, legacy for the city, Edwards said. Birchwood said. Ward 20 Trinity-Spadina Coun. Adam Vaughan said Now that the dream is finally becoming a reality, we managing the island airports growing flyer base has been a will be cementing Torontos place as an important global centre. significant shock to the area. As soon as the ARL is operating, the Island Airport will Were trying to get a handle of their impact on the lose flyers very quickly, Vaughan said. community and thats our biggest challenge. The prediction was there would be 15 taxis an hour, but theyre closer to 90, Vaughan said. Its a very small street with a school and a community centre attached and its causing havoc with traffic flow infiltration into the surrounding communities and safety (problems) at the intersections. While it may only take minutes to get from downtown to the Island Airport, it can take easily take an hour from downtown to Pearson International 28 kilometres away. Driving from downtown, you just have to deal with the traffic and a TTC bus can easily take you two hours to get there, Brown said. There is an airport shuttle that goes to some of the hotels downtown for $21, but when youre a family of four travelling thats easily $100 after taxes so

at Billy Bishop Airport

Once you get a quick way to Pearson and compress the doorto-door delivery of your house to Pearson, youve given Pearson a massive competitive advantage so thats the end of the Island Airport, Vaughan said. He remembered a time when he arrived at Pearson at the same time as a colleague did at Billy Bishop. I was flying back on Westjet; he was flying back on Porter. He lives in Scarborough and I live downtown. I got home almost an hour-and-a-half earlier than him. Turning a 20-minute taxi ride into a 10-minute taxi ride and saving another 10 on the time it takes to get from your place of business if youre downtown. The difference between going to the island airport and going to Pearson is measured in minutes, not in hours, Vaughan said. Vaughan and Brown agree that Pearson is definitely faster especially if they leave at early in the morning Birchwood said given the popularity of the airport, it makes sense to build a pedestrian tunnel now, as the ferry is the only option to get to the island. While the 90-second ferry ride is efficient it can result in bottlenecks (on either side) as 150 people or more disembark at the same time. Birchwood said. A tunnel will allow a steady flow through customs on the island side and getting transportation back to the city on the mainland side.

Photos By Deeanna Charrion Mugshot Courtesy of Julius Brown

METROPOLIS

Via phone apps, social media and radio, the latest on the daily commute is never too far away.

Under control
By Octavian Lacatusu
As the day unfolds, for others like CBCs Jim Curran, a traffic reporter for 39 years, news travels fast. According to Curran, frequency and priority of traffic reports are key in every broadcast. We try to make our reports at every 10 minutes based on whats impacting the greatest number of people, he said. If the Gardiner Expressway was closed down to one lane during most of the rush hour, it would still be the top story on each report and then the newer stuff would fall in behind until the issue is solved, Curran said. Curran receives calls from motorists everyday; anything from accidents to construction. However, he explained the precision of the reports is by far the most critical. Error can leave listeners disoriented and upset. The report is only as good as the source. Sometimes it can be someone who is very keen to be helpful, but doesnt quite get it right, Curran said. If someone calls me on a cellphone and reports something on the 401, I try and repeat it back to them and rephrase it, just to make sure I get it right. Most information that traffic reporters and commuters use comes from the Ministry of

METROPOLIS 24

Technology

WATCHFUL EYES: One of MTOs command centres in Etobicoke monitors 400 series highways 24/7.

There is no way these apps will know exactly when things happen, because TTC first has to publish that information, and then it takes a bit of time for that information to get anywhere near these apps, Bor said. Unless you are at the scene when things happen, there is no way to know for sure; you just have to adjust accordingly. When time is running out and lanes are full and buses are packed, commuters turn to technology for a way through. Some look at their phones for travel updates. Others look at electronic signs above their heads on freeways to see whats up ahead. Bor added that at times when apps fail, hell turn to Google Maps to plan out a quicker route through the city. I usually choose the lesser of two evils and pick the best route, but its only so much you can do, he said.

elcuk Bor, an audio producer in Toronto, navigates his commute using phone apps such as iGO to reach his clients on the TTC. He says better timing of these apps would help.

Transportations services, such as COMPASS. The COMPASS system, launched in 1991, is an amalgam of cameras, electronic signs and loops of sensors underneath roads; the systems feeds information into a computer via fiber optical cables. Originally just 16 kilometres long, today the system has expanded to 80 km, with a total of 3,000 sensors on Highway 401 alone. Phil Masters is head of MTOs advanced traffic management system and COMPASS. He said that nearly all detector stations contain two sensor loops per lane and they determine what the travel time is for each segment of the highway. We get an average speed for each of these sections, then we compare those average speeds and determine whether the traffic is moving well, slow or very slow. All this data is then calculated by a computer algorithm every 20 seconds, he said. After data are processed by operators and the monitoring station, information is fed into the computer which creates the appropriate messages shown on electronic Variable Message Signs (VMS). Masters explained that the computer can sometimes detect an anomaly on roads and take action, free of human interference.

The report is only as good as the source. -Jim Curran

Any time there is a change, the computer changes the sign automatically. We have a priority list in the messages, the highest priority is an accident message. That algorithm runs in the background 24/7, he said. VMS signs have operated for nearly 10 years. According to Masters, in the early 2000s queues at near the Peace Bridge would stretch up to 10 kilometres, resulting in fatalities. Youd get someone whos a little bit tired and doesnt realize theres a truck stopped in his or her lane until the last minute. Now we have VMS signs that tell you if there is a queue and how far it is so that youre more prepared, he said. Data are continually transferred to COMPASSs Traffic Road Information System (TRIS) which provides information to media and motorists. Information eventually trickles down into phone apps and social media such as Twitter. This however, may not be particularly beneficial or safe, according to traffic reporter Curran. If you get a caution on your cell phone screen, you dont want to be distracted by reading something on handheld while youre driving on the 401, he said.

Photo by Octavian Lacatusu

METROPOLIS 26 ers. The project will bring 80 per cent of the GTAs population within two kilometres of rapid transit. By Nicholas M. Pescod Metrolinx Nicholas Pescod A SMART Presto spokesperson card pays fare akville resident Jon Maur is just with ease. Drew Davidson one of a growing number of comsaid in an email interview, that The muters using a Presto smartcard to Big Move project treats transit in pay for transit. Maurs daily comthe GTA as a one unified region. mute involves taking the Oakville Davidson said that one in four trips Transit bus and then the GO train across the GTA crosses a municipal to Union Station. He switched to boundary and that over 57 million the smartcard because it elimipeople use GO Transit per year. nated the need for a monthly pass Urban planner and chair of the and cash in his wallet. Its great, Get Toronto Moving Committee, Maur said. I dont have to carry James Alcock said Presto needs to change anymore and I was always be fully implemented to it be effecrunning out of coins. tive. Im all for the Presto card. Presto began in May of 2010 Its a great start, Alcock said. But and is a smartcard fare system that its no good if I can use it on one commuters use to pay for multiple route, but then I cant use it when I transit agencies across the Greater transfer onto another route. Toronto Area. However, the ToAlcock said that Ontario should ronto Transit Commission only adopt Hong Kongs smartcard syshas Presto machines installed at tem because it would reduce line12 subway stations including ups at ticket booths and proUnion and Bloor-Yonge. vide maximum convenience Users register the card and for users.It would be similar add money to it when needed. to buying a transit fare on a Before boarding or riding, current debit or credit card, users simply swipe or tap the Alcock said. The transit fare card in front of a designated would be deducted right off Presto machine. A Presto the card from swiping or tapPresto is just one part of the Machine ping it like a Presto card. massive transit plan by MetroAlcock added one of the linx called The Big Move. It will biggest issues regarding transit in see transit systems across the GTA the GTA commuters face is that working together to provide efmany of the neighbouring transit ficient transportation for commutagencies do not align their sched-

SMARTER

Technology
ules to fit with GO Transit or surrounding transit. That makes Presto less effective. London (England) is about four times the size of Toronto and yet I was able to commute from suburb to suburb without using a car, Alcock said. Everything in London was totally integrated. With the use of subways, buses and commuter trains as one big network there is efficient transit. Fermin Pico, business systems manager for MiWay Transit in Mississauga, said Presto is improving commuting across the GTA by giving users the ability to pay on any transit system with one card. Customers who need to transfer from one city to another, get the biggest advantage because its an easier way to pay, Pico said. The value of Presto is better if you use it with another transit agency as well. The smartcard fare system gives transit agencies better control over fare collection than ever before. For us, Presto is easier to manage because its an automated fare system, Pico said. We still use fare boxes, but those require a high level of maintenance. Presto cards have a feature that allows users who dont have enough money on their cards to take one last trip. The additional fare is added onto the card when the user reloads the card. Pesto provides users with the flexibility that monthly passes dont provide. If you know you are going to have a week off work, then it doesnt make sense to buy a monthly pass, Maur said.

TO PAY

WAY
O

Signalling Change
By Deeanna Charrion
A commuter runs out of the Fairmount Royal York to the sidewalk on Front Street. Hes late for a flight out of Pearson Airport. To make matters worse, its four o clock at the beginning of the afternoon rush. He jumps into a taxi operated by Owen Leach, who has helped commuters in these hectic circumstances for 35 years. He can drive his passengers to the airport in half an hour, but it may take longer depending on the density of traffic. Some people are conscious of the traffic and arent worried about it, but youll get the few who are and they create some tension, Leach said. (They say), I would take Lakeshore and see if I can get around it and not go to the traffic jam on Jarvis, York Street or Spadina. Leach keeps hitting red lights that bring the taxi to a halt every couple of blocks. The passenger gets flustered that hell miss his plane. He wonders why theyre slowed by red lights. Rajnath Bissessar is the manager of the Urban Traffic Control System, a main computer at Torontos Traffic Management Centre (TMC). He said its possible to hit green lights consistently if you move at the right speed. We do try to signal co-ordinate so you can get (a series of green lights) if you drive at the posted speed. Were not saying its perfect progression throughout the city, but there are some routes that are better than some, Bissessar said. The experienced taxi driver believes its best to take a direct route before passengers get suspicious. I dont like to drive and make lots of turns or take passengers on a side road too much because they might think youre going for a joyride, Leach said. Leach also explained that by variable in his travels that theres less room on the road but more activity due to road reconstruction. According to the City of Torontos current road restrictions map, there are 44 restrictions as a result of road refurbishing in the downtown area that will slow traffic. The traffic situation of recent times has been aggravated by the recent road construction in principle and the work that was done on St. Clair over a period of time in regards to a streetcar line, he said. All city traffic cars, trucks, buses has to share the roadways with streetcars. Brad Ross, TTCs director of corporate communications said the streetcar network is subject to the same traffic signal system as other vehicles. Along certain routes, such as St. Clair and Spadina Avenues, streetcars have transit priority signalling and the stops are located just before or after an intersection so there are no hold-ups at green lights. The right-of-way has sensors in the ground that sense a streetcar is there and the traffic signal systems cycle through, Ross said. If it senses a streetcar is there and the light is about to go amber, it will hold a green to ensure the streetcar can get through the intersection and then the signal will turn amber and then red so then east-west traffic can proceed. However, there is TTC equipment on the streetcar lines that interferes with the Main Traffic Signal System

METROPOLIS 28
(MTSS) on Queen and King streets. Senior traffic engineer at TMC Linda Lee said extra green time is given to intersections traversed by streetcars and that affects the co-ordination of 300 traffic lights. That means the green light in the other direction will be reduced time for cars and pedestrians to go through the intersection. Once (the streetcar has) left, the signal has to ... get back to what it should be doing normally, Lee said. TMC is in the midst of switching from MTSS, an old legacy system that has been operating since the 1960s, to a new sophisticated traffic light control system called TransSuite, also used in New York City. Lee said the benefit of TranSuite system is that it provides left-turn phasing that allows for more time for cars to turn. It is expected to be fully converted and better coordinated by 2014. Different types of controllers are being used now with smarter sensors in the field. It can provide extensions where one car would trigger the sensor for different phases. In the past on MTSS, for instance, a left-turn phase would be triggered by a car on the sensor; it would bring up a set amount of a predetermined time of about seven seconds, Lee said. Leachs passenger, by the way, paid around $60 and rushed from the car at 4:45 p.m. Although there were twists and turns, the cabbie saved the day again. Its best to take a route thats pretty direct. If traffic is a bit heavy, I can run them up to the airport in half-hour, but I do not guarantee it.

Technology

Photo By Deeanna Charrion

Photo By Octavian Lacatusu

eyes off the road for more than two seconds are twice as likely to be been driving nearly every single involved in a crash. day since the age of 16. His daily While he realizes and commute is about 45 minutes long understands the dangers involved from Oakville, Ont., to Brampton, Ont. During that time he often texts with texting and driving, Luhovy still does it. while he drives. All the time basically, but On average, I send about 50 mostly when I commute, text messages during my daily Luhovy said. More so when commute, he said. I have the I am bored in the car and keys pretty much all figured out by when I am sitting in traffic. feel, so I can text without looking Ontario banned the use down at the screen. of hand-held devices while The Ontario Highway Traffic Act driving in October of 2009, states that the use of any hand-held but police gave motorists only a device while driving is illegal and warning until last February when those who are caught are subject to officers began issuing tickets. a $155 fine. Sgt. Dennis Falcioni, head of the According to the Ontario traffic unit at 11 Division for Peel Ministry of Transportations Regional Police, said that most website, drivers who take their people are aware of the law. I see people using them all the time, he said. I feel that a lot of people just play the odds. On average Falcionis traffic Photo By Nicholas Pescod unit issues about A Peel Regional Police car sits on Dundas Street West. 12 tickets a day for

For Phillip Luhovy, 22, has

DistracteD iNG riV D

By Nicholas M. Pescod
distracted driving. When it comes to issuing tickets to motorists caught for distracted driving, the process is simple, according to Falcioni. We tell them that there are a high number of accidents caused by distracted driving, he said. Its explained to them that if there were to be an accident or any other extenuating circumstances, that a careless driving charge would be applied. The divisional traffic unit officers are assigned to patrol high problem areas within the boundaries of 11 Division, such as the intersection of Erin Mills Road and Dundas Street. He explained that even eating and driving is still a form of distracted driving, but that it is less serious than those who are texting or using a cellular phone. If every car had a hands free device this wouldnt be a problem, Falcioni said. Even though most motorists are aware of the law, he believes there hasnt been much of change since ban on hand-held devices took

METROPOLIS 30 effect. Personally, I have not seen a significant difference, Falcioni said. A lot of people cant help themselves. Founder of Drop It and Drive (DIAD) and a victim of distracted driving, Karen Bowman believes her program can make a difference when it comes to distracted driving. Over 20 years ago Bowman was in two car accidents that both involved distracted drivers and in 2010 her daughter was also in an accident and received neck and head injuries. My daughter got hit, she said. For me its very personal. Drop It and Drive is a program she began in Surrey, B.C., and other parts of British Columbia. Its designed to raise awareness about the dangers of distracted driving, particularly texting and driving.
Photograph Provided By Karen Bowman ACCIDENT: The remains of a demonstration car displayed to teenagers in British Columbia to show the very real dangerous of distracted driving. Distracted driving claims the lives of more and more people each year according to Karen Bowman.

Technology
Its like an addiction.
- Sgt. Dennis Falcioni

However DIAD specifically targets young drivers and students between the ages of 10 and 20. If we can reach the teens now, Bowman said. When they start driving we hope they can have the same approach to texting and driving as we do to drinking and driving. DIAD began in November of 2010. Bowman was able to partner with the Surrey Firefighters, Surrey RCMP and Young Drivers Canada. Together they put together a powerful and graphic presentation about the dangers involved with distracted driving. The presentation includes photographs and news stories of fatal car accidents caused by distracted

drivers. I am putting news stories and photos in front of them that are very recent, she said. Its all very interactive. For DIAD reaching the younger generation is important so that young drivers become proactive. Bowmans program has captured the attention of police forces across North America, including the Toronto Police Service. Sgt. Timothy Burrows, of the Toronto Police Service, said their members often share information with DIAD that helps raise awareness about distracted driving. Despite the efforts put forth by Bowman, Falcioni believes that drivers are not getting the message. I think to an extent texting and driving is just as dangerous as drinking and driving, he said. Its like an addiction.

METROPOLIS