Topic: This morning's commute was soooo bad...

[Scaerio]

Why anyone would voluntarily choose to live anywhere in the area of the GTA completely eludes me. 

Downtown Toronto is way more LBGT+ friendly than most other places in Canada, for example...

[Railton]

Why anyone would voluntarily choose to live anywhere in the area of the GTA completely eludes me. 

All big cities have their traffic problems. I lived in Ottawa for ~15 years or so. Traffic there was crazy bad given the size of the city - too many retired civil servants. I'm sure Montreal is just as bad although I've not lived there.
Railton

[ktm525]

Ottawa is a big city?

edit: just looked at the wiki. Holy crap Ottawa is north of a million people now? No wonder my taxes are so high...

[Scaerio]

Ottawa is a big city?

edit: just looked at the wiki. Holy crap Ottawa is north of a million people now? No wonder my taxes are so high...

Ottawa plus Gatineau is about 1.3 million.  If it weren’t for the provinces going apeshite about the loss of tax base, it would be better to run the NCR like D.C., with one mayor, one city council, one transit system...

[tpl]

Why anyone would voluntarily choose to live anywhere in the area of the GTA completely eludes me. 

Because it is the only good sized city in the country and believe it or not, some of us are just city people and like the crowds.
I lived in downtown TO for 30 years and still miss it as a place to live.     

It is expected to grow by another 2-3 million over the next 20 years...some people say.

[sailor723]

Why anyone would voluntarily choose to live anywhere in the area of the GTA completely eludes me. 

Because it is the only good sized city in the country and believe it or not, some of us are just city people and like the crowds.
I lived in downtown TO for 30 years and still miss it as a place to live.     

It is expected to grow by another 2-3 million over the next 20 years...some people say.

IDK....I just find Toronto boring.....flat with miles and miles of nasty urban sprawl. OTOH, I could see myself living in Vancouver if I was to move to a major urban center.

Drive 20-30 out of Vancouver and you're in the mountains or on a beautiful ocean coastline....drive 20-30 minutes out of Toronto and you're in...Mississauga.   

[Great_Big_Abyss]

Why anyone would voluntarily choose to live anywhere in the area of the GTA completely eludes me. 

Because it is the only good sized city in the country and believe it or not, some of us are just city people and like the crowds.
I lived in downtown TO for 30 years and still miss it as a place to live.     

It is expected to grow by another 2-3 million over the next 20 years...some people say.

IDK....I just find Toronto boring.....flat with miles and miles of nasty urban sprawl. OTOH, I could see myself living in Vancouver if I was to move to a major urban center.

Drive 20-30 out of Vancouver and you're in the mountains or on a beautiful ocean coastline....drive 20-30 minutes out of Toronto and you're in...Mississauga.   

Same goes for Calgary.  You're an hour away from big mountains.

[pi314]

More lanes would help.  People get frustrated not being able to pass trucks for miles on end and start to do stupid things.

There is so much more traffic on the 401 now, and especially in the summer, that any hiccup causes a chain reaction.

This.  There was a time when driving to visit family in QC was reasonably pleasant, if you picked the right time of day to get on the 401.  Now, I only take mandatory trips to Montreal.  Even driving on the QEW in the daytime on a weekday is a bit sketchy, thanks to the large number of transport trucks on the road.  Claustrophobic, really, especially in wee Miss Peanut.

I've switched to taking the train for most trips to the GTA from Ottawa now. Way more pleasant. Most of the time I don't even need to rent a car, I'll just borrow one from family if it's not an inconvenience.

Why anyone would voluntarily choose to live anywhere in the area of the GTA completely eludes me. 

All big cities have their traffic problems. I lived in Ottawa for ~15 years or so. Traffic there was crazy bad given the size of the city - too many retired civil servants. I'm sure Montreal is just as bad although I've not lived there.
Railton

Ottawa traffic isn't nearly as bad, as long as you can avoid the 417WB between 3 and 6 pm. I just have been lucky enough to go against traffic so far  . LRT should help.

[OliverD]

More lanes would help.  People get frustrated not being able to pass trucks for miles on end and start to do stupid things.

There is so much more traffic on the 401 now, and especially in the summer, that any hiccup causes a chain reaction.

This.  There was a time when driving to visit family in QC was reasonably pleasant, if you picked the right time of day to get on the 401.  Now, I only take mandatory trips to Montreal.  Even driving on the QEW in the daytime on a weekday is a bit sketchy, thanks to the large number of transport trucks on the road.  Claustrophobic, really, especially in wee Miss Peanut.

I've switched to taking the train for most trips to the GTA from Ottawa now. Way more pleasant. Most of the time I don't even need to rent a car, I'll just borrow one from family if it's not an inconvenience.

How long does the train take and how much does it cost? Do the trains have wifi?

[pi314]

More lanes would help.  People get frustrated not being able to pass trucks for miles on end and start to do stupid things.

There is so much more traffic on the 401 now, and especially in the summer, that any hiccup causes a chain reaction.

This.  There was a time when driving to visit family in QC was reasonably pleasant, if you picked the right time of day to get on the 401.  Now, I only take mandatory trips to Montreal.  Even driving on the QEW in the daytime on a weekday is a bit sketchy, thanks to the large number of transport trucks on the road.  Claustrophobic, really, especially in wee Miss Peanut.

I've switched to taking the train for most trips to the GTA from Ottawa now. Way more pleasant. Most of the time I don't even need to rent a car, I'll just borrow one from family if it's not an inconvenience.

How long does the train take and how much does it cost? Do the trains have wifi?

Depends on when you book. Can be as low as $80 return if you book early enough. Average I'd say is 100 - $150. Business class is great if the difference is small - it includes booze and food

Trains typically take between 4.5-5.25 hours depending on number of stops.

[OliverD]

More lanes would help.  People get frustrated not being able to pass trucks for miles on end and start to do stupid things.

There is so much more traffic on the 401 now, and especially in the summer, that any hiccup causes a chain reaction.

This.  There was a time when driving to visit family in QC was reasonably pleasant, if you picked the right time of day to get on the 401.  Now, I only take mandatory trips to Montreal.  Even driving on the QEW in the daytime on a weekday is a bit sketchy, thanks to the large number of transport trucks on the road.  Claustrophobic, really, especially in wee Miss Peanut.

I've switched to taking the train for most trips to the GTA from Ottawa now. Way more pleasant. Most of the time I don't even need to rent a car, I'll just borrow one from family if it's not an inconvenience.

How long does the train take and how much does it cost? Do the trains have wifi?

Depends on when you book. Can be as low as $80 return if you book early enough. Average I'd say is 100 - $150. Business class is great if the difference is small - it includes booze and food

Trains typically take between 4.5-5.25 hours depending on number of stops.

That seems pretty reasonable.

I paid something like 3 Euro to upgrade to first class for our Madrid - Barcelona train recently and it was well worth it but because it was Saturday there was no food service.

[Fobroader]

Why anyone would voluntarily choose to live anywhere in the area of the GTA completely eludes me. 

Hallefreakinglujah!! I couldn't imagine living downtown anywhere, I don't care if its Paris, Tokyo, Saskatoon or Toronto....no thank you. Way too people-y for me thanks. The thought of living in a busy downtown in an apartment is about the closest to hell I can think of.

[OliverD]

Why anyone would voluntarily choose to live anywhere in the area of the GTA completely eludes me. 

Hallefreakinglujah!! I couldn't imagine living downtown anywhere, I don't care if its Paris, Tokyo, Saskatoon or Toronto....no thank you. Way too people-y for me thanks. The thought of living in a busy downtown in an apartment is about the closest to hell I can think of.

Different strokes and all that.

Friends of ours just moved to Montreal and live right on Notre Dame West, a ten minute walk from the Bell Centre. They love being walking distance to all sorts of great bars and restaurants, shopping, etc.

If you have to live in or near a big city, you might as well live somewhere where you can take advantage of the big city amenities instead of living the hell that is commuting from some far-flung suburb.

[Fobroader]

Why anyone would voluntarily choose to live anywhere in the area of the GTA completely eludes me. 

Hallefreakinglujah!! I couldn't imagine living downtown anywhere, I don't care if its Paris, Tokyo, Saskatoon or Toronto....no thank you. Way too people-y for me thanks. The thought of living in a busy downtown in an apartment is about the closest to hell I can think of.

Different strokes and all that.

Friends of ours just moved to Montreal and live right on Notre Dame West, a ten minute walk from the Bell Centre. They love being walking distance to all sorts of great bars and restaurants, shopping, etc.

If you have to live in or near a big city, you might as well live somewhere where you can take advantage of the big city amenities instead of living the hell that is commuting from some far-flung suburb.

Nope, I would rather take the LRT or an uber in the few times a year we go a hockey game/concert rather than have to put up with downtown on a daily basis. Different strokes and all that, but I can see zero upsides to living downtown short of being able to walk to work....that is if you like being accosted by bums.

[dkaz]

What a morning. My dog wanted up at 6am so had to deal with that. Went back to sleep. It’s 7:50am, might go make some tea and the commute 10 steps to the fire pit to make a campfire. Tough life this is.

[OliverD]

Why anyone would voluntarily choose to live anywhere in the area of the GTA completely eludes me. 

Hallefreakinglujah!! I couldn't imagine living downtown anywhere, I don't care if its Paris, Tokyo, Saskatoon or Toronto....no thank you. Way too people-y for me thanks. The thought of living in a busy downtown in an apartment is about the closest to hell I can think of.

Different strokes and all that.

Friends of ours just moved to Montreal and live right on Notre Dame West, a ten minute walk from the Bell Centre. They love being walking distance to all sorts of great bars and restaurants, shopping, etc.

If you have to live in or near a big city, you might as well live somewhere where you can take advantage of the big city amenities instead of living the hell that is commuting from some far-flung suburb.

Nope, I would rather take the LRT or an uber in the few times a year we go a hockey game/concert rather than have to put up with downtown on a daily basis. Different strokes and all that, but I can see zero upsides to living downtown short of being able to walk to work....that is if you like being accosted by bums.

Being accosted by bums is more or less a made up problem. Might happen on occasion but on its own is hardly a strong enough disincentive not to live somewhere.

[Great_Big_Abyss]

Why anyone would voluntarily choose to live anywhere in the area of the GTA completely eludes me. 

Hallefreakinglujah!! I couldn't imagine living downtown anywhere, I don't care if its Paris, Tokyo, Saskatoon or Toronto....no thank you. Way too people-y for me thanks. The thought of living in a busy downtown in an apartment is about the closest to hell I can think of.

Different strokes and all that.

Friends of ours just moved to Montreal and live right on Notre Dame West, a ten minute walk from the Bell Centre. They love being walking distance to all sorts of great bars and restaurants, shopping, etc.

If you have to live in or near a big city, you might as well live somewhere where you can take advantage of the big city amenities instead of living the hell that is commuting from some far-flung suburb.

Nope, I would rather take the LRT or an uber in the few times a year we go a hockey game/concert rather than have to put up with downtown on a daily basis. Different strokes and all that, but I can see zero upsides to living downtown short of being able to walk to work....that is if you like being accosted by bums.

Being accosted by bums is more or less a made up problem. Might happen on occasion but on its own is hardly a strong enough disincentive not to live somewhere.

I thought you used to live in Winnipeg.  It's a pretty big problem here. 

[OliverD]

When I was a kid.

[pi314]

Yeah I'm definitely ignoring late trains, which I probably shouldn't with VIA's on-time performance  . I've found similar variance in driving times these days though.

[Fobroader]

Why anyone would voluntarily choose to live anywhere in the area of the GTA completely eludes me. 

Hallefreakinglujah!! I couldn't imagine living downtown anywhere, I don't care if its Paris, Tokyo, Saskatoon or Toronto....no thank you. Way too people-y for me thanks. The thought of living in a busy downtown in an apartment is about the closest to hell I can think of.

Different strokes and all that.

Friends of ours just moved to Montreal and live right on Notre Dame West, a ten minute walk from the Bell Centre. They love being walking distance to all sorts of great bars and restaurants, shopping, etc.

If you have to live in or near a big city, you might as well live somewhere where you can take advantage of the big city amenities instead of living the hell that is commuting from some far-flung suburb.

Nope, I would rather take the LRT or an uber in the few times a year we go a hockey game/concert rather than have to put up with downtown on a daily basis. Different strokes and all that, but I can see zero upsides to living downtown short of being able to walk to work....that is if you like being accosted by bums.

Being accosted by bums is more or less a made up problem. Might happen on occasion but on its own is hardly a strong enough disincentive not to live somewhere.

The city council, in all its wisdom, stuck some sort of homeless shelter/drop in center right by the new hockey arena. Forget about the constant fights and garbage, but the amount of aggressive bums asking for smokes/money is ridiculous. I couldn't imagine living in any of the "high end" apartment buildings that sprung up all over the place around there.