Wednesday’s headlines

8 comments

1. Re: the sidewalk clearing article in the star – When did the citizens of this city become so concerned about walking in some snow…don’t get me wrong if a huge snowfall comes down sure the walk may need to be cleared…but some people want it free of snow and ice..almost like it never snowed. The truth is this is Canada..it snows, ice forms and areas get slippery..deal with it, walk carefully and don’t blame someone else for not putting pounds of salt on the walk or not clearing it right away and don’t expect the city to do it..let them focus on the roads..they have a hard enough time doing that. Lastly,a bit off topic but along the same lines, the use of salt has to be curbed. Salt should never be used on sidewalks in the city and the use of less salt on the road wouldn’t be a bad thing either. We are concerned with pesticides going into the Lake-our drinking water but some how we think its OK to let tonnes of salt wash into lakes and streams.
   Please in the new year…use less salt, complain less about snow on the sidewalk and walk safely.
   happy new year

2. Agreeing with you, ryan. We could use sand more on sidewalks and roads or just plain “chill” about it.

   I know the salt is to make it melt but it usually melts in 2 or 3 days anyway nowadays. If you have lived in other parts of this country it’s laughable how freaked out the locals here get over frozen water that falls from the skies, especially considering how long it lasts.

   HNY

3. i agree with the sentiments about using less salt, but i think it’s asinine for people not to shovel their stretch of sidewalk or make arrangements for someone else to do it, especially businesses. i can’t believe these comments considering all the previous belly-aching on this site about clearing bike lanes.

   an unshovelled walk might be fine for young, able-bodied people without strollers, but for a significant proportion of the population it’s a problem. it becomes more of a problem as an unshovelled sidewalk gets slushy and then refreezes every few days, or if there are multiple storms one after the other. show some care for your neighbours and fellow citizens and don’t just think about yourselves.

4. ..don’t expect the city to do it..let them focus on the roads..
   Ahem. Spoken like a motorist who does little if any walking. Hello. Let’s all focus on your private peeve and ignore something that affects far more. Motor vehicles have a much larger imprint on the environment than pedestrians yet you are suggest resources be denied pedestrians for the benefit of motorists?
   Why?

5. Ahh, the ever present “I’m not from Toronto so this is why Toronto sucks…” post. Cant have a post about snow without it. So weak.

   “…If you have lived in other parts of this country it’s laughable how freaked out the locals here get over frozen water that falls from the skies…”

   *sigh*

   There isn’t a lot of places for city snow to go. it build up fast and hangs around. In the city almost every surface is either cleared or piled high, we have to move it all and we don’t have endless pastures and dormant fields to house it.

   Toronto already suffers from bad traffic congestion even with the best of weather, when snow falls it throws the roads into chaos. Most city drivers don’t have 4 wheel drive. Sure the city does their best to remove new snow promptly but there are still quite a few days a year that driving without 4×4 is tough, even for the most experienced drivers. Outside cities in heavily snowed areas 4×4 is more the norm. My family now lives on a lake that is inaccessible without 4×4 in the winter.

   The truth is that every major metropolis in the north gets nuts when it snows because it really jams things up. Toronto, Boston, NY, Chicago, Philly, it’ all the same. You don’t like it move back to whatever joke of a town you call(ed) home. Quit your smug jabs at our city, millions have done it and all better than you.

6. Do you have a window, easy? (appropriate handle, btw). Have a look outside. Don’t know where you are but as of yesterday, the view from my window revealed about 98% of the recent multiple snowfalls had melted away and beautiful, bare, walkable, drivable concrete abounded. Today there’s a thin coat of fresh snow which passing vehicles have already worn away from the street.

   You seem to have bought into the snowmageddon hysteria as well as the SUV mentality, i.e. “I have a right to drive anywhere at anytime under any conditions and my tax dollars must be spent instantaneously obliterating snow as soon as it falls to enable me to do so.”

   Nobody said Toronto sucks, just panicky pussies like you who make us look bad.

7. Geoffrey to clarify..I not was advocating that roads should be cleared so drivers like myself; yes I commute, unfortunately, but usually have at least two other colleagues in the car with me while we make our way to environment canada in downsview. to tell you the truth I’d prefer if they didn’t clear the roads at all. I have more fun driving there and it keeps more cars off the road and puts more people on transit, I know cause when the really big dumps come I jump on the rocket and make my way north instead dealing with the chaos…like most in the city I would love to see the day that sidewalks are cleared first then bike lanes along with major arteries for essential services..everything else should be “as time permits” i hope that clears up that issue..
   my big beef is really the salt issue…use less! or like justin wrote we wait a few days and we’ll see conditions clear and all the bitching will be for nothing at least till the next flurries..
   lastly, lets keep the jabs about whats environmentally friendly and whats not to a minimum..I think most of here know whats what otherwise we wouldn’t be here reading such articles and keeping on top of urban issues.
   happy new year to all.

8. Ryan & Justin,

   As jeeff mentioned, what you consider a minor inconvenience, many others find a fundamental obstacle to accessing the basic necessities of life. Consider yourself fortunate that you can both drive and get around easily on your own two feet. The next time we get a big snow, come downtown and watch as people in wheelchairs, scooters, walkers, and physical challenges do their best to navigate the snow and ice to get to the grocery store, doctors’ office, and workplace. Then think about all of the people who aren’t out and about, who are literally trapped inside. Sidewalk clearing is an issue of equity. “Accessibility” is a human rights issue. Snowfalls may not have changed, but our standards for human rights have, and as we attempt to make our structures and systems more accessible to all, snow and ice present a permanent challenge that has to be dealt with.

   I am also concerned about the environmental impacts of the toxic salt we use to address this problem, but simply leaving the snow and ice there is not the solution. Sugar beets might be a better alternative: http://blog.mlive.com/watershedwatch/2007/12/beet_juice_combating_ice_on_fr.html
   However the cost of alternatives seems to be the biggest impediment to the pursuit of a solution that is both eco-friendly and socially just: http://www.thestar.com/printArticle/308533
   Again, it’s time to demand more from our municipal government. There’s no reason why people and the planet need to be pit against each other in this particular battle.