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The TPL is really one of those things that Toronto does better than anyone else. It's something that makes us unique and something to be proud of. But, sure, let's cut it.

I went to a library once and it was literally packed with so many people I could not move. Also every person I know has two library cards. There. Now your anecdotal evidence is cancelled out. (Also: people using computers at a library is a good thing. It's one of the more important services...

No, and we have no mechanism for impeachment or recall either. Unless Ford is convicted of a crime or is found to have willfully overspent on his mayoral campaign, he will be mayor until at least 2014. That said, he'd have very little power if he lost the support of a majority of councillors...

Re: Atwood. The really disturbing thing was Doug Ford dismissing her defence of libraries and saying she should get elected if she wants to have a say about them. And, yes, it's just the general ignorance of Toronto culture that's unfortunate. David Miller equivocations aren't really workable...

To be fair, the last couple of weeks have seen horrendous streetcar service due to construction at Bathurst. I take your point, though, that these kinds of East-West trips are not served well at current levels.

Toronto's library system costs the average taxpayer about $100 per year, and provides a ton of benefit to this city. It's recognized as the busiest library system in the world, and continues to get busier every year. This is not where I would go to look for savings.

Presto is supposed to sort out all those fare boundary issues but Metrolinx has been very quiet about specifics on how this will work. I'd speculate that it's because they're working on a region-wide fare-by-distance scheme and they don't want that turned into a political football. ("Dalton...

For those who haven't seen it yet, I put together an edited & annotated version of Rob Ford's interview with CP24 from Friday: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bbb_NOpqGY More notes on the interview here...

I'm no fan of the 905 but there's a big difference between the planners who facilitated the suburban sprawl of the suburbs and the people who live there, many of whom -- especially these days -- are immigrants or middle-class types w/ kids who are priced out of downtown living. Transit, long...

Councillor James Pasternak, a new guy but a staunch Ford ally, said yesterday that he would not support any library closures. Councillor Jaye Robinson, who's in a similar situation, retweeted something from Shelley Carroll today which indicated support for the Toronto Atmospheric Fund. Both...

This is a functional/operational problem more than it is something necessarily inherent to streetcar operation. If, for example, we gave the TTC more authority when it comes to keeping their tracks clear, I think you'd see these kinds of significant delays eliminated almost overnight...

Purposefully making it more challenging to traverse the city by car is a bad idea, but often the cheapest and most immediately-beneficial solutions to facilitate alternative mobility (on-street transit, bike lanes, etc.) necessitate sacrificing some roadspace currently used by motor vehicles.

The rumblings about a split between Ford and Stintz are interesting as she absolutely had mayoral ambitions at one point. Though she was totally drinking the Kool-Aid last week with her terrible "Think of the mother who has to miss dinner with her children because of GRIDLOCK" speech supporting...

Carroll still probably has the best shot at 2014 -- assuming that we don't see a schism with the right that leads to Ford getting challenged by a more-principled conservative candidate -- but I was so impressed by the way Kristyn Wong-Tam handled both the Mayor-at-Pride controversy and the...

Property taxes are the worst kind of taxation -- they don't rise with inflation or growth, forcing fiscally responsible governments to face the media hit of a "tax grab" every year. They're also inherently regressive with no real exemptions or deductions like you see with income tax. Punishing...

Sharrows were considered as part of the orig. 2009 EA for Jarvis Street that would have seen the sidewalks widened and the street reduced to four traffic lanes. An idea worth revisiting, but unfortunately this council threw out that EA (again) and is returning the roadway to its five-lane operation.

I appreciate your honesty, actually. There's been the assumption from some in the media that Ford voters will support their man no matter what he does, so it's nice to know that that's not universally true.

I don't really buy that argument. Well-used cycling infrastructure on Sherbourne would have a gentrifying effect, if anything, adding a lot more eyes on the street. The greater concern is that Jarvis gets removed and the protected Sherbourne lanes never happen, leaving us with no good...

The reversible lane was ugly, didn't have significant impacts on travel times -- especially compared to a possible arrangement that would have dedicated left-turn lanes -- and made for a hostile pedestrian experience, as noted in a 2005 traffic study. It also resulted in lane widths narrower...

Very much so. It's unfortunate that some people can't see past the bike lanes. Also, while council may have endorsed in principle a plan for a separate network of bike lanes, I'm very skeptical that they'll actually deliver on much. Sherbourne maybe, but can really imagine the Fords...