Filip, judging by your posts it appears that living at Humber Bay is more frustrating than it's worth. There is not a single transportation option at that's good enough for you (and perhaps rightfully so). Please do us a favour and move somewhere else, so that we don't have to listen to your rants even couple weeks.
I've lived here for 17 years. Why would I move?
I have to listen to your LRTista fetish rants almost daily, so please spare me the victim complex.
Just buy a car and you can stop complaining about streetcars.
I have one and I use it exclusively for my off-peak driving. Two rules I have:
1) No commuting to work (downtown) using my car
2) No drunk driving (this one is self explanatory and explains my recent adventure with the TTC)
I think that traffic jam at Humber Bay is even more rage-worthy.
What traffic jam? The only jam is being caused by the road works at the Park Lawn/Lake Shore intersection, otherwise smooth sailing.
So re: better transit for Humber Bay Shores. I don't feel like you'll ever get good, fast, reliable transit into downtown from Humber Bay Shores with the 501 streetcar. Yes, you can improve service, but it will always be slow and vulnerable to traffic. Same thing with a bus, it will always be slow, unreliable and stuck in traffic.
Yet the GO Lakeshore line is within a 15 min walk of most of the condos in the area, a GO line with all day two way 30 min service and will likely get more service in the future, and of course 15 min service with GO RER.
A station on Park Lawn would be 15 min walk from most of the condos according to google maps, and 20 min from some further east closer to the river. You could look at other options between Park Lawn and the Humber river but of course people would need a way to walk under the Gardiner from the south to reach the station.
Alternatively, good bus service to the Bloor line, or Mimico station would be a 10 min bus ride.
But yeah, if it were me personally living there right now, and if good transit to downtown were important to me, I'd consider moving. I doubt the above solutions would happen anytime soon. Adding a GO station is a long process. Personally assuming I'd want to live in Etobicoke I'd rather be near the Bloor subway.
Same with a neighbourhood like the Beaches, which I think is beautiful, I'd rather choose east Danforth to be near the subway. I don't want to be in a situation where I'd rely on taking the streetcar for long distances.
I've lived in HBS since 1996 - that is before it was called HBS and back when there were only three condos. Grand Harbour, Marina Del Rey and the Palace Pier/Place twins. I was always a proponent of further development because I naively thought - more development = community perks such as improved transit. The 501 was always a legendary shitshow. Service levels in 1996 are about the same as today. It's not the growth of the area that's causing the issues, the 501 was and remains the issue.
I am not wed to a particular technology. When the 501 is replaced by buses suddenly traffic and transit moves more smoothly along the lake. Frequencies are up, people are getting where they need to go.
Route 66 Prince Edward would need higher frequency.
I had the pleasure of using this bus once in the PM rush. Was left at Old Mill due to the bus being packed - next bus in 15 minutes. Apparently frequencies is something the TTC needs helps with.
Calling for streetcars to be replaced with buses because he hates streetcars isn't my idea of discussing how to improve services.
God forbid what this thread would be like if we all complained about our personal issues with the TTC. *ahem* Bathurst bus *ahem*
Am I wrong to say that if the problem is not enough streetcars to adequately cover Queen + Lakeshore, then shouldn't we just do the right thing and cut the Lakeshore streetcar service? Both camps would be happier.
For me transit is supposed to be functional, not aesthetic. I'd commute on a flying carpet if it were faster than the GO.
I've managed to ween myself off the TTC (I use GO to get to work, and aside from the 10min walk to Mimico, it's great). No more metropasses, no more surly drivers, no more short turns... If only I can find a way to avoid it entirely even off-peak...
