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The thing that gets me, is that the Boston Area is arguably one of the 2 or 3 most innovative metros on the planet. But for some reason they cant figure out how to time a friggin traffic light correctly, plan a highway or improve an overburdened transit system. It just shows that there is a major disconnect between city and state government and the innovation economy which is alive and well in the area. Dealing with Boston city government is by far the most frustrating experience a person has to go through, period.
I think part of the reason for that disconnect is that, for a lot of these economic and financial hubs (Boston, NYC, SF), there is a big disconnect between temporary and long term residents. In Boston, for example, a big portion of people living in Cambridge, Sommerville, and nearby Allston are temporary residents like students and job hopping white collar professionals from other states/countries. These people may live in an economically vibrant city, but most don't bother to participate in the mundane issues of municipal politics that actually affect their lives the most. Meanwhile, the local government and city hall are dominated by bureaucrats and local politicians who represent entirely different segments of the city.
The recent election of Marty Walsh as Boston mayor is a perfect example: someone from a working class background who spent his entire career as union president of Laborer Local 223, Irish-Italian heritage. Politicians like him dominate local politics yet rarely appeal to the young, white collar, and highly mobile residents that are contributing to a city's urban and economic revival.
I'm not sure if this is a predominant trend, as this is just a personal observation.
The guy likes the European and Asian model better, can you blame him? There are things that N. American cities do better than European cities, trust me I know as I have been on both sides. But everyone is going to have a preference at the end of the day. Which is why it is baffling to me as to why people get offended when their city is criticized.
This is my point with Monocle, the list you loved - clearly it is a one man piece is all im saying and that one man isn't going to be exactly objective. On a personal level I do agree with some of his conclusions about Toronto.. The list though, is worth a cup of coffee and 50c the more I got to know about Brule.
Haven't forgotten about that Doner place just haven't gotten around to eating one yet before I make a recent recommendation.
Our standards are like really low. Even NYC's subway system looks like from the graveyard compared with Europe and Asia. This is not surprising as most people have never been to places outside North America.
Boston etc is only decent by north American standard. It is like saying Toronto is dense/vibrant by north American standard. Take the transit once in Tokyo or Munich and nobody will ever brag about systems in NA.
Who cares about having the worlds best transit systems when both Canada and the U.S have the worlds biggest and best roadside attractions! Vulcan Alberta the largest model Starship Enterprise in the world and Beaver Arkansas the largest King Kong Statue
I think part of the reason for that disconnect is that, for a lot of these economic and financial hubs (Boston, NYC, SF), there is a big disconnect between temporary and long term residents. In Boston, for example, a big portion of people living in Cambridge, Sommerville, and nearby Allston are temporary residents like students and job hopping white collar professionals from other states/countries. These people may live in an economically vibrant city, but most don't bother to participate in the mundane issues of municipal politics that actually affect their lives the most. Meanwhile, the local government and city hall are dominated by bureaucrats and local politicians who represent entirely different segments of the city.
The recent election of Marty Walsh as Boston mayor is a perfect example: someone from a working class background who spent his entire career as union president of Laborer Local 223, Irish-Italian heritage. Politicians like him dominate local politics yet rarely appeal to the young, white collar, and highly mobile residents that are contributing to a city's urban and economic revival.
I'm not sure if this is a predominant trend, as this is just a personal observation.
You pretty much summed up the Boston dynamic in a nutshell. It is a city of contrasts, transplants live in one world, lifetime locals another. The city is increasingly becoming more transplant oriented though, and that is why you see the long time locals hanging onto their final stronghold left, which are city politics. It is actually somewhat interesting to watch.
I am willing to give Marty the benefit of the doubt though. First off I kind of like that he is a Union guy, because there wont be a major construction project that he will not sign off on, and the bigger the better seems to be his moto right now. Plus I love that he went outside of his circle and Boston to hire his new Chief of Staff Daniel Arrigg Koh whom is 29 years old and used to work for the Huffington Post in NYC. Getting those fresh young ideas from outside of the city can only be a good thing. What happens with these Mayors who are life long residents is that they know nothing outside of Boston and in order for a city to grow and prosper you need ideas from the entire globe to be in play.
It seems to be working already, with him pushing for a 4am last call and forming a late night task force to push Boston towards being a 24 hour city. He plans to file legislation next session to accomplish that. He already got the 3am MBTA service up and running and 75 additional liquor licenses for the city, so he is kind of on a roll. I am cautiously optimistic that he is not the usual played out Irish/Italian-American Boston hack that we are accustomed to.
To tie this back to Toronto, I think that is exactly what the city needs as well. Either a mayor, chief of staff or someone involved in economic development that is not from the area. The same old school Toronto thinking is what is holding the city back and introducing some ideas from outside that bubble would be a breath of fresh air. Every time people travel around the globe, they must see things that click in their mind and say "I wish we had this in city XYZ". Imagine having a leader that was open minded enough to put those things into process, sky is the limit.
Heck even NYC has gone outside its circle for their past 2 mayors. De Blasio being from Cambridge, MA & Bloomberg being from Boston. Even the country's greatest city isnt above reaching in from the outside for guidance.
Last edited by edwardsyzzurphands; 08-21-2014 at 05:40 PM..
This is my point with Monocle, the list you loved - clearly it is a one man piece is all im saying and that one man isn't going to be exactly objective. On a personal level I do agree with some of his conclusions about Toronto.. The list though, is worth a cup of coffee and 50c the more I got to know about Brule.
Haven't forgotten about that Doner place just haven't gotten around to eating one yet before I make a recent recommendation.
I think all these lists arent worth much as well, just something to scan over to waste some time. They mean nothing at the end of the day...even the ones I like, lol.
Thanks for the recommendation, if I dont get to try it this visit no sweat, I will be back again relatively soon after.
Who cares about having the worlds best transit systems when both Canada and the U.S have the worlds biggest and best roadside attractions! Vulcan Alberta the largest model Starship Enterprise in the world and Beaver Arkansas the largest King Kong Statue
Where in Europe will you find such attractions so screw transit - all about the car and the open road baby
Where transit systems are needed are in dense cities where you're not going to find open roads whether or not you have a good transit system--but you will have gridlock. Open roads can easily be found in Europe outside of the cities and there's usually less of the suburban sprawl found in NA cities--taking drives out to the countryside on the open road is actually really great. Being forced to drive in gridlock for a commute is pretty terrible--that's what having the option of using a decent transit system great. It's nice to have both.
Where transit systems are needed are in dense cities where you're not going to find open roads whether or not you have a good transit system--but you will have gridlock. Open roads can easily be found in Europe outside of the cities and there's usually less of the suburban sprawl found in NA cities--taking drives out to the countryside on the open road is actually really great. Being forced to drive in gridlock for a commute is pretty terrible--that's what having the option of using a decent transit system great. It's nice to have both.
Im aware of that and was being light hearted in my post and actually making a bit of fun of Canadian and American priorities.. I would love to see expanded subway and LRT's in Toronto - would do the city a world of good... T.O isn't alone on this continent in that regard but because of its density it is very much needed.
Im aware of that and was being light hearted in my post and actually making a bit of fun of Canadian and American priorities.. I would love to see expanded subway and LRT's in Toronto - would do the city a world of good... T.O isn't alone on this continent in that regard but because of its density it is very much needed.
Very much needed indeed. I live by Lakeshore Blvd at Park Lawn, and have witnessed fast-growing congestion in this area due to at least FIVE 40+ floor condos going up over the past month. On top of that, there's still ongoing construction for the foreseeable future. I hate to think what the traffic condition will look like 1 or 2 years from now, when tens of thousands of new residents move into the vicinity. Sadly at the moment, there's only one (very slow) streetcar line (501 Lakeshore) serving the area, and TTC said that they are not rolling out their new streetcars in this area until 2016/17. Good job TTC, always 100 steps behind actual transit demand. What this area needs is at the very least a dedicated Light Rail line with ROW all the way to downtown, or a subway line (we can always dream).
Very much needed indeed. I live by Lakeshore Blvd at Park Lawn, and have witnessed fast-growing congestion in this area due to at least FIVE 40+ floor condos going up over the past month. On top of that, there's still ongoing construction for the foreseeable future. I hate to think what the traffic condition will look like 1 or 2 years from now, when tens of thousands of new residents move into the vicinity. Sadly at the moment, there's only one (very slow) streetcar line (501 Lakeshore) serving the area, and TTC said that they are not rolling out their new streetcars in this area until 2016/17. Good job TTC, always 100 steps behind actual transit demand. What this area needs is at the very least a dedicated Light Rail line with ROW all the way to downtown, or a subway line (we can always dream).
Toronto got things right with its transit up until the 70's. After that instead of expanding mass transit options the city just threw busses and more busses and streetcars at it. I think most in here would agree frequency in our system is not the problem its the type of transit in most growth areas over the last few decades not reflecting the demand and moving that demand with inefficiant modes. The GTA's population isn't that remarkeable vs other large metros in the U.S ie Houston, Dallas, Philly, Miami, Boston etc but its density most certainly is! With the amount of people in the urbanized area of the GTA and the concentration of growth in those areas we need extensive subways and rapid moving LRT's
Im moving to Bloor and Islington to get away from the daily commute where I live DT and work at the airport because road congestion is too much and I can't take a bloody subway to the airport. For a city the size and prominance of Toronto that is inexcusable...Anyway ill still drive back and forth to work and cut my commute time by 70 % which will give me an hour and a half of my life back on weekdays but alas I won't be living DT
Well atleast on the weekend im close to the subway to get my urban dose but it isn't the same but if I keep having to drive from DT to work and back everyday I might go mad!
Toronto got things right with its transit up until the 70's. After that instead of expanding mass transit options the city just threw busses and more busses and streetcars at it. I think most in here would agree frequency in our system is not the problem its the type of transit in most growth areas over the last few decades not reflecting the demand and moving that demand with inefficiant modes. The GTA's population isn't that remarkeable vs other large metros in the U.S ie Houston, Dallas, Philly, Miami, Boston etc but its density most certainly is! With the amount of people in the urbanized area of the GTA and the concentration of growth in those areas we need extensive subways and rapid moving LRT's
Well, there is at least one small shining light to the current situation, which is the soon to be opened UP Express. The thing is, I really don't understand the concept of the Union-Pearson Express. Typically, one would think that it would be fully integrated into the existing transit network (GO Train or TTC) but for some perverted reason the UP operator just clarified that it would be targeted at "business executive travelers" with one way price in the $30 range. So instead of building or extending the existing transit network to the airport, those fools built a brand new line just for a select few. At the very least, they could have learned from Vancouver's totally awesome Canada Line, which is very nicely incorporated into Vancouver's Skytrain network. Sigh...
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