This two-week old take-out counter specializing in fries, schnitzel and beef bratwursts joins Das Gasthaus as a recent addition to Toronto's German food scene. With huge sandwiches for five bucks, it's likely to be a popular Cabbagetown lunch spot.
Read my profile of Fry Haus in the restaurants section.
Today we're opening up voting in our latest Best Of poll. Now you can have your say in 10 categories including pizza, nachos, BBQ chicken, French Toast, croissants, muffins and more.
Voting in the poll ends at midnight on Tuesday March 11th.
Long-abandoned and seldom photographed, Lower Queen station, the never-used underground streetcar stop beneath Queen subway station, has long been at the top of my list of places to explore in Toronto. With the city struggling to build new transit, there's something incredibly compelling about an underground station built and discarded.
Lower Queen, as it's come to be known (it was never officially named, though it appears on maps as "City Hall") is the only piece of a streetcar subway planned in the years following the second world war. If provincial funding had been more forthcoming, Toronto might have built its east-west subway under Queen Street.
For decades before and after the construction of the Yonge line, the Queen Street subway regularly appeared on planning documents and mass transit predictions. In its earliest incarnation, it would have been a mix of open cut, underground, and elevated streetcar track between Trinity-Bellwoods Park and Logan Avenue, in parts much like the section of streetcar line between Union and Queens Quay.
One early map imagined surface stops at Trinity-Bellwoods Park, Bathurst, Spadina, and Grange Park, and underground stations at York Street, Old City Hall, and Church.
In the east end, there would be more street-level stations at Sherbourne and Parliament. Continuing east on an elevated structure, there would have been above-ground stations at the Don River, Broadview and Logan. Spur tracks would have allowed Dundas, Danforth, and Kingston Road streetcars to use the line as well.
The Queen streetcar subway got remarkably far. According to Transit Toronto, an excellent TTC history resource, the proposal was overwhelmingly approved in a referendum on condition the province would chip in 20 per cent of the cost, which, of course, it didn't.
As insurance against a potentially costly future re-working of Queen station should the idea return to life, the city excavated a second track bed and set of platforms below the subway level. At either end, two massive reinforced headwalls awaited the streetcar tunnel that would never come.
Lower Queen is now tucked away behind an anonymous metal door in the walkway between the north and southbound subway tracks.
Inside it's damp, muddy, and eerily warm. There's a pile of discarded escalator steps and down some uneven stairs the main portion of the station sits empty, bathed in neon light. Water drips from the ceiling and unseen machines squeal and whir to life. Every few minutes, a train on the busy Yonge line thunders overhead.
Though the TTC has reclaimed some of the space for a ventilation system and the base of an elevator shaft, Lower Queen still easily identifiable as a transit stop. There are two low concrete platforms, two shallow track beds, and a row of support columns dividing the area in half.
"It's far more complete than you would think," says TTC spokesman Brad Ross, standing over a sewer grate that would have drained the eastbound track. "Later, there was talk of building a subway underneath Queen, which could have been today's DRL, potentially."
That subway, the city thought, would have also run in an open trench north of Queen Street but the idea was eventually dropped in favour of the Bloor-Danforth line and Lower Queen was doomed to remain a shell, the stuff of urban legend.
However, no visit to the TTC's abandoned areas would be complete without Bay Lower (not Lower Bay, Ross says.) The closed bottom level of Bay station, now a film set and training area, once allowed the TTC to get three lines from two by routing some Bloor-Danforth trains downtown via Museum.
The interlining idea cost millions to develop - expensive split-level rail intersections had to be built either side of Bay station - but lasted barely six months. Now, when police and fire crews aren't using Bay Lower to simulate emergencies, the station is a testing ground for new floor tiles and signal systems.
The multiple entrances to Bay Lower are easy to spot on the upper platform. Incongruous green tiles and unmarked doorways block off the stairs that once led down to the lower level, as they do at St. George. Essentially, Bay Lower is a carbon copy of the Bloor-Danforth station with the lower level sealed off.
Here are more pictures of both stations.
An escalator minus its steps leads up to the functional level of Bay station.
During film shoots, when Bay Lower masquerades as the New York City subway, the original signs are covered over.
The guts of Queen station now occupy part of the Lower Queen station area.
Basic cinder block rooms divide up parts of the Lower Queen platform area.
Chris Bateman is a staff writer at blogTO. Follow him on Twitter at @chrisbateman.
Images: Derek Flack/blogTO.
Today in Toronto Red Head Gallery has the opening of Nina Leo and Lee Henderson's collaborative series Galileo's Falling Bodies, and Propeller Gallery hosts the opening of Lila Fatehi's exhibition, The Passage, an exploration of the juxtaposition of black and white across various media. Author Matthew Quick will chat and sign his latest novel, The Good Luck of Right Now at the Bay and Bloor Indigo, and an evening that's being described as "Star Trek improv" goes down at the Black Swan: Holodeck Follies. For more events, click on over to our events section.
Have an event you'd like to plug? Submit your own listing to the blogTO Toronto events calendar or contact us directly.
This Week in Fashion rounds up the week's style news, store openings and closings, pop-up shops, sales and upcoming fashion and design events in Toronto. Find it here every Wednesday morning.
NEWS
Homegrown Boutique (16 Cumberland St), a Yorkville store filled to the brim with Canadian labels, closed its doors last week after three years of business. With condo developments axing boutiques across the city and e-commerce looking shinier than ever, owner Michelle Baboolall decided to move online and into the occasional pop-up shop. So, supporters of local and national talent need not worry; you can still shop Homegrown's fresh Canadian fashion from the comfort of your home.
Judy Cornish and Joyce Gunhouse of edgy/chic womenswear brand Comrags are premiering their costume design skills at Anton Chekhov's The Seagull. The play runs from March 7 to 23 at Berkeley Street Theatre (26 Berkeley St, Upstairs), with 8 pm performances and 2 pm matinees. Catch the duo's evocative designs, which were - according to Cornish - both a pleasure and a challenge to create for characters "who already have their story, their history, and their style." Tickets start at $36 and are available online.
EVENTS
A Homerun! is back at it with Walk-In Closet, a monthly pop-up concept all about recycling, reusing, and reinventing. Join Pamela Wong, Singhnature, Trophy Jones, and complimentary Le Dolci cupcakes at the launch party tomorrow (March 6) from 6 pm until 10 pm. If you can't make it, don't fret! The pop-up shop will run all weekend long (March 7 - 9).
This weekend (March 7 - 9), catch a glimpse of e-commerce unicorns Fitzroy Boutique and Violet Crown Vintage at a collaborative pop-up shop. Head to AWOL Gallery (78 Ossington Ave) to shop their quirky-cool handpicked womenswear in the flesh from noon - 8 pm on Friday and Saturday, and noon - 6 pm on Sunday.
International Women's Day is coming up this Saturday (March 8) and there's no better way to celebrate than with the 2nd annual Women Supporting Women - Shop Local. The shopping event is setting up at Park Hyatt (4 Avenue Rd) from 10 am until 5 pm with complimentary high tea, gourmet treats, and a whole slew of women-owned businesses to pick and peruse. Snag a ticket online or pay $15 at the door.
SALES
All sale merchandise from every TNT store has once again been moved to the outlet (388 Eglinton Ave W), meaning you finally have a fighting chance at finding that one ridiculous coat you wanted last season in the right size. Everything's going for 70% - 80% off until March 31st, so be sure to head over earlier than later to avoid missing out.
Newly opened on Queen at Ossington, this laid-back spot majors in vegetarian pub grub and craft beer. While there's a "no martini" policy, it's almost refreshing to encounter a new spot that isn't hyper-focused on cocktails. Other notable features include an ACDC pinball game and library of books and board games.
Read my profile of Lipstick & Dynamite in the restaurants section.
There was a time when Toronto was a wild west of zoning, a free-for-all where industry and residential areas sat side by side, especially where railway lines cut through the city, leaving spurs and sidings along their path. Wagstaff Drive is one of those little industrial pockets, its long, low buildings bordered by railway tracks out back, their front doors facing the garages and backyards of a row of homes.
Real estate agent David Shirazi Rad discovered Wagstaff Drive when he was helping the people behind Te Aro Coffee find a new place to run their coffee roasting business. Unrenovated industrial spaces have become scarce downtown, but Rad came across Wagstaff Drive just off of Greenwood Avenue, just south of the TTC's Greenwood subway yard, in an area that real estate agents dispute as either being part of Riverdale or Leslieville.
50 Wagstaff Drive looked abandoned - 12,000 square feet that once housed a roofing business, the contents of which filled 42 containers when the new owners took over and began renovation. The vast space turned out to be too big for Pilot Coffee Roasting, so Rad found another tenant for the other half of the building that perfectly complimented Pilot - Sloane Tea, a tea importing business run by tea sommelier Hoda Paripoush.
The next building down the row, #36, was also empty, and had once been occupied by another roofing business and a children's gymnastic school. Rad used the fact that Wagstaff Drive is surrounded by five public baseball diamonds to help sell Left Field, a microbrewer, on taking over half of this 12,000 square foot space. They held an open house to introduce themselves to the neighbourhood in late January, and saw almost 1,600 people join the party.
The other half of the space will be home to a restaurant project that's still looking for a chef. Rad says that there's been interest from a famous but unnamed Montreal chef, but that a local restaurateur is also looking at the huge, open space, which will also feature several potential outdoor spaces on the roof, in a covered courtyard and in the alley between buildings. The owner has also bought several microgreenhouses made by BC's Urban Cultivator, and plans to rent out space in their high tech growing pods for locals to grow herbs and other small greens year round.
The next building down Wagstaff is even bigger than the other two - 25,000 square feet in a sturdy warehouse building currently occupied by Thomson Groceries, a wholesaler in business since 1931. Rad is still negotiating for a new owner to redevelop the space, which Thomson will still occupy while the outside is renovated and potentially redeveloped to host a farmer's market.
The final lot at the end of Wagstaff hasn't been built on - another 25,000 square feet of parking lot and fenced-in storage yards. Rad has a lot of ideas for this space, including an Airstream trailer hotel, but it'll likely be the last stretch of Wagstaff to be redeveloped. Rad says that it would have been easier to try to turn Wagstaff into a stretch of condos or townhouses, but it's one of Toronto's few remaining employment areas, and retaining it as such was a priority.
Redeveloping old industrial buildings like those on Wagstaff is a bit of a risk, Rad explains. Banks don't like to lend money up front, so they get bought as a cash sale, with mortgages used for renovation. This is also where real estate brokers and agents get to be creative - finding diamonds in the rough and assembling owners and tenants willing to share in a vision for how they can be transformed. Wagstaff Drive, he tells me, had so much potential that he knew it wouldn't be hard to get partners on board. "Our goal," he says, "was to change this lane."
Toronto's Little India neighbourhood, or the Gerrard Indian Bazaar as its officially known, might be getting less Indian by the day (we're not using the G word) but a walk along Gerrard between Greenwood and Coxwell is still filled with tantalizing smells of rich goat curries, stewed chick peas and piping hot samosas. For those in search of somewhere to eat, it can be a hit or miss proposition.
With apologies to Guatama, Moti Mahal, Siddhartha Pure Vegetarian and The Famous, here are five restaurants that stand out from the crowd.
Udupi Palace (1460 Gerrard St. East)
Vegetarians and vegans flock to this spacious subterranean restaurant for its meat-free offerings, like the mysore sada dosa (a thin pancake filled with spiced onions and potatoes, topped with a spicy chutney) and kadai bhindi (curried okra). With prices topping out at $9.95, you'll even be able to afford dessert: choices range from gulab jaman ice cream to rasmalai, a creamy dessert made from sugar, cream and paneer.
Lahore Chaat & Paan House (1344 Gerrard St. East)
This is not a destination that prides itself on looks; however, it does pride itself on the authenticity of its paan, bun kebabs and pistachio kulfi. Paan, a mixture of nuts, spices and sometimes tobacco wrapped in leaf and shaped into a triangle, is a popular digestive aid after a heavy dinner; Lahore Chaat & Paan House makes one of the best. Their kebabs are spicy and satisfying, and cheap to boot, and are a satisfying snack when washed down with a perfectly crafted Kashmiri chai tea.
New Haandi 2000 (1401 Gerrard Street E)
The competition for best buffet spot is fierce in Little India, with offerings touted on sidewalk menus every three steps. New Haandi 2000, formerly Haandi, stands out among its competitors for its diverse buffet menu: mutton curry, pani puri and six flavours of ice cream are among the highlights, while their a la carte menu offers interesting dishes like keema naan (a stuffed naan bread with minced meat) and chicken mughlai (chicken cooked in a dry fruit gravy).
Bombay Chowpatty (1386 Gerrard Street E)
Nevermind the name, this snack spot is quite popular, and has become well known for their Indian street food items, like samosas, pakoras and vada pav (a fried potato sandwich). Masala fries and traditional creamy shakes, like mango lassis and the 'Royal Falooda', round out the menu.
Lahore Tikka House (1365 Gerrard Street E)
The crown of jewel of Gerrard, this Halal Pakistani restaurant, named after the capital of the Punjab province, draws customers from all over the GTA. Its flamboyant decor and loud music sets the tone of a crowded bazaar, with servers bustling around each other delivering sizzling skewers of lamb and chicken kababs, butter naan and sweet, icy almond and pistachio kulfi.
What did I miss? Add your favourite Little India spots to the comments below.
Writing by Amelia Ingram. Photo by Ian Muttoo in the blogTO Flickr pool.
A well known Queen St. boutique has up and left its long-standing home near Queen and Peter for the friendly confines of West Queen West. A smaller space (in the former home of Klaxon Howl) and a different clientele means they've got more of the glamour, sparkle, and quirk we've come to know and (subjectively) love.
Read my profile of the new Fashion Crimes in the fashion section.
The best beer selection in Toronto used to be a fairly easy thing to determine. Formerly, a few mainstay bars easily held the top positions among beer drinkers' lists of go-to venues, but now, as a result of the Ontario craft beer scene's rapid growth, the list of places with well-curated tap lines has grown crowded.
Whether it's a result of the craft brew supply growing or the demands of sophisticated drinkers expanding, the city's beer scene has flourished, and there are now plenty of options for even the most discerning of the city's beer fans.
Here are the bars and restaurants with the best beer selection in Toronto.
See also:
10 bars & pubs where Toronto beer experts go to drink
The Best Pubs in Toronto
The 10 bars with the most beer taps in Toronto
The Best Places to Drink a Pitcher of Beer in Toronto
The top 10 cheap craft beer deals in Toronto
The top 10 bars with gluten free beer in Toronto
Toronto's 2014 Pride Parade is in danger of being stripped of its right to bare... everything? As City Hall becomes more shambolic and our Mayor claims he has "nothing to hide" (after lying repeatedly to the public, etc), some Toronto school trustees are demanding the parade cover up. The school board is planning a float for the parade, and they're pulling a "think of the children" -- though a Mardi-Gras float of the Mayor smoking crack should be a lot harder to explain to your kids than some Torontonians marching in the buff.
Trustee Sam Sotiropoulos is on the side of the law (but not the fun side of the law, like you want) telling the Star: "I cannot sign off to participating and promoting an event where the laws against public nudity are being flouted." While one has to question the claims Sotiropoulos must make to himself that he really is a fun guy (right?), one obvious solution that could make everyone happy would be the school board holding onto their float, which will apparently feature Helen Lovejoy, until the Santa Claus Parade.
Should nudity be banned at Toronto Pride? Let us know in the comments.
Photo by Mauricio Calero
This beautiful image of Toronto might look like an album cover for an 80s synthpop band, but it's actually a visual representation of every traffic light-controlled intersection in the city. A pinpoint of light for every set of lights.
The image (full-size version here) was created using information from the city's open data portal by William Davis, a Reddit user. Late last year Davis used city data to track infilling along the downtown waterfront.
The first traffic signals in Toronto were installed at Yonge and Bloor in 1924. There are now some 2,300 individual traffic signals, some timed, some controlled by a sensor embedded in the road, across the city. As the map illustrates, downtown is the most signal-dense part of the road network.
What's really amazing is that Toronto, zoomed out and reduced to a collection of dots, is still easily recognizable. The negative space created by the Don and Rouge river valleys is also visible, if you look carefully, so are winding Weston Road and Dundas Street.
See what else you can spot.
Chris Bateman is a staff writer at blogTO. Follow him on Twitter at @chrisbateman.
The most famous clothing stores in Toronto are local institutions and shopping standbys well-known to Toronto fashion fans. It's no secret that there's tons of great shopping to be done in this town, and there are scores of stores that have gained solid buzz in Toronto and elsewhere - not to mention plenty of chain stores with renowned local outposts (Harry Rosen, Holt Renfrew and John Fluevog, to name a few).
I focused on independent stores for this list - a few long-running family businesses with decades-old histories, and some boutiques who have managed to hang on tightly to their particular niche in the city's retail scene, even as the cityscape swiftly changed around them. They're names perennially on the lips of local shoppers - and in travel guides, best of Toronto shopping lists, and even pieces about local history. If you haven't checked them out yet, what are you waiting for?
Here are my picks for the most famous clothing stores in Toronto.
See also:
The 10 most famous restaurants in Toronto
The 10 most famous bars in Toronto
The 10 biggest tourist trap restaurants in Toronto
Tom's Place
Tom's is a Kensington institution - and often, it's the first place that comes to mind for Torontonians looking for a suit on a budget. The store, run for decades by Tom Mihalik, has a rep for attentive service, a uniquely mazelike atmosphere, and some good deals on decent-quality suits by the likes of Hugo Boss and Strellson. (If you're buying multiple suits, remember: Haggling is all part of the Tom's experience.)
Fashion Crimes
Designer Pam Chorley's boutique is a shrine to all things lace-covered and glittery. Since its launch in 1983, the store has become a magnet for flashy dressers - including girls drawn from all over the GTA by the promise of a standout prom dress. Chorley recently left the store's longtime Queen and Spadina location for a new home down the block at Queen and Manning (the former Klaxon Howl); it's a touch smaller, but that only increases the amount of sparkles per square inch.
Get Outside
That pair of Vans/Cons/Blundstones/Sorels you've been looking for? It's probably available here. The Queen and Spadina shoe boutique is well-stocked with styles from a smattering of beloved footwear and sneaker brands. The prices are about the same as what you'll find elsewhere, but being able to pick up that hard-to-find colour of your favourite kicks will more than make up for it.
Korry's
Saul Korman has been selling suits on the Danforth for over 60 years, and even though the suits (which include offerings from Hugo Boss and Canali) have changed with the years, the store still takes an old-school approach, with a strong focus on quality.
Over the Rainbow
There's a perfect pair of jeans out there for everybody, and you're likely to find your ideal cut, length and wash at Over The Rainbow. The Yorkville spot's been a go-to source for denim since 1975, with the selection mostly skewing toward designer pairs (standout names include Hudson, 7 For All Mankind, Paige, and AG), as well as a few Canadian faves like Mackage, Fidelity, Rudsak and Line Knitwear.
Secrets From Your Sister
SFYS has been Torontonians' favourite lingerie destination (and, true to the name, a source of valuable advice and info) since 1998. Tellingly, they bill themselves as a "bra fitting boutique"; the focus here is on precisely fitting each customer into a quality bra, no matter how hard-to-find your size might be. (Be sure to leave yourself 45 minutes to one hour for a fitting.)
So Hip It Hurts
If you are (or have ever been) a skater or snowboarder, you've probably made the climb up the stairs at 323 Queen W., where So Hip It Hurts takes up several rooms full of hard-to-find decks, shoes and other sought-after gear. In their 20-plus years of existence, they've earned nods in skate magazines and had plenty of visits from high-profile out-of-towners like Wayne Gretzky, Jack Johnson, Robin Williams, and Kat von D (check their wall of celeb signatures).
Courage My Love
A perennial favouite on best-of lists and vintage guides, Courage is arguably the best-known shop in the city's best-known vintage shopping district. The breadth and quality of the selection, reasonable prices, homey-bohemian atmosphere and fun extras (Buttons! Jewelry! Luchador masks!) all add up to countless return trips for Kensington shoppers.
Black Market Vintage
It's the closet thing there is to a vintage megamart in Toronto; the selection in Black Market's sprawling basement store is massive, the screenprinted tees are cheeky, and the deals ($10 for everything!) are the stuff of legend. A few years back, Black Market opened up corners of their shop to permanent vendors, making them a market in the truest sense (their current tenants include Modraphelia and Good Music).
Exile
If you're looking for a frilly petticoat, a vintage tee, a cowboy jacket, or pretty much anything for your Halloween costume, you'll probably find it at Exile's two locations in Kensington Market. The store, built around a strong DIY/punk sensibility when it opened in 1975, was named in homage to the Rolling Stones. Nowadays, it's a favourite haunt of vintage hounds (and, if you'll believe the rumours, celebrities - everyone from the Beastie Boys to Beyonce).
What did I miss? Add a famous Toronto clothing store to the comments below.
The OPP is taking over the year-long investigation into Mayor Rob Ford currently known as Project Brazen 2. The request was reportedly made by Chief Blair himself who is looking to separate himself from the ongoing distractions known as the Ford brothers who continue to call for his resignation and have suggested the investigation itself is politically motivated.
As of today, Chief Blair is no longer overseeing Project Brazen 2 and the responsibility now lies with OPP Commissioner Chris Lewis. The lead detective and investigators involved in Project Brazen will remain intact.
Sadly, still no word when we can expect a release of the crack video.
Photo by Ashton Pal in the blogTO Flickr pool
Today in Toronto the city celebrates its 180th birthday (look at us, strutting how young and fresh-faced we are) over at Steam Whistle Brewery. The Gladstone will open their huge illustration show If Walls Could Talk, while the Feminist Art Conference is combining politics with a hard hitting open bar. Then, what's better than a Grease sing-a-long? If you didn't just mumble "...anything?" the answer is clearly a Grease sing-a-long with a Grease costume contest. For more events, click on over to our events section.
Have an event you'd like to plug? Submit your own listing to the blogTO Toronto events calendar or contact us directly.
Photo from the Toronto Archives
On an especially freezing Monday night, roughly 20 people braved the elements and made their way to the Hogtown Cure on the corner of Dufferin and Dundas. But it wasn't to sample the little cafe's coffee or pastries. They were there to dance and play music.
Balfolk Toronto brings Western European folk dancing and music across the pond and offers Torontonians a taste of the lively Breton tradition that resembles a square dance. Emilyn Stam and Tangi Ropars founded Balfolk Toronto because of a shared love for the Balfolk tradition that each experienced while living in Europe.
"Tangi is from France, so he grew up dancing these dances," says Stam of her friend. "My family is from the Netherlands, where these dances are popular, and I learned them there."
Stam, who plays the violin in several folk bands including the Lemon Bucket Orkestra where she met Ropars, says young people's interest in folk dancing and music is on a steady incline.
It's hard to disagree with her after watching the couples at the Hogtown Cure swing each other around the room to the sounds of the fiddle, oboe and hurdy gurdy - a crank-turned string instrument with a unique, almost bagpipe-like sound.
Some of the dances, like the bourree, are danced in pairs, while others moved the group around the room in a circle, arms linked.
The group of about 18 ranged in age and familiarity with the dances, but the relaxed atmosphere allowed them to teach each other, and the ease of the steps meant everyone eventually got the hang of it. Some were regulars, but others were just passing through.
"I'm couch surfing with one of the guys here, and he brought me with him," said Emanuelle Simons, who lives in Montreal and works for a digital communications company. "I'm here for work, and it's cool to chill after a long day. I'm from France, but I've never danced like this."
Balfolk Toronto is a regular Monday night destination for Elin Marley, who is a school garden educator in the city. "I come pretty much every week. I think I've only missed about three since July," said Marley. "I've been Estonian folk dancing since I was little, but it's a lot more performance-based, whereas this is just fun. This is a Monday night to relax."
Although the dancers took up most of the room on this particular evening, fiddle player Eli Allen Bender said that the musicians often outnumber them. A music teacher from Michigan, Bender just became a permanent Canadian resident.
"I am an awful dancer, but these nights were so accessible," said Bender. "To combine my musicianship on my instrument with the dancing added a whole new layer of meaning to the evening. I make a point to at least dance one every night."
This little community is all about encouraging its members to learn from each other, and learn where balfolks originated and what they mean to French culture, and people are clearly receptive.
"It seems to be constantly growing," says Stam. "The thing that makes people come back is that it's not intimidating and you have fun right away. It's a really relaxed group of people, and because of that, I think we're developing a Toronto-style of this kind of thing because we're isolated from anyone else doing it. It's like the folk-way of doing it."
It's been almost a year for Balfolk Toronto, and to commemorate their anniversary, a "big Bal" will be taking place this month. BALfolkFESTnoz promises the same French folk dancing and music as the usual Monday night dance, but they're hoping for an even bigger turn out.
"It's going to be a really cool party," said Ropars, who is working with Stam to plan the event. "We'll have different bands from Montreal, from Holland, and hopefully from New York, Boston, or Chicago. We are trying to gather all the different communities of Balfolk and try to connect them all together by inviting them here. It's going to be an amazing event."
BALfolkFESTnoz is on March 22, at 918 Bathurst Street, from 6 p.m. to midnight. Tickets are on sale at the Hogtown Cure for $10, $12 at the door, and $5 for kids. The regular Monday night Balfolk Toronto dance starts at 7 p.m. for musicians, 8 p.m. for dancers, and is pay what you can.
Photo from Balfolk Toronto on Facebook
Next time you're squeezed inside a stationary rush-hour streetcar - and I bet you won't have to wait long - remember that Toronto isn't the only city with surface transit challenges. Melbourne, Australia, home of the biggest tram network in the world, is also grappling with dense traffic, but practical ideas are helping to get things moving.
Now that the city and the TTC are studying ways to improve streetcar service on King Street, a route that carries more people than the Sheppard subway, perhaps it's worth finding out how another major city handles its surface rail network.
Melbourne's tram system is roughly two-thirds bigger than the TTC streetcar network. It has 168 kms more double track - lines that run in both directions - and more than twice the number of vehicles, though some are decades old.
"Melbourne is the only city in Australia that retained its tram system in any meaningful way," says Ramesh Liyanagedera from Yarra Trams, the city's surface rail operator. "Trams occupy a bit of an emotional space with the Melbourne public; whether they travel by tram or not, Melburnians tend to love their trams."
Speaking over the phone with Liyanagedera, the challenges faced by Australia's second largest city sound familiar: heavy traffic, poorly timed signals, and a fear of giving up on-street parking.
"There's a perception in Melbourne that car parking along major routes equals increased trade for the shops but we've actually proven that's not the case," Liyanagedera says. "It's far better to move a lot of people into areas than a select few in cars in terms of generating trade."
The sheer number of road users is also a problem, especially in the central business district. 80% of the Melbourne network operates in mixed traffic, which slows some routes to a crawl. Trams average just 17 km/h, slowing to 12 km/h in the core. In fact, a study showed Melbourne trams are moving just 65% of the time.
In an attempt to make traffic flow better the city has a several special road rules: no moving into the path of a tram, no stopping within 20 metres of a tram stop, and, most famously, the "hook turn," a traffic manoeuvre that requires vehicles turning right to use the far left lane to avoid blocking the tracks.
Drivers move as close as possible to the far corner, wait for the a green light on the street they are planning to enter, and then complete the turn. The Canadian equivalent would require drivers to turn left from the right lane.
Staff at Yarra Trams think separating trams from cars is the best way of improving service. Route 96, one of the city's busiest that runs from the beach at St. Kilda through the dense central core, is slated to become the Melbourne's first fully-segregated line in the next few years, and others are expected to follow.
Another idea involves installing traffic lights capable of turning green ahead of an oncoming tram, reducing wait times for motorists and accelerating transit. "The technology exists ... [but] it's not something that's been pursued very hard over the years because the road traffic authority who controls these matters hasn't been too interested in doing something about it," Liyanagedera says.
"I think Melbourne is going through a bit of a change ... there is a collective consciousness that trams help to revitalize and rejuvenate places that otherwise wouldn't be. And it's been driven from the public really, from the residents and public, not necessarily the politicians."
What do you think Toronto could do to improve streetcar service? Could hook turns improve streetcar service in Toronto? Are you surprised Melbourne has many of the same problems as Toronto?
Chris Bateman is a staff writer at blogTO. Follow him on Twitter at @chrisbateman.
Image: Dan/blogTO Flickr pool, Matthew Paul Argall/Creative Commons
Toronto Restaurant Openings highlights the latest restaurant openings and closings in Toronto and also gives a preview of what's coming soon. Find us here every Thursday morning.
OPEN NOW
RECENTLY REVIEWED
OPENING SOON
CLOSING
Have you seen restaurants opening or closing in your neighbourhood? Email tips to liora@blogto.com
