Mississauga Transit

The Best Way to Commute: A couple of stragglers at the start of the group commute at High Park and Bloor.

Today is the first day of Toronto's annual Bike Month. As usual, there was a group commute from various corners of the city, converging on City Hall for a City-sponsored pancake breakfast.

So how was it? I have no idea, really. I did the complete opposite and rode out of the city this morning, as usual, since my job is in that scary hinterland that few downtown Toronto cyclists ever venture out to: Mississauga. Actually, it's not that scary. I enjoy my commute, and it's often the best part of my day.

Last year I did the group commute to Toronto City hall from High Park, ate breakfast, then turned around and rode back west to work. It was a great way to start the day off, but perhaps a bit too much cycling so early in the day and I got to work even later than usual.

This year, however, the City of Mississauga, via Smart Commute Mississauga and the Mississauga Cycling Advisory Committee hosted their Bike to Work Day Pancake Breakfast on the same day as Toronto's, so I headed straight west this morning.

Hot on the heels of last week's West District Design Initiative public meeting, there will be a public meeting to discuss the proposed changes to the Islington and Kipling transit stations.

Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Open house: 6:00pm - 7:30pm
Presentation: 7:30pm - 9:00pm
Islington United Church, 25 Burnhamthorpe Rd (map)
More info here and here.

The main reasons for the revitalization of these stations are: 1) Free up the Islington Station lands for better re-development, 2) Move the Mississauga Transit terminal west from Islington to the new Kipling regional bus terminal, 3) Expand Kipling station into more of a regional bus terminal, and 4) Improve access to these stations for buses, kiss-n-riders, disabled people, etc.

Q: As a cyclist, why should I care?

Well, there are many reasons! The documentation online has a distinct lack of any mention of cycling amenities. Come to the meeting and tell Ward 5 Councillor Peter Milczyn, the TTC, Mississauga Transit, GO Transit, and the city planners that you want them to consider the following ideas (add your own too!):

This is the text of an email I sent to the City of Mississauga and Mississauga Transit this morning. I also phoned their customer service line and spoke to a very friendly and helpful person there.

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Please pass this email on to the appropriate people within the City and Mississauga Transit. I will also follow up with a phone call.

Mississauga Transit drivers are typically very courteous and safe people. I experience their professional behaviour every day when I ride my bicycle to work, or sometimes take the bus. They are usually very good at giving me plenty of space when passing, they sometimes smile and wave as they go by, and I usually feel safe being around them. The drivers are also very friendly when I board the buses.

Today, however, my experience changed drastically.

At 8:52am on Burnhamthorpe Rd. at Shaver Ave. in Toronto, heading west towards Mississauga, a bus came within inches of hitting me, forcing me off the side of the road. Details: