Ontario Line

I am writing to express my dismay at the proposed Ontario line being above ground in various parts of the city.  I have lived in Toronto for most of my life and in Riverside since 2001.  I have used the TTC for over 50 years and support enhanced transit in the city.

Since the relief line was first proposed I have attended and participated in numerous meetings in the community.  There were many discussions about viable routes and where transit stations could be sensibly placed without having a significant, negative impact on the community.  There were discussions about the environmental assessments that would be carried out.

Ultimately it was decided that in the area south of Gerrard Street tunnelling under Carlaw Avenue made the most sense.  Carlaw is wider than other streets in the area and has more room for development which the transit line would help to support.   This decision was reached after studies were performed and extensive community engagement, leading to a plan which made sense to members of the community.

The  sudden decision to move sections of the subway above ground ignores the impact this will have on the community.  The area has a number of green spaces that are utilized by parents with children, dog walkers, visitors to the area and others.  Over the years that I have lived here local parks have been used for events such as children’s birthday parties, movie nights, snowball fights and playgrounds.  These are parks where folks play ball and frisbee with their own and neighbourhood children.  They allow a connection to our neighbours and promote the sense of community which makes a neighbourhood.  Such connections improve the quality of life by helping us to know our neighbours and keep an eye on each others’ homes as is encouraged by Neighbourhood Watch.  They improve the quality of life by ensuring that neighbours in need have supports in difficult times, and by making sure children in the neighbourhood have safe places to play proximate to their homes.  Decimating the Gerrard Carlaw Dog Park, Tiverton Avenue Parkette, Jimmy Simpson Park, Bruce Mackey Park, McLeary Playground and Saulter Street Parkette will have a negative impact on our city.

Trains are expected to run along the Ontario Line every 45 seconds.  The failure to undertake proper studies on the impact of pollution, noise and other negative effects due to the number of trains is at best cavalier.  This demands careful, thorough studies on the impact of the increased volume of train traffic  on the health and wellness of the residents.  Similarly the area has many old homes,  a number of which are designated as heritage homes.  There are many others which would likely be eligible to be designated as heritage homes.  To my knowledge there has been no study to evaluate the impact of the vibrations which could be caused by the quantity of train traffic.

I implore you to take advantage of the hard work done by the TTC and community in arriving at an appropriate way to facilitate a proper route for the relief line and return to the carefully considered plan that was developed with attention to the issues to which I have referred.