Morning Brew: May 30th, 2007
Photo: "Attack!" by blogTO Flickr pooler ethervizion.
Your morning news roundup for Wednesday May 30th, 2007:
The CN Tower may soon become a (greater) beacon of tacky. Plans to light up the tower with LED lights are in the works, and it may be illuminated by Canada Day. Watch for various themed colour schemes to wow the tourists and embarrass the locals.
The Yonge St. location of Sam the Record Man is closing for good in June after 70 years in business. Poor CD sales and "big box" competition have just been too overwhelming. Will the iconic neon signs be declared a heritage site?
Expiry dates on pre-paid retail gift cards will soon be no longer. Ontario retailers won't be able to cash in on unused cards that have been paid for, and consumers will not have to face the pressure of buying before they lose their gift purchasing privileges.
Should motorcycle and scooter drivers be able to use high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes? Councillor Ootes will make this pitch to the city today, on the basis that the changes will "encourage people to drive vehicles that are more fuel efficient and make less of a carbon contribution to air quality". Ever been to Bangkok, councillor Ootes?
Today's Crossroad Puzzle after the jump...
This week, the Crossroads puzzles are meant to challenge your knowledge of areas outside the core, and in some cases outside of Toronto proper. How well do you know the outskirts? Recognize this location in/near Toronto? Post your answer in the comments, and check for the answer in tomorrow's blogTO Morning Brew.
Yesterday's answer: Centennial Park Mini-Indy (Go-Carts), in West Etobicoke.
Scroll down for today's comments...
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Comments (13)
only a few places here in the toronto area that could look like that. i drive past this place many times when i go golfing.
i'll leave this one for someone else.
I'm sad to see Sam the Record Man be shut. I'm scared to see the fate of the store and what will become of the well known site. Most likely it iwll be torn down and turned into some blah blah blah store.
:(
I think it's a great idea to allow motorcycles to use HOV lanes, not only because they are more fuel efficient and take up less space, but also because of the reality that it's really dangerous to ride a motorcycle in stop and go traffic--motorcycles have a tendency to swerve/fall-over at slow speeds, unlike cars. :)
And since the Governator is in town I'll add that motorcycles in California have always been able to use the HOV lanes.
was just reading my motorcycle guide today prepping to get my scooter on the road and it says you shouldn't drive in the middle lane at all. so using the HOV lane on a street like Bay would make perfect sense. it's much safer for everyone - not to mention a nice way to reward those who opt for more efficient vehicles (like the free parking!)
If you give motorcycles and conventional scooters access to HOV lanes, it makes them a more popular mode of city transport. Bike lanes would be a far better change in my opinion.
Also, although a motorcycle gets twice the mileage on a Litre of gas (they're more fuel efficient), it does not mean that they're a more environmentally sound choice. Four people in a car is better than 4 people on motorcycles. The whole point of HOV lanes is to promote HIGH OCCUPANCY, not encourage people to get their own gas burning vehicles out onto the road.
I don't understand the motorcycle safety argument at all. If a motorcycle is so freaking unsafe to ride, then why are you riding it?
Jiwa, You'd have to read the guide, it's about being in a blocking position which is hard to do from a centre lane. Just because things can be unsafe doesn't mean they're not worth doing, just doing properly.
Jerrold, I think we have to be realistic and offer up some options. It would be great if eveyone biked but you can't force it. Up to now I've been carpooling most days and to be honest, after picking up friends, waiting for them to come out, taking the long way around etc etc, it's not always the most efficient. However, I have done my emissions homework (after reading your comment) and have found that some two-wheeled vehicles are bad polluters. Best, to get a brand new four-stroke scooter engine or at best, keep the engine well-tuned.
Kudos to Councillor Ootes for this initiative on motorcycles. He's the guy who got us free parking downtown in late 2005. I spoke a good deal about that, and the fact that a solo motorcyclist cannot ride in a HOV lane while a 2-up bike can, back when I began my podcast in 2005 at http://www.thetwistedwrist.com .
Motorcycles in HOV are a good thing, not only for a bikes blocking position. They are more fuel efficent (modern 4 stokes-many new bikes are also equipt with catalytic converters, not those dirty 2-strokes hinted at in the article (bangkok). They take up less space (parking & on the road). A bicycle (already allowed in HOV lanes)would be nice, but it is not practical @ the distance I live from work)plus with my shifts car pooling is out of the question, not everybody works 9-5. In a perfect world we would also be allowed to filter thru stopped traffic as well but that is another issue altogether.
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