Toronto might kill rush hour parking on streetcar routes

Just like a Line 1 subway car, many of Toronto's downtown streets are jam-packed with commuters during rush hour. That's why at today's council meeting the city is looking at introducing even more parking restrictions on heavily trafficked streetcar routes along College/Carlton, Dundas and Queen between Roncesvalles and Parliament.

According to the Toronto Star, the head of Toronto transportation services Steve Buckley knows that rush hour is no longer just a two hour period at each end of the workday. Some streetcar routes operate at slower rates just before and after a typical rush hour (7 a.m. - 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. - 6 p.m.).

If approved, the restrictions will make certain on-street parking spaces off limits for an extra 30 to 90 minutes. The city already implemented similar restrictions on King Street, although as the Star notes, it's unclear whether this has actually helped speed up the 504 route.

What do you think of this proposal to increase parking restrictions on street car routes? Let us know in the comments.

Photo by b.m.a.n. in the blogTO Flickr pool