Morning Brew: TTC to investigate rules for strollers, city approves e-bingo, plastic explosive on a plane, extreme cold alert for city, and Leafs drop puck from outer space

"Elsa La Rosa, 61, told the meeting the TTC should charge each stroller a $2 fare during peak times"

Yes, and then they're going to implement a 3$ surcharge for fat people, 79 cents per grocery bag, and knapsacks are a buck.

But the best new fee will be the 8 dollar extra charge for dumbasses like La Rosa who lower the IQ of everybody on the bus.

"He feels having two strollers per bus is fair any more then that must wait for the next bus, and he is right."

Try telling that to any mother ever that has wanted to get on a bus... She's shoving her way on and giving you cut eye the whole time, policy or no policy.

I don't personally mind strollers on the streetcar, what I do mind is when the parent pushing the stroller decides that they MUST sit in the seat at the front and angle their stroller in a manner that hinders people moving past to go farther back. I also think the general size of the average stroller is a bit too much. Other than that, parents and kids need to get from point A to point B as much as the rest of us. If we all just were a little more considerate of each other there wouldn't be nutbar people complaining to the TTC of stupid things.

I see way too many kids too big for a stroller in a stroller. What does that say?

Strollers are a major pain in the a**. I'd love to see them banned outright. Sick and tired of these mothers and nanny's who think they should be entitled to get on first, pushing their golf-cart sized stroller past everyone else. Then they take up 3 seats and the rest of us have to squeeze past them. Yeah, this topic really gets my goat up.

The TTC probably can't enforce any restrictions on strollers without exposing themselves to lawsuits, but there are things they can recommend: a) folding strollers or ones that are as compact as possible, b) strollers should be moved as far back in the vehicle as possible/put in the wheelchair space if possible, as Dan suggests.

The TTC is frustrating for everyone. If it wasn't, it wouldn't be public transport. It's hard enough being a parent of a toddler - don't think the rest of us need to pile on. Yes, strollers are a pain, but so is parenthood. Give them a break.

I say we ban kids and mothers from the subway as well, make the commute much more enjoyable! Old people as well they are much too rude!

Get outta here with that logic Todd!

It'll be hilarious to hear what you stroller-haters say in a few years when it's YOU that's trying to get your toddler to a doctor appointment on public transit.

You will either change your tune on strollers OR you'll change your tune on the ethics of urban automobile use.

Me? I have no snark for a parent who's working hard just trying to get errands done. I'm happy to make room, and I'm happy to help them lift the stroller on and off. Ain't difficult.

$3 for a stroller? That's just beyond stupid. It's a stroller, it's not that hard to deal with it. Just walk by. If it's blocking you just ask the mother/father to please move it forward or to the side so you can pass. If there's no room to move it then the vehicle is full anyway and you've got to wait for the next one. Even the largest stroller takes up about 3 people's worth of room (assuming those people aren't carrying backpacks or bags), so it's not that big a deal.

there are things they can recommend: a) folding strollers
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So, you want a parent to carry the stroller onto the bus, then take the kid out of the stroller, fold the stroller up, put the stroller somewhere, hold the kid until his stop, then unfold the stroller, put the kid back in the stroller, and carry it off the bus?

Please come back when you have reproduced and tell us how dumb you were in 2013.

Oh, oh, oh, I have a brilliant solution.

How about you don't have kids until you're able to afford a car?
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Wow. The stupid. It burns.

how about.......... running more buses, streetcars and subways.

Love the "wait until you have kids" logic.

Well, some of us aren't having kids. And some of us who are planning it will wait until we can shuttle Junior around in a car instead of cramming fifteen grocery bags and an SUV stroller on a bus.
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Perhaps the only thing more stupid than suggesting that people wait to have kids until they can buy a car is the assumption that everybody has the same economic opportunities that could lead to the possibility of buying a car.

Hopefully your offspring will get your partner's brains.

I already have a kid, thanks, and I've been through the whole stroller-on-transit period.

'So, you want a parent to carry the stroller onto the bus, then take the kid out of the stroller, fold the stroller up, put the stroller somewhere, hold the kid until his stop, then unfold the stroller, put the kid back in the stroller, and carry it off the bus?'

No. Fold the stroller up before the bus/streetcar gets there, carry stroller, hold kid's hand while getting on (or carry kid), put kid on seat or lap, get off with stroller and kid, unfold stroller, put kid in stroller.

It's not hard. If I can do it, so can you. Sort it out.

Yeah, cause not having a car always equals abject poverty. Dumbass.

hey todd can we meet up some time this evening so i can punch you in the mouth?

Not a parent just disturbed by your ignorance

The ignorance and selfishness shown by some people in Toronto is appalling. Some of you people should be ashamed of yourselves.

lol. i probably deserve that. but i mean really? come on! have you read his stupidity?

It's stupid to not want more poor kids in the world? It's stupid to want people to consider their finances before having kids?

Then call me a proud resident of Stupidville.

sorry todd but the world isn't filled with geniuses. get over it. some people make decisions that we don't all agree with but attacking them probably isn't the answer. they usually have it tough enough as is.

Samjam breathlessly says "Beck taxi helllo! It's not cheap but a heck of a lot more convenient
Than the bus"

Hey I heard there are these new fangled things called "car seats" and every baby and child has to sit in them until they reach a certain size. So, no, parents can't just shove their kids into the back of a cab.

Maybe you should sit this discussion out until you know something and/or anything.

It's not like this is the first time shopping/strollers/walkers in rush hour has come up.

http://www.blogto.com/upload/2012/07/20120711-TTCAds-Wife.jpg

http://www.blogto.com/upload/2012/07/20120711-TTCAds-McTush.jpg

http://www.blogto.com/upload/2012/07/20120711-TTCAds-WomanRushHour.jpg

http://www.blogto.com/upload/2012/07/20120711-TTCAds-Elephant.jpg

After reading this thread now we know why the rest of Canada hates Toronto. Nothing but self righteous cry babies who care for nothing more then themselves.

I recently took my 2 year old on the subway with stroller. She can walk, but she is certainly not steady enough on a moving subway. My wife had always complained that people in Toronto are rude and inconsiderate, based on her experiences with child on the TTC. I had always dismissed her claims as exaggerated. Not anymore. Maybe it isn't rudeness, but a lack of care. I'm a grown adult man, I don't need a seat or help with my child. But many other parents with children do. I was stunned by the way everyone sitting on the subway looked away when I entered (as if I was expecting them to give up their seat), pushed their way around us to get off the subway first and onto the escalator, and then squeezing around us on the narrow escalator to save 10 seconds of time. Really, are we that self-centred that we can only think of our own needs at any given time? People complain about nannies and moms with strollers being inconsiderate - perhaps its because they know from experience that unless they are proactive in looking after their child's comfort and saftey while travelling on TTC, no one else will. That includes: making sure your child in stroller is next to you and close to the exit so they don't have to push their way through a crowd with child and equipment in hand; making sure you get on the bus or streetcar with child first, rather than waiting outside in the cold and snow for the "next one" (really, what a stupid suggestion - are people really suggesting a mother with an infant should wait in -15 degree weather for the next bus or streetcar if there is not enough room for other passengers to get on first? fucking retarded); sometimes blocking the entire escalator for the 15 seconds it takes to get from one end to the other, so you don't run the risk of some idiot accidentily knocking your stroller over trying to squeeze by. In the end, this isn't really an issue confined to strollers on TTC; it touches upon what seems to be a deterioration of some important aspects of our societal function. I am not old, under 40. I was taught to be considerate of others, to help others when I see a need. What I see now is a lack of this consideration for others, from the young and old alike. What a bitter, sad existence if all you think of is yourself.

And now refuse to be inconvenienced.

To that I say, tough luck.

i know some twats like to use the word pc like everyone is 'being pc' and its stupid but it really isn't a matter of that. its being considerate or compassionate. but keep your eyes on mergers and acquisitions. wealth is not always a sign of intelligence. you sound like a dude who was raised very poorly. hug someone today.

You're a woman who can't spell the word 'woman', therefore your opinion is beyond irrelevant.

The simple fact is there's not enough room for anyone on streetcars. They are full to the point of absurdity during rush hour and it's common to have to wait for a few to go by before one can even get on.

Charging extra or putting a maximum number doesn't change the fact that people have to get around the city.

And for all the quibbling between people who hate stroller and mothers who think people are discourteous - if you pack people in like animals, they'll start acting like them. Everybody's upset because it's horribly uncomfortable for everyone

It's not just strollers they are rude towards, it's everyone including each other. it's why I not only avoid the TTC at all costs when possible, it's also why I tell visitors to T.O. to stay away from the TTC if they don't want to leave with a serious hate for Torontonians. Commuters on the TTC is truly Toronto at it's worst. They tune out the real world with their stupid little ear buds, slam their backpacks into anyone they can manage to hit and regale us with their loud conversations on their cellphone.

I agree with all your points except the "walk left, stand right rule". Thankfully most people still follow this "rule" or I would loose my sanity. However this "rule" was removed in 2007 citing safety concerns.

http://www.blogto.com/city/2007/06/the_monster_that_is_the_ttc_escalator/

What do you have against people who have earbuds on???!!

I wear earbuds so I don't have to hear people loudly chatting on their cellphones or to each other. I sometimes listen to podcasts or audiobooks and it surely isn't blasting music loudly.

Also yes, while I agree that sometimes traveling with people on public transit here makes me weep for humanity (especially with regards to how ruthless some people are with taking seats... one time, I was turning around to put my butt down on the seat and someone literally squeezed through the tiny gap between my turned around butt and the seat and sat down. Not to mention how chivalry is dead and almost always women who give up their seats to pregnant or elderly people nowadays), it surely isn't as terrible as you make it seem overall.

Why I wear ear-buds in a single comment: "I have these in so I don't have to hear the inane shit that comes out of your mouth".

yes, well, you've already made it quite clear you don't give a fuck about anyone but yourself so no surprise there.

Great post.

Or to make Lefties such as AV happy, just ban everyone and everything.

In the UMBRELLA stroller they go, I hope you mean. Once a child is old enough to walk, he's old enough to ride in a folding stroller.

Parents need to get around, but they also need to learn to leave the mobile command unit-sized strollers at home, especially during rush hour.

People need to realize that the TTC is one of the only transit systems without stroller regulations. We've been able to handle them for 100 years without problems - what's changed? People change. Once upon a time parents and nannies were considerate with their stroller size/usage, but this reputation has been lost, and now the TTC has an awkward decision to make. Way to go.

Any kid that still needs a stroller will easily fit into a sling. The parent can carry the child if it absolutely must accompany them to wherever they're going. I wouldn't mind as much if today's strollers were a decent size like they were in the 80's, but they're more often than not unnecessarily large these days. It's especially irritating when the stroller is being used as shopping cart while the kid is not using it what so ever.

Clearly, you don't have a kid and therefore should show a little humility in speaking of things of which you know little.

Re your sling comment, even ambulatory toddlers have small legs that tire easily. They also take midday naps. A stroller is therefore not just a mode of transportation, but a mobile rest stop that allows parents to move about while their kid rests.

Re your "inappropriately" sized strollers comment, they may look like the equivalent of a Hummer on a city street, but they're more like a Wrangler. They allow you to take your kid to the rink (with skates), to the park (with a picnic), to pick up milk and some veggies on your way home from the ROM, and it doesn't matter if it snowed that day. People who are using umbrella strollers are not doing these things; they're going from Point A to Point B, generally on short trips during good weather.

Just hurry up and ban strollers, I need room to stretch out my legs in the handicap seats during rush hour.

How about Rob Ford getting off his fat ass and getting his fishing buddy to give more for funding the grossly underfunded TTC

this thread has too many comment, I stopped reading half way down.

So will I be allowed to bring my fully loaded shopping cart on the bus?

Learn how to read, and failing that, go away.

The problem is adults thinking it's totally OK to have kids when they can't pay for them... and now refuse to be inconvenienced. That's an epidemic. I'm sorry you're too much of a wuss to call people out on their terrible decisions, you should try it, it does wonders for your psyche.

Have another handful of Paxil, tard.

Todd's just a bitter loser who can't afford to buy a car and has to take the TTC.

Again, you just proved you don't get it. You're stuck in your miserable world with generalizations about people and their choices.

Why the hell did you make up an argument based on the idea that people who can't afford a car, shouldn't have kids?

"The problem is adults thinking it's totally OK to have kids when they can't pay for them... and now refuse to be inconvenienced."

Are you saying that everyone who rides the bus, cannot afford a car and therefore should not have children? Are you saying in order to have a child, you must have a car so you can drive them everywhere?

This is how your words come across. You really don't get it that people don't always need a car and can get by using public transit, and this does not mean they cannot afford to support a child.

You really don't know what the fuck you're talking about because you're a miserable individual.

I bet some of the morons whining about strollers are the same assholes that take their bicycles on the TTC. Our glorious transit syatem should charge those morons extra!!