Google Street View Now Live in Toronto!
Google Street View Toronto in now finally up and running! It's also live for Ottawa, Vancouver, Montreal, Calgary, and Halifax.
We've been waiting for it for a long time for this in Canada. Since back in April, the Google Street View camera cars were seen in and around the GTA, and speculation that the new visual feature would be implemented "soon" remained alive and well. But it's been so long that most of us forgot about it. Until today!
And there are some hilarious moments captured.
To try it:
First go to Toronto on Google Maps, and then drag the little yellow man human icon onto the map. Oh, and be sure to try it in full screen (there's an expand icon at the top right of the street view screen). Looks great!
Have fun exploring, and let us know if you find anything interesting by posting links and/or commenting below! Well post sceencaps too.
Spotted in Toronto:
Twin CN Towers:
Creeeeeepy:
Elephant!
Speed-trapping:
Propane explosion damage:
Garbage strike immortalized! Christie Pits during the summer municipal workers' strike:
Kids up to no good at Hillcrest Park:
Pre- hand-held device ban driver on Queen St. West:
Firefighters eating street meat at Yonge & St.Clair:
People... err... shopping on Yonge St.:
One-finger waving at College & Shaw:
More bird flipping:
Bike police doing their thing:
Kid getting help peeing in a bush:
>>Removed by Google!<<
Teenage girls lining up for a concert:
Van of fire:
Christmas in July?
Shady business on George St.? Not sure what's going on here.
Hollywood North action (at Sherbourne & Dundas):
Sweet ride in Yorkville:
Google Street View car taking self-portrait at "Hooker Harvey's":
Bikini bottom in Kensington park:
Good Samaritan showing plumber's crack?
Skeleton guy on his way to Fort York:
Walking the dog in her PJs:
Straight outta Oshawa:
We see you!
Art blurred:
KFB (Kentucky Fried Blur):
Gentlemen's Club in Mississauga:
Please keep 'em coming! :)
Comments (142)
Kind of a nice snapshot of the summer. My roommate's bike, which was stolen from our front porch, is there in the image they captured when passing by. Too bad the dick who stole it isn't in the shot!
Cool.
But the figure is not a man. It's a representation of a *person*.
(Funny how no one assumes a neutral figure like that could be representation of a woman. (Which it isn't, anyway.))
Why did the camera car go into the parking lot of the Beer Store at College & Bathurst? haha! You can see a woman with a huge bag of empties.
Nice to see that SOME of the Keele graffiti wall was captured... too bad the west half wasn't...
Are they still updating it? Because there's huge swaths of the city without Street View. I know, it's the suburbs and nobody downtown cares, but what's the point if you're not going to do the whole thing?
I see what you mean -- some suburban cul-de-sacs are covered while some more major streets aren't (or are only partially Street-Viewed). I'm guessing they'll get to it eventually -- Toronto's a pretty big city. Lot of ground to cover.
They must have some mad face-recognition software at google to blur out all of those faces.
I really hope craigslist rental ads take advantage of being able to provide clear shots of properties!
I've been immortalized!!! Search for the address 602 RATHBURN @ Elmcrest in Etobicoke just near Centennial Park, make sure you're travelling West, swing the camera around and you'll see me on my motorcycle waving at the camera, and as it drives away my rear end!
I recognized the Google car and camera setup so I knew to start waving, and look at that. LOL!
Unfortunately I'm using my iPhone right now so I can't copy the map link. I was wondering why there was a little person icon on my addresses this morning.
EDITOR'S NOTE: here's a LINK.
This house has a nifty face someone graffiti'd on it.
This is great but I'm kind of feeling a little creeped out - I just had a quick look at my office address and you can see my boss sitting at his desk through his window.
yeah - funny how the first thing I look at is my home, which I just saw a couple of hours ago. Next, my office, which I'm currently in...
So, a tear in the space-time continuum?
Nice!
I know that Realtors have had a similar offering through TREB for a few months now, the end result is very impressive. I'm pretty sure that is provided by Microsoft or through a third party partnership.
Google loves to democratize the shit out of everything -which is great!
This is wicked, but i agree with Monique, it is a little creepy. I looked up my house and was able to zoom in on it. That means other people can too...
Here's a good one. Google Street View captures
guy on bike pinching his nose and looking at garbage strike heap at Christie Pits.
Another tear in the space-time continuum:
so if this is what is available to everyday people, think of what else is out for government use.
big brother is watching you
You can fix that on the standard map screen. I don't know if it updates the streetview though.
According to unnamed sources, strip joint and bathhouse monitoring will be available in version 1.31.
Disgraced Health minister David Kaplan spotted
This has a distinct "big brother" sort of feel to it. It makes me uncomfortable and uneasy, just the same as it did when I heard it was in other cities. One the novelty of "finding your own house" and "That's me in the park!" wears off, this is a lot of people watching a lot of other people, via a massive corporation. No thanks.
Looks like someone needed a hand while taking a pee.
Toronto's finest working hard on Queen West:
Hrmm... my link-fu seems to be off, lets try that again:
Toronto's finest cracking down on Queen West
Technically, they're looking at a photo snapped many months ago, so I wouldn't call it Big Brother. For that it would have to be real-time feed 24/7
The guy beside him is picking his nose. He was probably an E-Health consultant billing $2,750/hour
wow, this is hilarious.. i think blogto should create a daily article on google street view pics.. so we can all have a good laugh..
I see that lady with the empties in my neighbourhood going through recycling bins all the time!
van on fire rules. i found my bike parked in front of the social. pretty cool way to waste my afternoon.
Cops ticketing at Much Music
filming on a side street near Sherbourne and Dundas...
Sightseeing bus showing tourists the local sights:
What difference does having a short url make? Either way, they're clickable. Hopefully, you knew that, and you haven't been typing them out. Then I would understand your preference for shorter urls...
Bottom of Ossington - Creemore Ad right next to Detox Center. Before it was painted over.
http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=16+Ossington+Ave,+Toronto,+ON,+Canada&sll=43.644647,-79.41905&sspn=0.018602,0.035491&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=16+Ossington+Ave,+Toronto,+Toronto+Division,+Ontario&ll=43.64488,-79.419115&spn=0.004192,0.017745&z=16&layer=c&cbll=43.644876,-79.419116&panoid=XHeDgemjBgE8ixTicXqDlA&cbp=11,189.61,,1,-4.63
I'm really sad I never saw the street view car—I carried a sweet homemade sign around in my bag for a while, hoping for my own chance at immortality. And I figured if I didn't have that, I'd secure my e-fame by dropping trou.
Google has started to remove some of these.
Apparently shots of giving the middle finger, and children in their underwear are not to remain on the site! :P
You can still see the original images here if you're interested:
First "PIMPED" Caravan I've ever seen. Eglinton West @ Glen Erin in Mississauga
Sweet, finally! I saw the camera car drive by earlier this year while I was shooting hoops and here I am!
So just about anyone with a stange device on top of your car can drive below the airport runways
Wonder how much thought went into the placement of these signs
Sure enough google may have some issues with privacy concerns. But there are various other websites hosting street views for Toronto that get around this by focusing only on the buildings. Take a look at the following to see an example:
http://www.pixelcity.ca/?segId=295&imgId=61&zoom=3&type=3
PixelCity focuses on a panoramic view rather than a 360 view which avoids privacy issues. On top of that, its much quicker to move up and down a street of interest then Google's 360 street viewer
Jenny: "this is a lot of people watching a lot of other people, via a massive corporation. No thanks."
Jenny is out, everyone. She's against watching people via massive corporation. No more photographs! She also deleted her Flickr account.
joe blowme: "so if this is what is available to everyday people, think of what else is out for government use. big brother is watching you"
I don't even know where to begin with this one. Joe, would it make you feel any better to know that Google is better at developing software than every government in the world? Even the mean governments! Secondly, Google Street View... IS A MAP WITH PHOTOS. It's literally a road map, but WITH PHOTOGRAPHS STUCK ONTO IT. It's amazingly implemented and all, but Jesus Christ you crazies, it's not voodoo. Google's cameras didn't steal your summer 2009 souls.
at least the construction on St.Clair from Bathurst to Dufferin is well documented - look at all the people not there - it is almost a time capsule of businesses that will have or probably will go under due to this fiasco of poor planning, overspending and mismanagement.
How much pollution and carbon do you think is produced in producing the meticulous Street Views images?
seriously? one truck driving around the city? you are worried about one truck driving around the city taking pictures as if this is going to tip the balance some way? If only that Google truck hadn't driven around Toronto the Earth would be OK today....
While these images at first glance appear to be only a source of fun and wasting time, they can be invaluable as a directional aid.
Streetview could result in many people getting to their destination in a timely manner who normally would have gotten lost. That means fewer cars on the road driving unecessary distances (taking wrong turns, going too far and having to turn around, etc), and fewer idling cars (while the driver runs into the nearby gas station for directions)
Sound like I'm picking out minor details? Well, so are you, but I would guess that the carbon emissions reduced by the relatively fewer people getting lost is more than enough to cover the Google car's emissions.
Check out this guy wearing what appears to be a skeleton costume driving a motorized wheel chair... on fort york blvd where I used to live.
Speed trap on Lakeshore in front of the Legion http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&layer=c&cbll=43.634482,-79.439002&panoid=61sSSW-k0yp8jwyWqNxV7g&cbp=12,150.16,,1,13.27&ll=43.634483,-79.439006&spn=0,359.990462&z=17
Hahaha I could look at this all day! Hmm I like dragging the little man on the map, it's funny when he sways his legs. :p
This totally sux and is 100% Big Brother 1984. WTF? Can't wait for the first court case to challenge this. Start smashing the cameras now
Great! First we have to find a DeLorean...I saw one at the Shoppers by the Queensway in Etobicoke a little while ago. I think I have a spare flux capacitor in my closet too! Smash smash smash!
1 year post Downsview Explosion - house beside site - http://tinyurl.com/ygvj8x5
Actually zoom up and down this street - most houses are boarded up
Explosion site wreckage - http://tinyurl.com/ylahqs9
I thought I had already seen the stupidest comments about Street View, but then Zed showed up late to deliver the trump comment. The time travel jokes where good though. ^____^
It must be terrible to see amazing inventions and get upset and scared about it.
Still going here? Here's a serial killer relaxing in Kensington Market:
This is so amazing! When the aliens collect archived images of our fallen society, they will truly see us for who we are - in all our nose-picking, van-burning, half-naked glory - thanks to Google Street View.
Here's a guy holding onto a rope from his roof while the rope is tied to his couch, swinging several feet off the ground.
This one's better... http://tinyurl.com/yzpov5x
Start clicking forward (east) and you'll see the cop eventually walk out onto the street in front of the Google car.
Rotate the photo and you can see the service truck. The fellow(?) is working on the electrical services for the street lights and signals.
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