Morning Brew: Toronto eyes car charging stations, the city's worst roads, saving Jarvis bike lanes, odd bylaws, suspicious plans at Billy Bishop, and a meteor sighting
If you're one of the 400 electric car owners in Ontario, you could be getting a free boost from the city pretty soon. Yesterday councillors approved $65,000 of funding for five downtown electric vehicle charging stations, all of which will operate free of charge during a one-year trial period. If the project is a success, more charging stations could appear in the coming years. The charging stations still need to go before council.
Regular users of Bayview Ave. and Sheppard Ave. E won't be surprised to hear the intersection is officially the most congested in Toronto. Using the latest information, city staff will look at new ways to ease traffic on some of the busiest stretches of road. For the full top ten (or possibly bottom ten), see here.
Can the bike lanes on Jarvis be saved? According to The Star, there's a growing number of voices at council and on the street against the costly removal measures. Earlier this week, cyclists took to Jarvis en masse in protest. In a different political climate this time last year, council voted 26-19 to add a fifth, reversible vehicle lane at the expense of the bike infrastructure.
Swimmers taking a dip in the Don "without proper bathing dress" and citizens giving alcohol to children without the parent's permission are breaking city bylaws, don't you know. OpenFile has a list of strange laws enacted by Toronto at one time or another.
Waterfront residents are suspicious of Toronto Port Authority's plan to dump material excavated during construction of the new pedestrian tunnel into the water near Billy Bishop Airport, claiming the new land could be used to extend the runway. The TPA says the material will create a barrier to keep boats a safe distance from planes. Conspiracy?
Did you see the meteor last night? Sightings of a flashing, falling object with a colorful trail were reported in the US, Ontario and Quebec last night around 9:30pm, including several in Toronto. Here's a video from a dashboard camera in Grand Rapids, Michigan. (via Reddit and Meteor Hunters).
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Photo: "Pedestrian Bridge" by dtstuff9 in the blogTO Flickr Pool.
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