Thanks busy bees for a job well done!

I recently re-discovered my new favourite food--honey! It started with a visit to Pioneer Brand honey at the Hillcrest Mall Farmers Market. There are so many varieties, from buckwheat honey to blueberry honey to creamed honey, and so many ways to use it. And it's a great sugar substitute in recipes.

"But what really sweetens the pot is knowing the honey in my tea is at work even if I’m not. In this liquid gold, I find a cache of antioxidants, a digestive aid, a detoxifier and even a soothing balm for wounds, all rolled into one delightful concoction.

Honey is the ultimate in products derived from herbs. Fashioned through an ingenious alliance between animal and plant kingdoms, honey delivers a diverse array of phytochemicals in one package. This bounty arrives courtesy of the industrious honeybee, who visits some 2 million flowers to manufacture just one pound of honey." -Gina Mohammed

I also take a teaspoon of bee pollen every day. It's a superfood! There are 22 basic elements in the human body. Enzymes, Hormones, Vitamins, Amino Acids, and others - Which must be renewed by nutrient intake, no one food contains them all, except Bee Pollen!

I also learned about beeswax candles.

Beeswax is very different: all natural, non-toxic, non-polluting, non-allergenic, and with a delicious honey-sweet aroma. It burns cleaner, brighter, hotter, and longer than candles made from other substances. A perfect, renewable resource, beeswax is made by the female worker bee for honeycomb, which safely contains their honey and the Queen's baby bees. To produce one pound of beeswax, the worker bees eat about ten pounds of honey, fly 150,000 miles, and visit 33 million flower blossom! Beeswax is precious stuff. It's also healthy. Beeswax produces negative ions that actually clean your air of odors, pollen, smoke, dust, dust mites, viruses, and other allergens and hazards - the only known fuel to do so. As does a rainstorm, beeswax candles leave your air fresher and cleaner - they are a true air purifier. They are the only candle for anyone with chemical sensitivities or allergies.

Paraffin, on the other hand, is petroleum industry waste that is bleached (adding dioxin and other poisonous chemicals) and texturized with acrolyn. Stearic acid, a by-product of the meat packing industry, is added as a hardener. Often, candles are highly scented with artificial, synthetic oils and marketed to "freshen" our air. They are known to release carcinogens like benzene and toluene.

An excerpt from the children's book Buzz, Buzz, Busy Bees by Dawn Bentley sums up my sentiments nicely:

Mmmm, mmmm. Honey golden as the sun.

Thanks busy bees, for a job well done!

Greener Side Celebration and Mill Pond Splash

With May bringing spring bird migration, blooming flowers, and pleasant temperatures, it's no wonder that nature festivals abound. I took my kids to Our Greener Side Celebration at the Kortright Centre for Conservation in Vaughan on May 28th, and the Mill Pond Splash on May 29th in Richmond Hill.

Highlights from the Mill Pond Splash included seeing some animals up close (including red tailed hawk, kestrel, and great horned owl), mural painting, walking along the pond, and getting a "grow your own butterfly" kit.

At Our Greener Side Celebration (the 3rd annual), my son discovered many creatures in the pond (the volunteers were fantastic!), we attended a Ontario wildlife show by Earth Rangers (see barn owl in photo), the pizza was incredible (local organic ingredients), sat in some electric vehicles, watched some entertaining musicians on stage. There was something for everyone, from crafts from reused materials to expert speakers to tours to a plethora of exhibitors. I hope even more people visit next year.

Nature festivals are a great way to enjoy our natural wonders with family and friends, come together as a community, and learn a thing or two about going greener. Another event coming up is the Carden Nature Festival from June 3 - 5, 2011.

A bike ride in pictures

Today was Bike to Work Day in the Greater Toronto Area. Here are some highlights from my bike ride today.

1. New section of Bartley Smith Greenway (between Planchet and Jacob Keefer Pkwy)

2. Bartley-Smith Greenway under Hwy 407

3. Bartley-Smith Greenway, north of Steeles and Dufferin

4. New subway construction at York University

5. Future multi-use trail in Finch Hydro Corridor (coming this summer).

6. Bike to Work celebration by Smart Commute at York University.

7. Collision at Keele/Steeles. Traffic was snarled up for quite a distance.

8. Memorial near Rupert's Pond at Barrhill/Rutherford in Maple

9. New bike lane on Dufferin (though I think 6 lanes for cars is excessive suburban arterial)

GO Station's days are numbered

The York University GO Station is in the boonies. It's about a 2km walk from campus. A free shuttle bus makes the trip for the 4 trains in the morning and 4 in the evening.

However, once the subway is extended to York University, the GO train connection will be moved to the new Sheppard West subway station, providing a multimodal link with the north part of the City. York's GO Station days are numbered. And that's a good thing!

Photos: 1) Way too much salt! 2) Station platform 3) new Presto fare card is coming 4) e-waste at the adjacent industrial warehouse

Owl Sighting: What a Hoot

While walking home from the GO Train on Wed, a large bird swooped across my path. It was an eastern screech owl (the most common type of owl found in York Region). I pulled out my bloggie and caught some footage (it was dark, so not the greatest quality). Check it out:
http://www.vimeo.com/18537512

This was my first sighting of an owl not in captivity. It looked at me for a while, and I at it looked back, both of us contemplating the other creature. I love pleasant surprises like this in nature when I least expect it. Sometimes, when you really open your eyes to the world around you, the world around you changes.

According to the local field naturalist group, 313 bird species have been recorded in York Region (29 considered rare and 70 considered very rare). Among the many types of birds I've seen in my backyard are a ruby-throated hummingbird, a red-tailed hawk landing on my deck, and even some escapees (zebra finch in my backyard last year, plus a parakeet outside the community centre a couple of years ago)! Birding is a fun and rewarding past-time and something I'd like to get better at.

Follow-up to Active Communities Pledge Campaign

Candidates who have taken the Active Communities Pledge in Vaughan:

Ward 1: Robert Irwin, Basil Marcello, Peter Meffe, Marilyn Iafrate, Teresa Chiappetta; Ward 2: Tony Carella, Darlo Di Giannantonio; Ward 4: Mary Ruffalo, Sandra Yeung Racco; Ward 5: Bernie Green; Local and Regional Councillor: Joanna Cacciola-Lionti, Robert Craig, John Ross Harvey, Krystof Klabouch, Deb Schulte, Carrie Liddy; Mayor: David Natale.

Here is the follow-up article:

http://www.yorkregion.com/news/local/article/891832--vaughan-candidates-challenged

Vaughan candidates take up riding challenge

By Adam Martin-Robbins

October 22, 2010

Several candidates in Vaughan’s municipal election race have committed to transforming the city into a bike-friendly community. Sixteen out of 45 political hopefuls — but only a few incumbents — have risen to Shawn Smith’s challenge and taken the Active Communities Pledge. “It’s a great sign that people, especially some of the new people, are supportive of cycling,” the Maple resident said. “I think of all the municipalities, Vaughan has the most or second most (signatures).”

The pledge is an online initiative by the Share the Road Coalition. It asks candidates across Ontario to support Bill 174, which would require motorists to give at least one metre of clearance when passing cyclists, commit to making their municipality a bike-friendly community by applying to the Bike Friendly Community program and promote “active transportation” such as biking and walking.

Mr. Smith e-mailed candidates at the beginning of October inviting them to take the pledge.
Regional council candidate Deb Schulte took the pledge then went one step further. Her supporters joined members of the Woodbridge Cycling Club to ride around Vaughan Oct. 17 for a first-hand look at the challenges cyclists face when peddling throughout the community.

“We are not a suburban city anymore,” she said. “We are turning into a urban city with real urban problems and if we’re going to get congestion under control, we’re going to have to look to all of the options.” There are also health and environmental benefits to having a city that is easy to travel around on foot or by bicycle, she said.

“It works elsewhere so it could work here, if we got it done properly,” said Ms Schulte, who was born in England and has travelled extensively for work. “It’s really about health; it’s for trying to provide another option for people and building a more complete, holistic city. And it’s not that difficult to do, that’s the frustrating part. It really just takes a commitment. We have a plan already. We did the plan years ago but where’s the political will to make it happen?”

When it comes to providing infrastructure for pedestrians and cyclists, Vaughan is lagging far behind cities such as Montreal, Ottawa, Vancouver and towns such as Markham, Mr. Smith said.
“Vaughan certainly needs better pedestrian and bike infrastructure: a network of sidewalks, pathways and bike lanes that take you anywhere you want to go,” said Mr. Smith, an avid cyclist who regularly rides to work. “It is too often treacherous for those who choose to travel in Vaughan by bike or two feet.”

Mr. Smith said the city has failed to consider the needs of cyclists and pedestrians when designing and building roads. He points to the McNaughton Road extension, which was built “with only the car in mind,” and the Teston Road Hwy. 400 interchange, where an opportunity to add bike lanes was missed. “There are many other things that can be done from encouraging businesses to have end-of-trip facilities, like showers, so people can bike to work to promoting the Safe Routes to School program so parents feel comfortable letting their kids bike and walk to school,” Mr. Smith added.

Candidates can take the Active Communities Pledge right up to Oct. 25. A list of those who have signed on is available at www.sharetheroad.ca.

Discover more on your bicycle

My family recently spent a few hours cycling the Bartley-Smith Greenway from our home in Maple all the way to the north part of Toronto's G. Ross Lord Park. The Bartley-Smith Greenway is a hidden gem in the City of Vaughan. The newest section, from Jacob Keffer Parkway to the end of Planchet Rd has yet to be discovered except by a few keen nature enthusiasts like myself. There were almost no footprints and we didn't pass a single soul. The section south of Langstaff had some joggers, dog walkers, and families out for a stroll, though once south of Steeles Ave in Toronto, it got noticeably busier. We stopped for a picnic lunch at a park, thoroughly enjoying the splendors of this beautiful Fall day.

The challenge to political candidates has been made in Vaughan. Let's build a bicycle friendly city! [from Vaughan Citizen, Oct 10, 2010, pg 5]...

Cycling at the Speed of Life

This morning I participated in a "Ride for Change" bike ride through Vaughan organized by the Deb Schulte Campaign to show support for cycling. Deb has a history in athletics and is very pro-cycling. She would like to build a city that includes everybody, including cyclists - whether they cycle for transportation, or for leisure. Deb is one of 13 municipal candidates in the upcoming Vaughan election who have so far taken the Active Communities Pledge to show their support for making Vaughan a bicycle friendly community.

An article in the National Post on Saturday, July 24, 2010 entitled "Gridlocked in Suburbia" noted a recent MoneySense survey that ranked Vaughan dead last out of 179 Canadian cities in the category of "walk or bike to work", relying on Statistics Canada data that found less than 2% of the population used either method. The City of Vaughan and York Region need to get moving with implementation of their bicycle master plan.

York Region is planning to issue a bike map in 2011. I have taken the liberty of starting my own online cycling map of Maple. The green lines are good cycling routes, yellow take caution, the red need improvement, and I've also added some comments about pedestrian issues at various locations.

Vaughan certainly needs better pedestrian and bike infrastructure: a network of sidewalks, pathways, and bike lanes that take you anywhere you want to go. It's not a war against the car... it's about getting more people on bikes. It is too often treacherous for those who choose to travel in Vaughan by bike or two feet. Pedestrians and bicycles should be considered in all future road planning, and not just leave it up to the developers to decide. The 4-lane McNaughton Rd extension that was built a few years ago, which passes the Maple GO Station, was clearly built with only the car in mind. Also the Teston Road / 400 interchange that I rode through today.

My favourite part of the ride today was seeing Keele Street teeming with bicycles on both sides of the street. Amazing! Perhaps, some time in the future, Vaughan will be like that every day. The culture will have to change, and it starts with our City's leadership. Until then, I cycle on, and I can't help smiling along the way.

The beauty of autumn

(Hiking the King City trail system with my family on Thanksgiving weekend)

As a birdwatcher, photographer, and nature-lover, autumn is like a dream for me. Crimson, auburn, and golden hues are ablaze, a cool fresh breeze sweeps a flurry of leaves across my path as a breath in deeply. Ahhhh, I love autumn. A feeling of nostalgia hits me: I recall, as a child, pressing leaves between wax paper, and hiking a leaf-covered forest path, swishing beneath my feet. We have but 100 autumns to enjoy, if we’re lucky. Do you have your eyes closed to the beauty around you? One of the biggest legacies of our provincial goverment is the Greenbelt. Get outside and live it. Be like a three year old and discover your world again for the first time.

Time for a change in Vaughan

I am dismayed and bewildered at Vaughan Council’s historic decision to approve the urban boundary expansion and remove any timing restrictions for developers. From the polarized views of Council, it is evident that there is a lack of shared vision for the future of our City. The priorities of Mayor Linda Jackson, Regional Councillors Joyce Frustaglio, Gino Rosati, Mario Ferri, and the Chair of the Official Plan Review, Peter Meffe, are out of touch with the needs of our City. It is time to draw the line in the sand when it comes to more unsustainable sprawling development, and rather, focus on intensification. Vaughan is well below Provincial density targets as it is. Imagine our City with dedicated lanes for buses and light rail that come every five minutes, so people would choose not to drive. Imagine a network of bikeways throughout the City that would take you anywhere you want to go, with vibrant public spaces to walk and socialize in the absence of noisy traffic. What a wonderful place it would be. We need decision-makers with guts to champion a transformative and compact City of Vaughan that all of us can be proud of.

Mayor Jackson says “we’ve had planned, controlled growth for 25 years and we are known for that”. Far from it. We’re one of the cities in Canada most frequently criticized. Take a look at a map of Vaughan from 1984 and you’ll see how much has changed. Huge swaths of agricultural land have been converted to low-density housing. Development brings a great deal of money to Vaughan, but at what cost? Cars make low density development possible, and low-density development requires cars. Distances between destinations are too far to walk and public transit systems can't operate efficiently.

The 886 hectare expansion has been cleverly marketed as the smallest urban boundary expansion in the history of Vaughan. Maybe, if you ignore the rules of exponential growth. A 3% expansion now is much bigger than a 3% expansion years ago. It should be looked at in terms of land area. 886 hectares is more than double the size of Maple’s urban area in 1984, and it had taken Maple a century and a half to get there. The entire island of Venice is 517 hectares. But we’re not looking at building another Venice. It’s same old, same old in Vaughan, plus more traffic.

It’s been said that “we will never know the worth of water ‘til the well is dry”. Please vote wisely. Vaughan Council has been plagued with controversy and scandal for the past decade. It's time for a change! The future of our city is at stake.

Earth Hour 2008

photos: Woodbridge lantern walk









Hats off to Earth Hour



by Chris Winter Executive Director The Conservation Council of Ontario

It's fascinating reading all the griping and sniping about Earth Hour,mostly around whether or not it has any significant impact and why it didn'tchallenge us all to go deeper.

But hey, we just witnessed (and likely participated in) the biggestenvironmental event the world has ever seen. The initial estimates run up to100 million people worldwide. Yes, it was the eco equivalent of the world'slargest human wave, but by comparison the Live Earth concerts pegged only amere 1 million people as concert-goers. Both events were equally successfulin garnering media attention and raising public awareness around the globe,but Earth Hour just blew away all previous records for mass participation inan environmental event.

As one whose focus is on movement-based social marketing and eco campaigns,I truly have to say I am in awe of what Earth Hour accomplished.That said, let me offer my perception of the design weakness of Earth Hour:it is unconnected, save to the World Wildlife Fund.

To be effective, "simple action campaigns" must not only achieve widespreadparticipation, they must also support the development of deeper action,either through policy action or by building capacity.

Our Doors Closed <http://www.weconserve.ca/doorsclosed/> campaign wasdesigned to promote a simple action - close your door when running an airconditioner. It also supported three retail conservation programs that couldhelp stores and restaurants make an even deeper commitment to conservation.

And it provided municipalities, retail associations and community groupswith material they could incorporate into their own activities. Awareness,simple action, deeper commitment and capacity building all rolled into asingle positive social marketing campaign.We have far too many simplistic public awareness campaigns at a time whenpublic awareness has never been greater.

If Earth Hour is to happen again next year, and I for one think it should,there are a few fine-tuning tweaks that would make it an even bettercampaign:

1. 9:00 o'clock, not 8:00 when the sun is still setting.

2. On or around April 22nd to link Earth Hour with Earth Day.

3. emphasize the symbolic celebration of our commitment to the planet(as opposed to the actual one-hour savings)

4. link the symbolic commitment to deeper commitments. This applies topolicy inititiatives as well as to voluntary measures by businesses,municipalities, and individuals.

5. Make it shareware, in particular to encourage donations to localgroups involved in promoting or delivering climate change solutionsEarth Hour was the right event at the right time this year.

It clearly struck a chord with governments, businesses and people the world over. Butlisten to the voices of the critics. and just about everyone I've talked tohad something critical to say (we are hard to please aren't we).My advice is simple, and yet difficult to heed: Think like a movement.

Ontario Bike Plan

Cycle Ontario Alliance's Ontario Bike Plan is available to view on Toronto Bicycling Network's web site (one of the study's sponsors):

Short URL: http://tbn.ca/obpfull

Full URL: http://www.tbn.ca/forms/OntarioBikePlan-2008-web.pdf

The Ontario Bike Plan presents a series of strategies for both recreational and utilitarian cycling to encourage cycling participation in Ontario, specifically focusing on the implementation of the Ontario Bicycling Route. The strategies take into account existing cycling conditions in Ontario, derived from data and research in various Ontario communities and elsewhere, as well as consultation with various stakeholders including provincial ministries, Cycle Ontario Alliance (COA) members and the general public through the COA’s web site.

The vision for cycling in Ontario is to create a bicycle-friendly Ontario that encourages people of all ages to cycle for recreation, fitness and transportation enhancing the overall health and quality of life of Ontarians.

This study was completed for Cycle Ontario Alliance/Ontario en vélo, a member-supported, non-profit corporation dedicated to non-competitive, on-road cycling activities and was funded by the Ontario Ministry of Health Promotion, Mountain Equipment Co-op, Toronto Bicycling Network, North York Cycling Committee, Niagara Freewheelers and Sault Ste. Marie Velorution.

For further information about the Ontario Bike Plan or Cycle Ontario Alliance, please contact: info@Cycleontario.ca

This is really about making more room for cars

Subject: Let's all agree to the obvious: This is really about making more room for cars.
DR. GRIDLOCK
Road plan isn't about carpools or buses, it's just making room for more cars

JEFF GRAY jgray@globeandmail.com Globe and Mail Mar. 10/08

Sixteenth Avenue, as I remember it, was in the late 1980s a charming two-lane county road, with mostly farmland - and real live cows - on one side, and on the other, the rapidly expanding world of two-car garages and front lawns, where my family lived.

While at least one of those farms is still there, 16th is now a wide-feeling four lanes - an ample buffer zone graces its middle in stretches - and a busy commuter artery, funnelling traffic to Highway 404.

It is lined mostly with the backyards of houses that are hidden away in twisty-street subdivisions, and passes parking lots, plazas and gas stations. It is sprawl in a nutshell:

Great for cars, if you aren't expecting too many of them and don't mind mild ugliness, and lousy for pedestrians, cyclists and public transit.

Now, 16th Avenue is on a list of a staggering number of York Region's main roads that regional chairman Bill Fisch wants to widen, in this case, making my onetime sleepy country road six or seven lanes across.

Mr. Fisch says the plan is about creating high-occupancy vehicle lanes for carpoolers and buses. But let's not kid ourselves. Public transit up here is still a fringe affair, despite recent advances thanks to the region's shiny, new Viva bus system. And any HOV lanes along these roads are either going to be unenforceable or only meant to be enforced in rush hours.

Let's all agree to the obvious: This is really about making more room for cars.

Armed with his HOV-Iane fig leaf, Mr. Fisch even recently scolded Toronto Mayor David Miller for refusing to match York Region's road-widenings on Toronto's roads south of Steeles Avenue.

Mr. Miller and Toronto's traffic planners, however, have concluded that widening roads is a short-term fix, and so is no fix at all. In just a few years sometimes mere months - the new lanes simply clog with more cars.

Even York Regionites, mostly a car-loving people, are rising up against the widening plans. The resistance has admittedly been driven by people who live along 16th Avenue and are not keen to have what will amount to a highway right next to their back-yards. A petition has been circulating, crowds have been packing political meetings, and Markham town council voted recently to ask York Region to consider other options.

"It seems like it's time to draw a line in the sand with regard to urban sprawl," said local resident Peter Miasek, a semi-retired environmental adviser to Imperial Oil, who has been spearheading efforts to stop the widening.

He acknowledges that for an hour in the morning, traffic on 16th Avenue is quite busy, and that it maybe takes five more minutes than it once did to zip across. But four-lane main arteries, with better public transit in the mix, seem to serve big, busy Toronto well, he observes: "We know that four-lane roads plus transit works, because south of Steeles, that's pretty much all you've got down there."

Markham Mayor Frank Scarpitti said the town has asked York Region to look at whether the various planned future improvements to public transit the Yonge subway extension, improved GO service - will take the pressure off the need to widen roads as the area continues its massive population growth. But in an interview, he seemed unwilling to go to the barricades to fight a wider 16th Avenue: "At the end of the day, though, we do need to solve the traffic problem."

York Region has referred Markham's request to its transportation department for further study.

Stephen Collins, who manages the roads branch of York Region's engineering transportation services department, provided a chart that shows that if current trends continue, much of 16th would be at or above capacity by 2021.

He said the region's strategy, which used to call for nothing ,but road widenings, has matured into a plan to create a "transit priority network," with wider roads of HOV transit lanes to feed local bus passengers to its Viva bus rapid transit system.

Still, this is York Region. Many long-standing residents moved there years ago for the "open spaces," Mr. Collins says, and they are not going to give up their car keys.

"They are car users and they will always be car users, and despite our best efforts to encourage them to use transit, they never will. So we need to recognize that we have those people in our community, and we need to provide services for them."

Maybe there is no alternative.

Maybe there are so many cars, and so many malls. and so many low-rise office complexes dotting Markham and Richmond Hill that there is no use even bothering to fight against a wider 16th Avenue. Or maybe this considerable handicap means York Region needs to adopt a much more radical approach to transportation, well outside of its comfortable four-wheeled box.

Dr. Gridlock appears Mondays.

They are car users and they will always be car users, and despite our best efforts to encourage them to use transit, they never will.

Stephen Collins

City's poor stranded in suburbs

Getting ready in the morning usually means grabbing your car keys or your bus pass. Which one of these you take says a lot less about who you are than about where you are. In Canada's big cities, only half of adults who live in the downtown core drive every day. Outside this core, four out of five adults drive every day, which is natural since fewer interesting places are within walking distance. In the newer suburban developments in the quickest-growing parts of the 905 region, walking to the nearest grocery store can seem like an epic trip. In Canada's suburbs, where you work, play, eat and sleep might well be in totally different areas of the community. This makes a car your ticket into a full suburban life.

Toronto Star, P.AA8, February 13, 2008

Development in Vaughan

Look at this 1984 Map of Vaughan. The area around Canada's Wonderland was all farmland. Maple was a small community. So much has changed in the last 15 years. Now most of the land is low-density housing. Development brings a great deal of money to Vaughan, but at what cost? This car dependency has major implications on public health and well-being, permeating into the fabric of everyday life. -S


In 1993, housing development began in the area of what was Maple Airport and to the northwest. In 1995, it expanded to the western part of Maple. Between 1997 and 1999, urban developments reached the northwestern part of Maple and Melville and the Don to the train tracks. Developments also reached the northeastern part and the southeastern part. Megalot houses began developing northeast of Maple near Dufferin in the late-1990s. The housing developments began up to the Highway 400 in the northwest. Housing developments have begun near Vellore.

As of 2001, developments reached the northwestern part as far as Highway 400, Teston Road, the CN line and the southwest. Most of the housing developments in the early-2000s reached Pine Valley Drive in the southwest in Vellore Village and Vellore Woods. The housing and urban developments is currently in the west between Highway 400 and Weston and Major Mackenzie and will reach to Teston.

Most recently there is a new subdivision being developed in the eastern part of Maple between bounded by Dufferin, Major Mackenzie and Rutherford Road. The name of the area is Thornberry Woods/Eagle Hills/Mackenzie Chase. Some of the builders include Greenpark Homes, Treasure Hill Homes, Tiffany Park Homes, Royal Pine Homes, Century Grove Homes, Primont Homes, Edenbrook Homes and Fernbrook Homes and Remington Homes (Thornhill Valley). Some of the street names like "Peter Rupert Avenue" reflect the history of Maple. This new area is directly south of Eagle's Nest Golf Course. This area known as Block 18 has just started development. Its proximity to Richmond Hill, Thornhill (also part of Vaughan) and the Golf Course are making the area very high demand and it is showing in the prices. "Upper Thornhill" (a misnomer name, given to the area by developers for marketing purposes) bounded by Dufferin to the west, Bathurst to the east, Major Mac to the south and Teston to the north is popularly considered a part of Maple.

The Vaughan planning area that includes Block 18 (East Maple), Block 11 (Thornhill/Maple), Block 12 (Upper Thornhill/Maple) and Block 10 (Thornhill Woods) is expected to grow substantially over the next few years. This area is known as the "Carville District"
New areas at the Maple/Thornhill Carville urban village include Thornhill Woods, Coronation, Roxborough, Upper Thornhill Estates, Thornberry Woods, Eagle Hills, Mackenzie Chase, Laureate Walk.

Valleys of Thornhill, also popularly considered part of Maple is also in the early stages of it's development with homes ranging from $400k - $1.2 million

Maple's proximity to Toronto and its major transportation corridors, and Vaughan's own political support for development, have led to the heavy development and heavy population growth. This development brings a great deal of money to the City of Vaughan, as well as the local economy, but at the same time Vaughan is frequently accused of allowing uncontrolled sprawl; Maple is arguably the most prominent example of this. In particular, those that travel up the 400 infrequently notice how much further north the development has moved even in short timeframes. Visitors to Canada's wonderland often remember that ten years ago the amusement park was surrounded by fields; and particularly in the early-mid 2000s has become surrounded by thousands of new houses. Critics suggest that denser, more central development would conserve land and allow the provision of more efficient urban services such as public transit, services traditionally thwarted by the spread-out subdivisions and lack of a dense and central downtown typical of most cities of Maple's size.

[Source: Wikipedia]

A Call For Better Transportation in Vaughan

The City of Vaughan is a great place to live, work, and play. However, it seems to me that city planners and politicians continue to indirectly encourage people to drive their cars more. If you drive on Major Mackenzie between Keele Street and Bathurst Street, there are sprawling, low-density subdivisions under construction as far as the eye can see. How will public transit effectively serve these communities? Buses will continue to be too slow, infrequent, and inconvenient to attract people away from their cars.

Vaughan is an unfriendly place for those who manoeuvre its streets with a bike or two feet. When cycling in downtown Maple, one has to either risk their life on Major MacKenzie Drive or break the law by riding on the sidewalk. Canadian motorists make an average of 2,000 trips each year that are less than three kilometres, trips that can easily be made by bike. York Region Cycling and Pedestrian Master Plan proposes only 1.5 km of additional bike lanes in Vaughan in the next five years. When priorities are right, a street can be transformed into a vibrant place for people. It's obvious that priorities are elsewhere.

At Vaughan Corporate Centre (Hwy 400 & Hwy 7), the big box stores with their massive free parking lots make walking from one store to another very challenging. Moreover, all this pavement is where nature was before. Where do the birds go? What effect does this have on our watercourses and the air we breathe?

The GO Train takes only 35 minutes from Maple to Union Station. Fantastic! But with only four trains in the morning and evening, Monday to Friday, there is standing-room only. What about those who work in North Toronto, or to the East or West? There are few alternatives to driving, except spending a very long time travelling by bus. In Vaughan, the majority who take transit do so because they don't have an available vehicle, not because it's easier or more convenient. Far from it.

Imagine our City with dedicated lanes for buses and light rail that come every five minutes, so people would choose not to drive. Imagine a network of bikeways throughout the City that would take you anywhere you want to go, with vibrant public spaces to walk and socialize in the absence of noisy traffic. What a wonderful place it would be. We need decision-makers to champion a better transportation system. A happier, healthier, and more sustainable future depends on it!

-S

Hwy 407 @ Keele Street

6 lanes of traffic lanes, but no bike lanes

Check out the state of this sidewalk at Keele and Steeles, as you enter Vaughan!

Buses inch along in rush hour traffic

Cars are the priority here... no sidewalk.

The City of Vaughan has since repaved this intersection (Keele St & Major Mackenzie) but still no bike lanes.

Jim Bradley, Ontario's new Minister of Transportation

Toronto Star
Monday, November 5, 2007

Environmentalists bet on Bradley
New transportation minister expected to exert influence well beyond his portfolio
Peter Gorrie - Environment Reporter

A surprise name comes up when environmentalists assess Ontario's new cabinet. They tout Jim Bradley as the minister, among the half-dozen with a direct impact on green issues, who offers the most hope for progress.


Yes, that Jim Bradley – the gregarious 30-year Legislature veteran from St. Catharines who's been nearly invisible during the past four years in stints as the minister for seniors and tourism, and government house leader.


His new job, minister of transportation, isn't much more of a political powerhouse than those others.


But green observers say transportation policies will be crucial in deciding southern Ontario's environmental fate. They also expect Bradley to wield strong influence beyond the borders of his ministry.


They are pleased by the choices for all six ministries, announced last Tuesday, which include John Gerretsen in Environment, Gerry Phillips at Energy, Donna Cansfield in natural resources, Jim Watson in Municipal Affairs and David Caplan, returning as minister of public infrastructure renewal.


"None of the six is a lead weight; none are anchors," says Chris Winter, executive director of the Conservation Council of Ontario. "They all have the potential to move their agenda forward. We're miles ahead of where we were 20 years ago."


Advocates are also pleased by the government's apparent recognition that environment issues aren't separate from others – as, for example, with the recent report that linked the spread of diabetes to the sedentary lifestyle encouraged by car-dependent suburbs.


"You can see how these things fit together," says Julia Langer, of World Wildlife Fund Canada. Agriculture ministry support for local food buttresses the climate-change plan. Several ministries must mesh to ensure new housing is never more than an easy walk from a transit stop. "The cabinet has to have more than one environment minister."


But Bradley occupies a special place, partly because of his record as environment minister under then-premier David Peterson from 1985 to '90, but also because he's reputed to have been a quiet force since the Liberals regained power in 2003.


"Bradley is considered to be the father of the modern environmental government," says David Donnelly, a lawyer who works on issues such as urban sprawl, building standards and protection of Lake Simcoe.


Among other things, Bradley stared down nickel-smelting giants Inco. Ltd. and Falconbridge Ltd. and other industries that caused acid rain, and, over strong business objections, pushed through regulations that reduced toxic pollution from sewer pipes.


Now, he's in charge of a ministry that's fixated on more and bigger highways and bridges, and that critics argue must shift to support public transit, cycling and walking.


"He does a wonderful `aw shucks' routine," Donnelly says. But "very few people are shrewder.


"He holds a great deal of sway with the cabinet....I expect him to fight and, based on his past history, I expect him to win."


Winter adds: "He had a lot of spine back then (as environment minister) and I don't think he's lost it."


In their most optimistic moments, environmentalists picture Bradley killing plans for new expressways through the Greenbelt – the extension of Highways 404 and 407 and a new route along the Niagara Peninsula and across York Region's mid-section.


More realistically, they say he might reduce the scale of those massive road plans, which seem to fly in the face of the government's claim to want more compact, transit- and pedestrian-friendly communities.


A cautious Bradley, still busy moving to his new office, says he hasn't yet "turned my attention" to that issue. He is certain, though, that much of his effort will focus on how to spend the $17.5 billion Premier Dalton McGuinty has pledged for transit projects.


The other five ministers have reasonable green credentials but those with track records get mixed reviews.


Gerretsen, former mayor of Kingston, earns high marks for creating the Greenbelt over strong objections from developers and landowners. He's downgraded, though, for approving energy-efficiency standards for new houses that Donnelly calls "disappointing."


Caplan, with part of the responsibility for containing sprawl, is praised for general direction but considered weak on putting it into practice. Phillips strongly backed the creation of the Rouge Valley park on Toronto's eastern border.