Riding the Rocket in Toronto

By: Sarah H., Toronto, ON

It's true that many adventures can be had on the public transit. I myself have had near death, near love and near harassment experiences on Toronto's subway system. And while it may be cheaper than other forms of transportation, and does run at almost any hour, the truth is public transit is the bane of my existence and will go to any lengths I can to avoid it (including saving up to buy a car, which I finally did).

When I first moved to Toronto (from suburban Mississauga, where almost everyone has a car) I thought the transit system was neat. You could get anywhere in the city in under an hour, there were always bus connections and the fare was under $2. The bus near my house always came on time and I didn't have to pay anywhere from $10 to $20 a day for parking downtown, either. All my friends took the transit too.

Unfortunately, this rosy picture faded quickly. There were many isolated occurrences that eventually drove me to forsake transit forever (in my hear at least). One day it was a five minute delay underground, the next it was 10 minutes and soon, I found myself waiting on the platform while train after train went by with no room for me to get on. If I did manage to get on, I never got a seat and had to stand for one hour on my way to school. Next, they cancelled the daytime bus service on the route near my house so that the bus only runs during the morning and afternoon rush hours. Think you might want to go out to a movie with your friends at night? Think about walking in the dark for half an hour down a highway from the nearest bus stop.

I think it may have been a very smelly old man that sat down on top of me that did itÉor maybe it was the person shouting at the top of his lungs and swearing at the people in the subway car. Perhaps it was when the TTC workers went on strike or when a snowstorm last year shut down the service. What finally sealed my hatred for transit was being packed like a sardine into a subway car too full of people and fainting on someone's shoulder.

At any rate, I began to realize that transit is not all it's cracked up to be. It's no fun arriving at my destination each morning with motion sickness and a headache from the perfume stench emanating off the woman sitting next to me. Sure, it may help the environment to take public transit, but it's just so hard to see the big picture sometimes when I'm staring out the subway window at a dirty underground wall.

Transit is my life!

By: Melaina R., Brampton, ON

As a school-attending, teenage individual I am subjected to the use of public transit. Yes, it's true a (Brampton) Bus driver clad in navy blue pants escorts me to all my destinations. Am I proud of this fact? Obviously not! My bus rides occur so frequently that one trip has faded into another. As I watch my fortunate friends whiz by in fancy sports cars, I seethe in envy because I won't be home for another hour. This means that I will not be able to watch The Oprah Winfrey show before I start work at my part-time job. I will not have enough time. This is another sad injustice in life. In first grade, my teacher Mrs. Clark had me draw a map of the fastest way to get from my house to my school. I wish I kept that map so that when the bus driver makes endless departures and a million stops, I can shove it in his face.

Most of my adventures on the bus have taken place during the frigid winter months. For instance, I have waited at the bus stop for nearly an hour and a half in skin-freezing temperatures. I have had old ladies accidentally topple over on me because the bus driver had elapsed into maniac driving mode. And I have been on a bus absent the driver because he needed to curb his hunger pangs ASAP and Mr. Submarine was in the vicinity. I am grateful to be alive with all my senses, as I have been almost caught between the wheels of a bus. The bus driver took it upon himself to swerve away before I properly exited the bus and my feet had touched solid ground.

Although I seem to have a negative outlook on the Brampton Transit system, there are many advantages to this form of transportation as well. For instance, if you belong to the small population of people who refuse to wear a watch, never fear bus users are almost always never without one, if you ever need to know the time! Also, embarking on long bus rides can be cheaper than paying exorbitant prices for gas. Also the atmosphere of a Brampton Bus can culturally educate the average transit user. Upon boarding, one is immersed in an environment full of people wearing everything from XXXLG clothing to business suits, people wearing the latest head gear from baseball caps, to visors, to turbans--even panty hose. You'll hear every possible language: Chinese, Hindi, even street talk.