

As people try to get to work or get home, and they’re taking longer, they may try to multi-task. The stop-and-go of gridlock adds to the problem, Karageorgos said. That’s because the longer a vehicle is on the road, the greater the risk that it will be involved in a collision, explained Pete Karageorgos, manager, consumer and industry relations with the Insurance Bureau of Canada. That alone adds up to about $479 million.Ĭongestion creates a higher propensity for accidents. Think of all that extra gas you need for your car when you’re moving slowly up the Don Valley Parkway, or wear and tear on your brakes. The average commuter in the Greater Toronto-Hamilton Area incurs an excess delay of 11.5 minutes per day and 50 hours per year.įor drivers, the costs add up substantially. The time cost for transit riders is another $337 million.Ī trip that would take 20 minutes in free-flow conditions will take 38 minutes during peak travel times, according to the report. This is the estimated value of the work you weren’t doing or the leisure time you weren’t enjoying. The biggest component, $2.2 billion, is delay for vehicle users. “But that’s money and time we could put into other things to improve our quality of life.” “That $6 billion sounds so big and like it’s somebody else’s problem,” said Leslie Woo, vice president of policy, planning and innovation at Metrolinx. The figure is part of a seminal study on the subject conducted by HDR Corp. The estimated annual cost of congestion in the Greater Toronto-Hamilton area in 2006 was $6 billion. Some consequences are more visible than others. That affects everything from your monthly car insurance bill to your health to the region’s economy. GO trains, subways, streetcars and buses are at capacity. Traffic on main streets north, south, east, and west is backed up. On an average day, major highways from Durham Region to Hamilton are clogged. But it’s no secret that Toronto is suffering from a bad case of congestion. Some traffic, particularly in urban areas, is good.

Just jammed, I know it,” she says, steeling herself for a long line of cars trying to get westbound on Eglinton Ave. She gets into her car to pick up the dogs - then she hits the traffic.

She loads up on water and snacks (people and doggie). She checks her email for clients asking for last-minute scheduling changes.

To get the dogs out on time for their mid-morning walk, Greenspan starts her day before 8:30 a.m.
#Gridlock jeep professional
When you’re a professional dog walker, it goes with the territory. Greenspan doesn’t really mind the days with freezing cold and pouring rain. She started her company, Urban Dog Walks, about a year ago. It feels like this is what I’m meant to be doing with my career,” Greenspan said. “I like to say that my life has gone to the dogs and my clients. Her four-legged charges - two labradoodles, a black Labrador, and a collie - keep her moving briskly along the Kay Gardiner Beltline trail. On a sunny autumn morning in Forest Hill, Koryn Greenspan is hard at work.
