Marathon Chaos

Toronto City Hall bufoons are in talks to restrict the number of fall marathons to 1 largely due to the traffic chaos caused by both the Scotiabank Waterfront Marathon and the Goodlife Toronto Marathon.

Sure it causes an inconvenience but it seems like a small price to pay to get a sleepy city like Toronto on the map for some potentially international premier events. I've run both events and truthfully it's the Goodlife marathon course that's causes the most congestion. That course runs all over the place whereas the Waterfront course is basically the lower downtown and across the Lakeshore. The new route through the East Beach neighbourhood is wonderful for participants and residents. In fact the Waterfront marathon disruption is no worse than Caribanna.


Toronto planners can learn from Chicago. I was there last year during the July 4th weekend. No question this is a world class city capable of hosting many major events and simultaneously for that matter. For example the July 4th weekend coincides with the Taste of Chicago. Streets are closed for food stands, yet Grant Park and Navy Pier still runs fireworks all weekend long. Museums, parks and tours are open, and somehow traffic still moves, buses still run and the city is bustling with locals and thousands of tourists.

True, the Windy city has the advantage of being master planned but there is something that Toronto can consider ... And that is people called Traffic and Transit Officers. During these events these men and women clad in bright green vests assist to move traffic and people along the busy streets. Unlike alot of TTC workers, these individuals love their job and are happy to help you get where you're going, and with a smile.

Instead of preventing great things from happening, why not do something to make them better.