Quote:
Originally Posted by acottawa
Well, I'm writing this near the peak of the Ottawa rush hour. Bank and Laurier to Palladium/417 is 25 km and takes 36 minutes by the fastest route, 50 if you take the Queensway (which is under construction).
King and Bay to Scarborough Town Centre (also 25 km) takes 50 minutes by the fastest route and 56 minutes by the DVP/401.
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So unless people are remapping routes all the time, it'll take about 50 mins to do 25km. There's days you could get from King/Bay STC in about 40 mins using Danforth, Kingston Rd. etc. But people don't tend to map out a different route everyday.
What matters far more here is not how long it takes to drive per se, but the travel time difference between transit and driving. That's what largely determines the choice. What's the marginal utility of the time saved to the individual and can they afford/are they willing to incur the cost for that.
What drives the choice to take transit in Toronto is not the time it takes. It's the cost. It's $20 per day to park. At least. Not many people can afford that. I drove to work daily when I got a spot paid for. And took transit when I didn't. The only people I know who drive to the Financial District either had a subsidized/free spot or carpooled.
If Ottawa imposes a $5 per space parking spot tax in the downtown core, watch what happens to transit ridership.
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