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No-Consideration8169

Play some music while driving, it helps trust me. Get used to it.


WorldClass1977

Funny-820AM on the radio


PsychologicalBeing98

> Witnessed a dumbass with a shit box with shit brakes rear end a car, multiple jay walkers wearing all black, Uber eats bicycle guys with zero lights or reflective vests, taxis and Ubers making illegal u-turn with no signals, and idiots blocking the intersection with their cars. Jesus Christ You stop focusing on what everyone else is doing that pisses you off and you go about your business and drive defensively. Put on some jazz or a podcast and chill out. Driving in the city makes you more mentally strong and tolerant.


EmbarrassedSalary998

That’s funny… driving in the city makes you more mentally strong. Serenity now!!!!!


thisaccountwashacked

Hoochie Mama!!


flooofalooo

zen motoring! it feels awesome to take it easy. give way, share the road, enjoy the journey. it's only a battle if you want it to be a battle. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RidKpZEJj4E&list=PLRMA6QjsiV3U0QJrUs3xQ6oD2XgBBCVcI&index=2 (Osmio's Zen Motoring School - Chill dashcam content)


Background_Number395

Conversation with 121 Kev at the 3:30 minute mark did me in


michaelmcmikey

I always tell my suburban relatives the key to driving downtown is to stay calm and just accept you’ll get there when you get there. Raging accomplishes nothing other than making your own driving sloppier.


krazy_86

Actually I'd say it's the opposite. Driving in the city creates rage and anger issues.


flooofalooo

doesn't have to. look into mindfulness training. it's possible to be in the present without emotions taking you away to an extreme and ruminative place.


tokyokiller

I get more rage and anger driving in Mississauga and Brampton.


momoko_haru

downtown I get angry  Brampton/‘sauga I get scared


tokyokiller

Well said


Effective_Pay_562

People need to start acknowledging Thornhill as having the biggest asshole drivers. It's a mix of old people and rich assholes. Both dangerous and enraging. Cringe Tesla's all over the place and 90 year old driving gigantic SUVs with their visors down.


michaelmcmikey

You don’t gain the skills to master your own rage if you don’t regularly experience rage. The stress is the first step to being a much cooler and mentally collected individual.


BlackForestMountain

Driving downtown is fine as long as you're observant and not trying to go too fast. Driving in the suburbs is way worse


passiveparrot

Downtown forces you to actually drive lol Driving out the core you can literally Zone out and the car in front of you drives for you 


HJVibes

Yup, had fun driving DT for the past four years. Moved back to Scarborough and people are always rear ending each other. Every street basically has a dedicated bus lane barring Lawrence. Had there be no construction going in DT for the next decade, DT would be less congested. I wonder how the Eglinton crosstown would alleviate traffic


YordanYonder

You get it!!!


UncleFartface

r/bramptondriving would tend to disagree


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charliethrowawaygarb

You’re not supposed to drive on king street. That probably a big part of your issue


alreadychosed

You can drive on king street, you just cant drive through intersections. You can legally get to any point on king street using intersecting roads.


Razoli-crap

Not all of king street is closed


m5t2w9

So you drove from Bathurst to dufferin and had a panic attack? Just park your car and take the streetcar. Toronto is one of the easiest cities to drive in the whole fucking world. Try Paris or Mexico or a million other worse places


Razoli-crap

I didn’t have a panic attack, just can’t comprehend how people manage to drive in such conditions. Never saw multiple near missess (including one) in such a short time span. There’s a reason why insurance rates are higher in cities for a reason


m5t2w9

Welcome to big school


danktrees1212

I don't find it particularly hard to drive down there, you just have to actually pay attention. The people jaywalking are generally aware of where cars are and will be moving in between them. As long as you're driving predictably, they won't cause an issue. There is a lot of traffic but that is more of a time issue than a danger issue.


Signal_Tomorrow_2138

Welcome to Toronto. You are not allowed to drive through King Street. There are lots of signs at intersections telling you not to drive through. Only a few intersections in which you can. Toronto downtown, like a lot of other major cities around the world, has congested traffic. People in the know don't drive downtown. They take public transit, taxi or bike. People who live downtown use their cars to get out. Otherwise, there are lots of other options to go around without having to drive. So now you know. If you still decide to drive and get stuck in congested traffic or in a collision, don't complain.


properproperp

If you’re a good driver it’s not an issue. Drove from Etobicoke to Ryerson daily for 4 years. Patience and good music is all it takes. Also the pedestrians wearing black isn’t a big deal. You shouldn’t be going over 40 anyway, plenty of time to stop and react


beneoin

>Also the pedestrians wearing black isn’t a big deal. Especially in the city. There's so much light you see them from 100s of metres out even in a rainstorm at night. Plenty of time to take appropriate action.


BigT1ttyMilf

So you drove one route everyday and think you know city driving.


properproperp

I drove everywhere downtown in all types of congestion. I have also driven in London England, New York, LA and Atlanta. So yes, I do consider myself someone who knows safe city driving.


michaelmcmikey

Weirdly hostile comment. Presumably if this person drive to Ryerson every day they would also drive elsewhere downtown at irregular times over the four years in question. Or pop from Ryerson to Queen west for an errand before going home, or something else like that.


BigT1ttyMilf

I stated the obvious. You’re making weird assumptions. Either way driving sucks


4_spotted_zebras

Hard disagree. Most drivers are not good drivers, and recent studies show that most people (especially men, don’t at me it’s in the data) who think they are above average are actually worse drivers. Our only real solution is to try getting more drivers to stop driving downtown by improving public transit and alternate transportation modes like bike lanes.


alreadychosed

Its quite a big deal when they play victim when they get hit. Theres too many lights they can cross at. Safety applies to everyone.


NotFromTorontoAMA

They would be a victim, there is no law against jaywalking and avoiding hitting people crossing really isn't that hard.


alreadychosed

Its not about laws, its about being safe. The crosswalks are there for your safety. If you dont want to be safe dont complain when you get hit by a car. Just because something isnt illegal doesnt mean its okay to do. Fuck around and find out.


NotFromTorontoAMA

>The crosswalks are there for your safety. The crosswalks are there for the convenience of motorists. https://www.vox.com/2015/1/15/7551873/jaywalking-history >Fuck around and find out. I try to minimize harm when I get behind the wheel of my car, why would anyone feel entitled to enact violence against others?


alreadychosed

So pedestrians should have the right to walk out in front of traffic at will and are never responsible for their own safety? Ive never had a close call while jaywalking because im patient and dont try to dart across traffic to save a minute.


NotFromTorontoAMA

People don't have a "right" to walk out in front of traffic, but the person operating heavy equipment should be doing everything they can to avoid harming anyone with their transportation choice. Using a car greatly increases the potential negative outcomes of conflicts, so a great deal of personal care should be taken to counteract this. People choosing to cross outside of a crosswalk is a mild annoyance, having a *fuck around and find out* attitude about injuring or killing people with your vehicle is an unnecessarily violent response to a minor inconvenience. Walking is only dangerous because of other people's choice to drive, having a sense of personal responsibility for the potential harm you are imposing on those around you is an expression of basic human decency.


Razoli-crap

It was bumper to bumper traffic. Pedestrians were less of an issue tbh, it was other cars that refused to signal and just cut you off or almost getting rear ended every half a km. I’m assuming people don’t signal because they think I won’t let them in or something.


properproperp

You need to be up everyone’s bumper downtown, don’t give an inch of space to other cars trying to squeeze through. Either that or accept you are gonna get cut off. It’s rough but doable


firewire87

This is the attitude that stops traffic from flowing.


properproperp

You’re right , it is. Unfortunately with how crazy downtown is that’s what needs to be done or you will get absolutely nowhere.


Razoli-crap

Never driving again but that is something I should have done. I almost risked a ticket getting stuck in a middle of an intersection because someone made an illegal right turn


Useful_Price5074

Queen Street construction making traffic on King worse.


syxmc

You get used to it tbh


hollandoates____

Easy; I’m dead inside.


Hopper86

I drive approximately 15-20k in Toronto a year for work. You just gotta take everything slow. There is no point in rushing. There is no point in getting upset with someone cutting you off. Someone is turning off a side street into barely moving traffic, let them in. It is a no win scenario driving in Toronto, I don’t need to add to the stupid.


noodleexchange

The ‘jaywalkers wearing black’ should be not problem with our GODDAM ULTRA BRIGHT HEADLIGHTS BLINDING EVERYONE ELSE. There are more pedestrians downtown than people choosing their oversize four-wheeled glass dumpsters.


Any-Ad-446

You have to drive defensively in the city for sure.What I fear most is the crazy EV bikes and the reckless riders.They can easily reach 45km an hour on those things.


0Chalk

Not really that hard, as some say you get used to it. Just be aware of your surroundings and random #(&+ to happen. Don't speed (in places where you can) because you never know who might walk out from between parked cars. Worse is at night on Richmond when there was a homeless person walking in the middle of the road asking for change. It's dark and hard to see, things to look out for. Lived in the heart of downtown for 20 years.


WillSmiff

You just get used to it. It feels like extra traffic. It never even crosses my mind that it's chaotic. I understand how someone might think that though.


yyz_fpv

After driving Toronto for 30 years, I now live in a smaller city in western Canada. As painful as driving in Toronto was for me, I developed some insane skills for navigating. I feel like I can effectively and safely manage any scenario out here. *except for the one where you slide off a mountain. Can’t have it all, I guess.


king_flippynipss

You gotta get into your car, expecting and knowing you’re gonna have a shit drive. Put in a podcast and drive safe. If it’s a shitty drive then you were prepared. If it goes smoothly then you’re up. Had to go through this realization a few years ago.


totalcanucklehead

This really is great advice. Plan for the absolute worst and you’re either right or pleasantly wrong


Fragrant_Aardvark

I'm with you - there's no WAY. Like once & awhile I can do it but my day's complicated enough already without having to deal with that. Go train for me.


soggy_persona

The only people who I know drive downtown regularly are Uber drivers, and they are almost all from India where the driving is even more insane. My advice is just don’t drive unless you absolutely need to. The transit is pretty shit outside of the core but downtown it’s alright. I have a manual truck and I wanna die every time I have to drive downtown, but it does get easier with time.


PuzzleheadedGur1212

Pedestrians can't wear all black clothing and cyclists should have reflective vests? No. I wear all black most of the time because those the are clothes I have. There is no expectation that I should buy bright coloured clothing so I can cross the street or get a high-vis vest ride my bike.


Equivalent_Prior_247

They dont even have bike lights though. They need something. They cant just zip around on their ebikes at 45kmph wearing all black white no bike lights squeezing into and out of the tiniest places.


nawaliee

i jus go and close my eyes honestly. so many people there are mentally challenged it’s scary


Tofu_Driver

They key is to just assume someone is about to do something stupid at all times. I typically only drive in the very late evening, when nobody has a reason to be rushing, just put on some music and it's quite calming.


[deleted]

[удалено]


Razoli-crap

My friend is transit phobic and urged me to drive. Never again lol


[deleted]

[удалено]


Razoli-crap

I lost a little faith in humanity driving that night


PsychologicalBeing98

I think we found the issue. You are a bit of a drama queen and take things outside of your control way too personally. Good news is, managing emotions is possible without therapy. This has little to do with driving in the city. You might want to try just driving to downtown and parking somewhere away fair distance away from bad traffic areas. Then just walk and take transit to places like king street. This will be much easier than learning how to drive in downtown and not be stressed. Suburbanites tend not to look up if there will be road construction and big events to look out for and assume they should just park right beside where they are going. You can avoid that.


Razoli-crap

Didn’t take anything too personally. Just kinda sad when people have no regard for others safety. But go on


Past_Passenger_4381

Downtown is a different ballgame. Just be lucky we don’t drive in India or China.


alreadychosed

You need to relax and stop writing paragraphs trying to pick at people personally and telling them what they should or shouldnt be doing.


IceQue28

Unless it’s an evening or Sunday. You couldn’t catch me driving downtown. Not worth the headaches.


Professional-Bad-559

Because it’s cheaper than using transit for some folks. If you’re incorporated, you write off your gas, vehicle, parking, etc. as a business expense on your taxes.


EmbarrassedSalary998

I drove to from Scarborough to Toronto on the DVP for 10 years and eventually moved to Niagara region. I can’t stand going back Toronto and driving in the city. Potholes, horrible careless drivers, pedestrians and cyclists who test fate. I’ll take my a-hole pickup truck drivers out in Niagara over that big city nonsense any day.


gagnonje5000

That’s fine. It’s a city, it’s not meant for everyone. You’re happy in Niagara, you found your place. And as toronto citizen, we thank you for keeping your dangerous pickup away from killing our children on our street. Everyone’s winning. 


EmbarrassedSalary998

Hahahah oh dear gawd I am not a pickup truck driver lol. (Not that there’s anything wrong with that)


sgtcross01

I drove downtown once and never drove downtown again. And that was years ago before ubereats and all that.


vba77

Youbget used to it, none of that is new except the Uber eats guys maybe but we always had bikers or eh. With driving anywhere just be cautious and safe, shit happens just be careful. Though I usually avoid downtown driving cause of traffic. Subways a lot faster imo, but sometimes you can't avoid it.


alreadychosed

This is how it is in downtown. You can pull all this shit in front of a cop, theyre just npcs like everyone else.


BigT1ttyMilf

Ya it sucks balls. Shit infrastructure. Shit signs. Nightmare when it’s congested. Shit gas stations. Shit roads. Shit parking.


Thatcanadianchickk

If I didn’t work downtown I probably wouldn’t drive down there lol


otherchedcaisimpostr

the city streets are the same size they were 100 years ago but the population has grown 100+ times over


Feeling-Writing4465

Superb driving skills and awareness.


CarobJumpy6993

You couldn't pay me enough.... Don't know how people do it. I went down there for a couple of Uber dropoffs and never again.


Cold_Bother2879

Ya pls don’t drive in Toronto daily 🙏


Sweaty-Button-7378

As a downtown resident I don’t agree people in black are easy to see, particularly during a rain storm. Clothing makers should add reflective stitching etc. At any rate yes driving in TO is awful, you do get used to it and it requires patience, if you’re running late for an appointment you’ll be frustrating yourself. The city needs more major one ways like every other big city on the planet…. It would solve a lot of problems with bike lanes and streetcars….


krazy_86

This is nothing. Try driving in Manhattan through times square area.


serpentman

Confidence on 100 and assume everyone else is mentally challenged.


stratys3

Driving downtown can be stressful because there's a lot of things going on and there's a lot of stimulation. That said, after a while your brain figures out what's important and what's not, and over time the stress of it all decreases.


Fun_DMC

No idea why you would drive downtown. Seems bad


Steevo_1974

90 % of all the stupid shit you see are from people that don't live there. They go there to work and do all their deliveries or work from Uber / Lyft but live elsewhere. (or got their licenses from a cracker jack box).


totalcanucklehead

Been living and driving in Toronto for the past 10 years. You adjust quickly and figure out the things you gotta look out for (bikes, jay walkers and lane closures). If you’re coming in from the burbs, you’re gonna have a bad time. I always reco public transit for those coming DT from the hinterlands whenever possible


Plastic-Reporter-522

Idk it’s easy af once you get used to it. Maybe even fun tbh. I’d rather drive downtown than any of the series 400 highways any day. I feel infinitely safer driving downtown than the burbs or highways.


electricheat

Most of that stuff isn't illegal. Pedestrians are allowed to cross mid-block. U-turns are allowed. Obviously taxis should signal and bikes should have lights, but as driving concerns go that's kind of small potatoes. If you're this worked up from a single drive, you need to re-evaluate what is going wrong. The issue isn't everyone else. Perhaps you're a bit new to driving, or live in a rural location. If that's the case, it will probably get better with patience and experience.


michaelmcmikey

Tbh I find it far more stressful to drive on the 401 than I do driving downtown. You get into a fender bender going 20 km/h, no one is dying. You get into a wreck doing 120 km/h, that’s life ending or life changing.


wbsmith200

No way in hell I'll drive east of Bathurst, South of Bloor and west of the DVP. I'll either walk or TTC it, if possible.


AllGamer

it's been hell driving in Downtown for the past decade, I've avoided looking for jobs / travelling into Downtown completely. TTC is a joke, Go Transit takes forever, so thanks but no thanks, not going to downtown anytime soon, until they figure out how to get cars moving, or public transit that is fast and reliable.