ok, here's the latest from ontario......
 

hello, all ! i moved to ontario some time in july this year and since then, i had been posting a few bits and pieces of trivia from here on this site, but since then i landed a job and havent had time until now.
well, i am getting on with my life here and it is becoming a bit samey, and by that i mean, eat, sleep get up, go to work, get home, eat sleep.....etc etc! same as in england! aside of that, life here is very good-cheap petrol(to me anyway), cheap food, very good spacious housing etc.
but i do have one small niggle, and that is about how bad people drive here--man, soon as you are on the main roads, they are up your backside, tailgating you unless you move out of the way--and there's no lane discipline here--they cut you up, move from lane to lane at breakneck speeds, overtake on the wrong side and the list goes on! no wonder that fatalities are high here. the only reasonably sensible place i have driven is on lakeshore road west, through oakville, where people seem to pay attention to the speed limits. otherwise, winston churchill-brittania road--glen erin drive etc are road-rage areas!! anyway, thats all from me for now--i will post more useful tidbits soon.....!

Re: ok, here's the latest from ontario......
 

I find it liberating to be able to drive in any way that suits my mood of the day.

Re: ok, here's the latest from ontario......
 

Just wait until January when you are driving along in a blizzard with the road covered in snow etc. You'd think that people would slow down and take more care but nope, they drive exactly the same. Especially the people in the SUVs and trucks who think that big wheels and 4x4 somehow allow them to see through the snow and gives them magic brakeing powers etc.

I recall lat winter driving from Toronto to Oakville with my wife and her father and the weather was terrible, you could see maybe 2 cars ahead and the road was really slippy and we driving down either the 427 or the QEW and people were overtaking us at speed and pretty much every 10 minutes there was another car that had spun off into the side.

I don't find driving in the city here too much different from driving in the city in the UK, very busy and crazy if you don't know where you are going etc. The highways here are terrible for the reasons stated above. What I do like here though is driving in smaller towns. No one really seems in a rush there and the roads are nice and wide and you can just sit back and drive a long at a steady speed and I find it quite relaxing compared with driving in a city. It lacks the excitment of driving down country roads etc in the UK but there aren't too many places in the UK where you can just point the car down a long wide quiet road and cruise along without too much stress.

Drew

Re: ok, here's the latest from ontario......
 

First thing I noticed was how none of the local drivers use indicators/signal. You can be driving along, all of a sudden the car in front just turns off without signalling :mad: Even worse when trying to cross the road, you need a dozen pairs of eyes!

Lately, the I`ve noticed loads of drivers using cellphones while driving. That is so ignorant and stupid. Around here, the drivers are terrible compared to back in the UK :(

Re: ok, here's the latest from ontario......
 

Lately, the I`ve noticed loads of drivers using cellphones while driving. That is so ignorant and stupid. Around here, the drivers are terrible compared to back in the UK :([/QUOTE]


Cellphone use while driving is illegal in the uk now. On the spot fines are given. Doesnt stop people from using them though. As for crazy drivers, the only thing i have found thats any worse is lane dicipline really. There is no fast lane, just use the one thats emptiest seems to be the way and the speed when changing lanes...im sure they cant see clearly whats around them at the speed they change lane. In general though traffic does move a lot slower than here. Everything here is breakneck to get where you are going to.

Re: ok, here's the latest from ontario......
 

Though I don't drive in the UK, I do think UK drivers are better - much better than Canadian driver, in general. I think they have to be better because there is such little room for error with the streets and roads being so narrow and the pavements being smack right along traffic.

I drive in Canada and I am a good driver (now) but when I got my licence many years ago I was stunned that I actually passed the test. It seemed like if I could get into the car, start it, drive around the block and didn't hit anything - I passed.

I'm thinking about getting my licence here in the UK but I really feel quite apprehensive about it - the narrow roads, the pavement (and people walking on it) being too close to traffic for my comfort, etc... that I think it would overwhelm me. Sometimes I feel just overwhelm as a pedestrian!

Re: ok, here's the latest from ontario......
 

But of course, the driving stupidity comes from the desperate need for their Tim Hortons fill :rolleyes: Sheesh, if you walk over the drive thru at 7am, they`ll run you down!

Re: ok, here's the latest from ontario......
 

Not wishing to have a go @ you,but unless your are a multi-millionaire moving to any country will end up samey.I'm emigrating to provide myself & family a better standard of life, different culture lifestyle etc.

As for the driving I worked & lived in the USA for a while and found the driving out there a lot more relaxing than the UK, yes they overtake on the inside, outside, anyside really.But I didnt find it a problem you just get used to it & adapt.

well thats my 2 pennies worth ;)

Re: ok, here's the latest from ontario......
 

That's because all of the other locals know where this one is going...... :D

Re: ok, here's the latest from ontario......
 

you sure you're not in quebec???? ;)

Re: ok, here's the latest from ontario......
 

If they have found the space to pass you on the right, then you should have pulled over into that gap long before they had the chance. Nothing pisses me off on the road as much as the middle and outside lane hogs who dont move to the right when its clear to do so. Of course there are the coffee can civic kids who weave in and out with some kind of death wish.

FWIW overtaking on the right is not illegal, so technically its not the wrong side, but it can be a bit of a shock for a newcomer, but you soon learn to keep your wits about you and check over both shoulders before making a lane change here.


Once off the freeways I find canadian drivers to be a lot more courteous than in the UK, at least most folks will wave you out into trafic, where in the UK its so dog eat dog that that seldom ever happens.

Some wag once told me that if you see a car with quebec plates and the indicator is on, it was probably bought that way:)

Re: ok, here's the latest from ontario......
 

have you been speaking to my dad, iain??? ;)

Re: ok, here's the latest from ontario......
 

[QUOTE=iaink]If they have found the space to pass you on the right, then you should have pulled over into that gap long before they had the chance. Nothing pisses me off on the road as much as the middle and outside lane hogs who dont move to the right when its clear to do so.

QUOTE]

Couldn't agree with you more IainK, I hate people who hog the middle lane ( move over you b*stards)!!! I have found that it is necessary to be a little more aggressive when driving in Canada.

Int

Re: ok, here's the latest from ontario......
 

Have yout tried driving on the right side of the street? :eek: :scared:

Re: ok, here's the latest from ontario......
 

I've got to agree with you on that one. I'm out in Guelph and so it's not too bad but I can't believe the number of times I've seen people go through a red light and I mean not when it just changed to red. It was already red! However, the other week I drove to the Toronto International Centre without any problems. Then I drove from there to my Dad's in Toronto. I was a wreck when I got to his place!