Toronto garbage strike

Old Jul 4th, 2002, 01:50 PM
  #1  
Lisa
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Toronto garbage strike

I heard that there is a garbage collector strike in Toronto and there are problems with odors and rats. Is this true??? I was planning a vacation there next week. Should I go to Montreal instead?
 
Old Jul 4th, 2002, 02:41 PM
  #2  
Susan
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Yes, it's true that odor is a problem. Can't comment on the rats! And, To. is in the throes of a heat wave which makes things worse. I wld. go to Montreal instead if I were you. Who needs the hasssle on a vacation? (the ferry service to To. Islands is not running, some museums are closed. All of this is related to Municipal workers strike. Both inside & outside workers are on strike. It's unlikely that they will settle b/f your trip next week but who knows? Why take the chance?)
 
Old Jul 4th, 2002, 04:10 PM
  #3  
Brian Kilgore
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I live in downtown Toronto. Have not seen rats, nor even seen pictures of rats, but I have seen piles of garbage in parks.

It's very hot here, but downtown is still fairly odorfree, and if you are staying in the heart of the city, and only for a couple of days, you won't be worse off than we are.

But for five days, say, if it was me, I'd go to Montreal myself. Montreal's a great place to visit, but make sure you can get hotel reservations before you cancel in Toronto.

BAK
 
Old Jul 4th, 2002, 06:46 PM
  #4  
jj
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Today, the chief officer of health warned that we were 1-2 days away from health related problems due to garbage pile-up. Certainly not a pretty sight. You cannot even consider going to Chinatown during this strike. The amount of garbage piled up there and the stink is unbearable. What a shame. Plus - you cannot even ride the ferry to the islands, which in my opinion, is a must-do when visting. Please try our beautiful (usually) city another time.
 
Old Jul 4th, 2002, 06:47 PM
  #5  
Cindy
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Fond as I am of my home city (and I'm not especially fond of Montreal, as it happens) Toronto is not doing very well just now. You wouldn't be seeing it at its best. There are 18,000 inside and outside city workers on strike at this moment. Garbage is piling up, it's brutally hot, and people are starting to get irritable. I haven't seen any rats either, and my own neighbourhood is calm and well-maintained, but there are problems in other parts of the city. What might happen is that the situation will be declared a health hazard and the province will legislate them back to work. I would have mixed feelings about that because I understand the strikers' point of view, and city council is handling things badly in my opinion. However, the garbage situation is untenable and there are so many things closed - day care centres, for example. It's a bad situation. Please come and see us when things are smoother and more pleasant!
 
Old Jul 4th, 2002, 07:22 PM
  #6  
Tony
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I dislike Toronto at the best of times, but I just saw a television news report on the huge piles of garbage everywhere and the city seems even much more distasteful than usual.
 
Old Jul 4th, 2002, 07:53 PM
  #7  
miss
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That's very helpful and constructive, Tony. Thank you.
 
Old Jul 5th, 2002, 03:39 AM
  #8  
sandy
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Hey Tony - at least you started with the qualifier that you dislike Toronto to begin with. There are a few areas of the city where there are garbage bag piles - but not everywhere. Of course the news pics are going to show you the worst of the worst! Do you believe Vancouver is garbage-strike proof? Toronto is a beautiful, clean, vibrant and fun city. A fantastic place to visit and have a great time.
 
Old Jul 5th, 2002, 03:44 AM
  #9  
Wondering
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We have a trip scheduled to Toronto in the second week of August. How long is this strike expected to go? Assuming workers will get ordered back to work in the next week or so to avoid health issues, it it the type of thing that can get cleaned up in a month? (I think our tickets are non-refundable, so we just have to hope!) By the way...we've been to Toronto before and we LOVE it!
 
Old Jul 5th, 2002, 04:19 AM
  #10  
Cindy
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I don't think it's going to take all that long to clean things up, once they go back to work. I'm heading out to BC tonight, and expect that by the time I get home (July 22) things will have settled down. As Sandy says, garbage isn't really everywhere. There are designated dump sites, and some people who get impatient (understandable but not very civic-minded) are leaving their garbage near the sites but not AT them. My neighbours have shown me how to compost, and people are helping each other, and to look at this residential street (lots of families, not an affluent area) you wouldn't know there was anything going on. I would think that by the time you get here in August, everybody will be happier.
 
Old Jul 5th, 2002, 04:31 AM
  #11  
Susan
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Like others, I live in the city. I haven't seen any rats either, and so far, my neighbourhood (which is not considered one of the more desirable areas) looks relatively good. I don't know, however, that I would want to visit the city right now. It's a shame that some of the activities planned in the city have been cancelled.
 
Old Jul 6th, 2002, 11:12 AM
  #12  
teddie
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Any word on the strike? We're planning to be in TO by the 15th!
 
Old Jul 6th, 2002, 05:30 PM
  #13  
sue
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i live in vancouver and just saw the footage of the strike in toronto. they said haze was bad too and some people even said they could taste the haze!!??
 
Old Jul 6th, 2002, 06:42 PM
  #14  
Susan
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Today was a gorgeous clear day in Toronto, although it did get hazy later in the day. Sky looked kind of odd, but I doubt that it was due to garbage!
 
Old Jul 7th, 2002, 05:30 AM
  #15  
Kevin
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The sky looked odd Saturday due to smoke from Quebec forest fires. I live in the Annex in Toronto - nearly central downtown & a nice neighbourhood. It looks fine - as does much of the city, Some parks have garbage piles, some poorer areas have garbage, even Chinatown - customary pig pen of T.O. - has been cleaned up. Aren't all of you adult enough by now to tell the diff between media hype (pix of piles of garbage) and reality?
 
Old Jul 8th, 2002, 07:27 AM
  #16  
TO Visitor
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Kevin--No we can't tell the difference--that's why we ask these questions, to sort out the hype from experiences of people who have actually been there or live there. Don't get porky.
 
Old Jul 8th, 2002, 08:36 AM
  #17  
backfromtoronto
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I just got back yesterday from Toronto yesterday after our 4 day trip. To tell youi the truth I wouldn't even have noticed about the Gargage pile up if I didn't see on the television. Most areas I went to which are most touristy stuff, it was okay. Yorkville area was really nice. Our only dissappointment was Chinatown - but then they always are. Wonder why we go there. Weather was really nice too, can't complain about the heat since we live in Florida.
 
Old Jul 9th, 2002, 07:58 AM
  #18  
Flynn
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Just got back from 5 nights in Toronto. Stayed in the Downtown area and though Toronto isn't as pristine as usual, the garbage isn't that bad. Rats are nocturnal creatures so if one goes by a large garbage dump at night, one might see rodents scampering around. Hopefully, vacationers will be doing better things.

The ferries to the Islands weren't running but we could have taken a water taxi if we wanted.

The much hyped street fairs were closed because of the strike but other than that, the city was the same. Going through a heat wave that hopefully will cool down.

If I had a choice between Toronto, Montreal and Quebec City, my choices would be QC, Toronto & Montreal last. To me Montreal has always seemed like a clean New York.
 
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