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Rob Ford Gaffe-O-Meter: Streets Aren’t For People

By Stephen Michalowicz

It’s happened: Rob Ford has said or done something embarrassing. But just how serious was it? Torontoist’s handy-dandy Gaffe-O-Meter breaks it down.
ford-o-meter01.jpg
GAFFE: If there’s one thing that mayoral candidate Rob Ford has made clear time and time again, it’s that roads are for cars, and cars alone. That means no cyclists, and now, apparently, no marathoners.
On Sunday, after the Toronto Waterfront Marathon closed Lake Shore Boulevard from 5 a.m. to noon, a disgusted Ford told the Sun that as mayor he’d be investigating new venues for the multitude of charity-sponsored runs that frequently clog our streets, and further suggested that the bike paths in High Park, Downsview Park, and along the Humber River might be suitable alternatives.
GAFFE LEVEL: 1/5
INSIGHT INTO CHARACTER: Has probably never seen or participated in any kind of charity run or marathon.
ANALYSIS: Marathons, charity races, and the like require a lot of space—approximately twenty thousand people participated in Sunday’s run. Ford’s plan to fit them all in a park, any Toronto park, is preposterous, and potentially dangerous. The average two-lane bike path in this city usually isn’t more than three metres in width, and trying to cram twenty thousand people into such a tight area would no doubt lead to injuries, especially at the starting line. Even the roads that run through High Park and Downsview Park are quite narrow, and far too short to accommodate a forty-kilometre marathon. The only way to make any of these spaces suitable for such a large number of runners would be to pave them over. Though by Ford’s logic, that would once again make them roads, and therefore only suited to cars.
Gaffe-O-Meter illustration by Clayton Hanmer/Torontoist. Rob Ford photo by Christopher Drost/Torontoist.

Comments

  • http://undefined deadrobot

    Did anyone tell him about the money that comes in for permits to close these roads?

  • http://www.torontoist.com David Topping

    WHAT ARE YOU, AN ELITIST COMMUNIST SOCIALIST?

  • http://undefined Vincent Clement

    Don’t forget the money that the city spends to close the roads off and the cleanup after the race. Revenue is one side of the story.

  • http://undefined Marc Lostracco

    I went to go see a flick yesterday at my local cinema, The Beach, which has a parking lot off Eastern Avenue. So, Eastern was closed for the run, I got stuck on Lakeshore going the wrong way, then I couldn’t park in the lot or anywhere in the neighbourhood because it’s all one-hour parking. I didn’t get to see the movie. I went to the AMC an hour later instead.
    Moral of the story: sure, it was totally irritating, but what a selfish douchebag I would be had I felt my little movie theatre inconvenience would be worth more than a healthy, fun event that happens once a year and involves 20,000 participants. I guess I should have taken my bike or the TTC, amirite?
    So driving was a drag. BFD. It almost always sucks even on days when all the roads are open.
    It’s like telling a bunch of three-year-olds that it’s nice to share. But then again, Councillor Cartman has never been known for getting along with the other kids in his class.

  • http://undefined rek

    And then factor in the revenue generated by people coming here to participate in the races or behind the scenes, the cost of their room and board, whatever shopping/tourist stuff they do…

  • http://undefined Miles Storey

    At least the ridiculousness of holding the marathon in High Park would get rid of all those pesky foreigners who keep winning. Maybe that’s his angle.
    A friend of mine suggests Ford might be happy, and think it fully logical, if they all ran on treadmills in a gym somewhere.

  • W. K. Lis

    They advertised, as well as traffic reports, and announcements about the marathon prior to the event, which started Sunday morning at 7:30 AM and 11:00 AM.
    Oh, BTW, there will be an election in October, but you’ll probably forget that as well.

  • http://undefined Craig C

    Ride your bike? I tried that because I was heading to the Skydome. Because the cross-town route was blocked I had to go up to Dundas to get around it which isn’t a big deal. What was sort of funny though was how Yonge was rammed with cars in a big traffic jam, but Church St. was almost empty. It was a pretty nice day for a bike ride too.

  • http://undefined Ben

    The city can just get scotiabank to pay for 22000 treadmills to be installed in high park.
    I’ve often remarked about David “Scotiabank” Miller, but Ford is going one step further and planning for Scotiabank Toronto.

  • http://undefined gracingthestage

    I can’t believe this is the first time I’ve seen a comparison between Rob Ford and Eric Cartman. It’s just so obvious, and perfect!

  • http://undefined Marc Lostracco

    It’s clear that he looks and acts like Cartman, but when you hear his voice when he gets upset, the kinship becomes uncanny.

  • http://bit.ly/accozzaglia accozzaglia

    You mean, something like, “Screw you guys, lemme tell you about something I wanna tell you about! I’m going . . . hoam!”
    No, no. Daryn Ford is not like Cartman.

  • http://bit.ly/accozzaglia accozzaglia

    The Ford-o-Meter’s photo has glassy, bloodshot eyes. Was he drinking that day?

  • http://undefined Jesse

    also, technically, roads were built for HORSES

  • http://bit.ly/accozzaglia accozzaglia

    Do your homework. “Paving” of roadways as they’re known now began first with the laying down of cedar planks in the late 1800s, as was the case with Yonge Street. This was followed by the development of asphalt. The imperative to pave for improved surfaces arose from the rise of the safety bicycle, only to be pushed aside about a couple of decades later by the horseless carriage. After that point, the push to continue and expand paving was for the benefit of the car.

  • http://www.realjohnson.com TheRealJohnson

    My main issue with the candidates is that none of them seem to have a solid plan for horses.

  • http://undefined thelemur

    This is the only one I’ve seen so far who has said anything at all about horses.

  • http://undefined thelemur

    Yes. You can’t tell because of the way the photo is cropped, but he’s making that shape with his mouth because he’s blowing across the top of an empty beer bottle, jugband-style. In Rob Ford’s Toronto, music will be generated by citizens themselves, at no cost to the taxpayer.

  • Christopher Drost

    the pic was shot at a 7 am breakfast mayoral debate – there were quite a few glassy eyes that morning.