Ontario's worst roads were revealed and one of them deserves to be MUCH higher up on the list
The views expressed in this Opinion article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Narcity Media.
The worst roads in Ontario have been revealed, and as someone who has lived in the province most of my life, I think there's one road that should definitely be much higher on the list.
On May 28, CAA put out their annual list of Ontario's Top Worst Roads for 2024, and although most of the ones you'd imagine would be there made the cut, the top pick is a bit of a strange one, in my humble opinion.
Here's the ranking for this year:
- Aberdeen Avenue, Hamilton
- Eglinton Avenue West, Toronto
- Barton Street East, Hamilton
- County Road 49, Prince Edward
- Hurontario Street, Mississauga
- Bloor Street West, Toronto
- Cedar Street North, Uxbridge
- Finch Avenue West, Toronto
- Lake Shore Boulevard East, Toronto
- Laclie Street, Orillia
"This is the first year Aberdeen Avenue has claimed the top spot on the provincial list due to potholes, poor road maintenance, and traffic congestion," said CAA. "It first debuted on the top regional list for Hamilton 2021 and has since climbed to the top."
"Taking the second and third place spots are Eglinton Avenue West in Toronto, due to traffic congestion, potholes and poor road maintenance and Barton Street East in Hamilton, due to potholes and poor road maintenance," they explained.
While I absolutely agree that all three of these roads are a nightmare, particularly Eg West, Bloor Street West should 100% be at the top of this list instead of in sixth position.
Given that Bloor is one of the main arteries that runs east to west the whole way across the city from Mississauga to the DVP and that Bloor West is the best way to get to the Gardiner, it is sorely lacking in many regards. In terms of potholes, it's definitely not the worst, but poor road maintenance, traffic congestion and another category that I'm calling "sheer buffoonery" make it just an absolute nightmare.
If I need to travel east from the west end of the city, my GPS regularly tells me to go north up to Dupont in order to avoid how congested Bloor West is — even if taking Bloor is actually the shortest possible route in terms of distance.
What really sets Bloor West apart from the other roads mentioned is the amount of unquantifiable nonsense that seems to happen on it — perhaps because the road is not very wide, I find that pedestrians are very emboldened to cross the street at inappropriate and alarming times without seeming to care that they are risking death. As a driver, I always try and keep my eye out for people, but sometimes the pedestrians come out of seemingly no where and force me to brake unexpectedly to avoid hitting them, which in turn is hazardous for cars behind me.
As well, e-bikes and scooters seem to be more of an issue on Bloor West than anywhere else I've noticed in the city. The bike lanes are usually quite busy, particularly around the Dufferin to High Park stretch, and given that the e-bikes often overtake the regular bikes, I see quite a few of them veering out into the driving lanes before ducking back into the bike lanes which is dangerous for everyone involved.
Lake Shore Boulevard East also deserves to be higher on the list, because although it doesn't have many potholes, do any drivers actually know how to use that intersection? Every time I've been there, all signs point to no, so that in addition to traffic congestion should give it a higher ranking.
Toronto, I love you, but as a driver, I low key also hate you. Let's do better, okay?
This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.
