Hiking up to the (Humber) Summit

 It's been quite a while... but I'm back!

Hey pals! Hope everyone had a good summer. It really flew by; it's kind of crazy that we are already in September! 

I wanted to make this post to document my walk through the Humber Summit neighbourhood on September 1st, 2021. This walk was both for fun, but also to collect research related to public transportation. I think what I found was interesting, and so I felt the need to document it.

The Neighbourhood

The neighbourhood I walked through is usually called Humber Summit. However, I've heard Rowntree Mills, Duncanwoods, and other names... just be aware that that I walked the areas along Islington between Finch and Steeles. 

This neighbourhood is relatively mixed income, but tends to be higher income west of Islington than east of it. With the opening of Line 6, three LRT stations will open in the neighbourhood: Rowntree Mills (at Islington), Pearldale, and Duncanwoods.

This is what Google Maps defines Humber Summit as... for all intensive purposes, the industrial areas east of Milvan (the diagonal road west of the railroad tracks) divides Humber Summit in the west from Emery Industrial to the east.

The Context

The current context that I wish to explore relates to new light rail projects within Toronto. Much of the TTC's rapid transit ridership is dependent on a strong system of bus routes. This is seen based on the fact that every station within Toronto, besides Chester (and Summerhill outside of rush) has at least one connecting bus route. However, Line 5 and Line 6, which are currently under construction feature a number of stations without connecting bus routes: Line 5 has Aga Khan, Hakimi Lebovic and Ionview; Line 6 has Stevenson, Pearldale, Duncanwoods, and Tobermory, in addition to others with rush-only service. This challenges the TTC model a bit, as these stations are totally dependent on walk-ins. According to demand forecasting (which can be found here), the three stations on Line 5 will have the lowest ridership by far. I think this will be the same on Line 6. 

Line 6 along with connecting bus routes, showing the four stations without.

One of the benefits of the feeding bus system is that those who live further north get a short ride to rapid transit. For example, if I live at Martin Grove and Gihon Spring, I have a short seven-minute bus ride to the LRT at Martin Grove Station, compared to the status quo of thirty-seven minutes to Kipling. Noting the isolation of the areas north of Pearldale and Duncanwoods Stations, I was curious if a local route that feeds into the LRT could be justified. This would have the personal benefit of allowing easier access to the line, but also increase ridership at stations that may be viewed as being underperforming. A neighbourhood walk would help me better understand the circumstances within the area.

Note that despite Milvan being located close to Duncanwoods, there is only a single path between the two areas, via Cherrydale, Millport and Penn.

The Walk

I didn't take any pictures until about halfway through my walk! Woops.

I decided to walk along a route that would make the most sense for a bus, which I recorded on Strava. The route was 5.5km long, and took me exactly one hour (and nine seconds) to do. 

If it is not clear on the map, I have written my route here: I began at Islington and Finch, and went east on Finch, counter-clockwise on Ardwick, north and west on Duncanwoods, west on Rowntree Mill, north on Emily, east on Whitfield, north on Knox, east on Muir, and north on Islington to Steeles.

So, I got off the 37 Islington bus at Islington and Finch. The northbound stop has been moved to the north side, an is a bit of a distance north of Finch, but nothing too crazy. I walked along the north side of Finch, but had to cross to the south side at Milady. Yknow, when car drivers whine about construction they conveniently forget to mention how pedestrians are affected. Shocker. Anyways, a block later, I turned down Ardwick. Ardwick has two exits, and both are to Finch, so anyone who wants to go anywhere has to head out to Finch (Bluehaven Park exits to the Humber Recreation Trail, but it's not exactly convenient for heading anywhere). The furthest south point is the Nile Academy private school (painted a real striking blue), and it is only a five minute walk to Finch and Duncanwoods, and seven to Finch and Pearldale. Not bad, but it's uphill, so for those with mobility issues, there may be problems. I also noted that the south side sidewalk at Blue Haven has no curb cut, so those with mobility devices have to detour around. 

Crossing Finch, I am now on Duncanwoods. There are two apartment buildings here, which are going to be the biggest ridership draws for Duncanwoods Station. Duncanwoods is entirely single-family homes. There isn't much to talk about. For those accessing transit, they must walk to Finch at either Pearldale or Duncanwoods to catch the 36, or walk out to Islington to access the 37 and 937 stop at Milady or Duncanwoods (the stop at Aviemore is accessible only from the west and the apartments on Islington). These four options are fine, but I can see many people having long walks to transit no matter which they pick, especially if they live on the east side of Duncanwoods. I did not pass it, but one of the side streets, Cherrydale, connects to the Milvan industrial area via Millport and Penn, but as the 36D and 36F are rush only, it doesn't really improve transit access. The only change in density that I noted are townhomes right at Islington, who already have decent enough access to transit.

Crossing Islington, you are on Rowntree Mill Road. This is a really cool road to walk along. It's kind of twisty, and is pretty hilly. Interesting walk, but maybe not an easy one, especially in winter. Along Rowntree Mill, I noted two people walking to the bus at Islington. This may not seem to be much, but two people in ten minutes is not insignificant. I didn't walk down, but if you continue past Emily, you enter the Humber Recreation Trail again, and a path that leads out to Kipling. At this point, you are physically closer to Kipling than you are Islington. It's quite interesting. 

Walking north on Emily, you pass Venerable John Merlini Catholic Elementary School. I'm not sure if this is the furthest school from a bus stop in Toronto, but it is definitely top 15. I know this school serves the local area, but that does not mean everyone who needs to get to the school does, or can drive. Considering the school's local focus, I would hope that walking would account for 80% of trips to school, but based on the amount of cars in driveways in the area, I would peg the number at no more than 25%. Kinda shameful. (Also, the drivers in the area had no consideration for pedestrians. It's a local road through a dead-end area, no need to speed).

Whitfield takes you back out to Islington, but I detoured north via Knox and Muir. I noticed a new development of townhomes at Muir and Islington. Obviously, they are well-served by the 37 and 937 buses when accessing the LRT. However, I think students who live here would fall within the catchment area of John Merlini. Again, walking down Whitfield may not necessarily be easy or worthwhile, and without alternates, it puts more cars on the road. Considering how uninviting Islington and the general area is to pedestrians and cyclists, this would make the issue worse. I will say though, I am glad to see even slightly denser development within two kilometres of the new LRT station. 

Thoughts

While comparing car speeds is not a great benchmark, I will use it to show the difference in travel times. Using the home at 30 Emily, which is one of the furthest points from Islington, we will compare a transit passenger and a car driver. Assuming connections are made right away, there is an 11-minute walk to Islington, a two-minute bus trip to Finch, and then a transfer at Finch. This is 13-minutes for a 1.2km direct trip. By this point, the car driver has made it to Finch and Signet, even with heavy construction traffic, a 3.5km distance. The modal inequity is very apparent. That said, the neighbourhood's lack of access to the west complicates any issues. You almost start to wonder if this area should have been built to begin with if access is just so difficult.

Noting the walks along Ardwick, Duncanwoods, and Rowntree Mill, and the present circumstances for those with mobility issues, the TTC should provide a bus service along the route that I walked. This way, they can provide extra coverage and also increase ridership to Duncanwoods and Pearldale Station by pulling ridership from further north.

Conclusion

Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this exploration piece. It's definitely something I would love to do more, as I have a few neighbourhoods in mind. Especially considering the discussions about the role of transportation post-COVID, I think it is important we look at the way we provide transportation to locations off of the grid.