Toronto needs less public space dedicated to cars

Re Jurassic Park could be a destination even after

the playoffs, Hume, April 24 In an otherwise excellent defence of the square where younger, poorer and darker fans enjoy Raptors and Leafs’ games, Christopher Hume concludes that “the lack of public space in Toronto is a perennial problem.”

It is the exact opposite. To build a healthier, safer, more pleasant and ecologically sustainable city, Toronto should jettison much of its current public space. Most public land is devoted to noisy, dangerous and polluting vehicles, which contribute significantly to the climate crisis.

Of the 40 per cent of Toronto that is public land, roadways make up 27.4 per cent, while parks and open spaces cover 13 per cent. Many beautiful, walkable, old cities have less than half as much public land.

One reason why many older cities are more pleasant, despite having less public space, is that their parks and squares are not ruined by Toronto’s dominant form of public land. Few people want to relax in a square or park next to multiple lanes of traffic. Yves Engler, Montreal