I'm post-automotive

Recently, I heard that VIA is now operating a new "bike train" from Union Station to Niagara Falls. It's a bit pricey ($59 return for you and your bike) compared to driving (less than 2hrs), and so I scoffed.

I shall scoff no more.

I drove down there yesterday to get some scenic back country cycling in, and the experience was so thoroughly miserable that my commitment to continued car ownership is now being seriously questioned.

Firstly, a two hour drive turned into four, as it was intermittently stop and go for 100km from Mississauga (western burb of Toronto) all the way around the lake to St. Catherines. That's one of the downsides of driving in the GTA... at least when you leave Vancouver, you are suddenly out in the wilds and traffic dies down. Southern Ontario is ten million people and City Everywhere, and you can enjoy stop-and-go freeway hell for hours at a time.

Secondly, I drove to Fort Erie, which is right across the river from Buffalo (the pic shows the Buffalo skyline), but I foolishly drove into the Duty Free shop to use the washroom (no signs warning me of the hazards of a Duty Free Pee), and I spent the next ten minutes explaining myself to Canada Customs.

The ride (64km from Fort Erie to the Falls and back) was awesome, but I was crushingly exhausted AFTER my ride...the drive back was a weary, white-knuckled nightmare of staring down 14 lane freeways through heavy-lidded eyes.

Let's see... driving IN town sucks. Driving OUT of town sucks. There's nowhere else to drive here. Why don't I just move closer to work (once the location of work is more firmly established) so that I can cycle the entire distance and walk to get my groceries, and ditch the car??

I've driven thousands of kms of enjoyable tourist travel, all over North America. My car and I have been to Cape Scott, Tijuana, San Francisco, Utah, the Grand Canyon, Chicago, Detroit, Toronto, Ottawa, Quebec City, and Buffalo. My Happy Motoring career has been fun, but I've had enough... I suspect the world will soon begin moving into a post-Oil age, and I think I'm ready to start moving with it.