Note - Opinions expressed here only reflect the writer's viewpoint. They do not represent any decision or opinion expressed by others at a W33AC meeting or Councillor or Councillor's staff.
Are you a customer of the city or a user of a city service?
It irks this writer when I telephone the city about a city service matter and the person answering the phone starts with " Customer Service Rep ...". Word use can say a lot about how the person you are dealing with views you and the matters under discussion. In this case, the person who answers looks upon you, the citizen, city taxpayer and resident as a C-U-S-T-O-M-E-R. (In a store running a commerical business, I feel this can be a sign of respect but for a government, that provides services to it citizens, the opposite dwells.)
From almost all dictionaries the gist of a formal definition of a "customer" is "a person, who buys, especially a regular patron of a store" in short a "buyer". (We won't go into the derogatory informal use.)
In most dealing with the city you are not paying a "user" fee or acting as a "buyer". You and I call up and act as a user (potential or otherwise) of a city service. So why can't CSR stand for City Service Representative?
Why does the City use this abused word, customer when it can still refer to its front line telephone and counter staff as CSR's but let's focus why they are in place: CITY SERVICE.
TTC - Tickets, Tokens or Other Ways ?
While I don't need to use the TTC on a regular basis and can't justify using an adult fare pass (weekly or monthly), it confounds me that other cities have been able to find and implement better means to enter and use services offered by the TTC. They don't rely on a relic of the mechanical age, the metal TOKEN. Pieces of metal that are lost in your loose change, get lost in pockets and purses do not look smart in this century.
This summer the family on a road trip used the public transportation of Boston and Montreal as sightseeing visitors. Both of these urban areas have "GTA" wide integrated systems that have entered the DIGITAL age for the paying passenger. While Toronto and the GTA struggle with implementing Metrolinx other cities have got there already.
If your family has a student ticket based member who uses a subway station such as Leslie with 3 entrances, only the middle one provides entry: so much for the better way via the TTC.
Toronto needs to ask why.
Pedestrian Countdown Crossing ,& Left Hand Advanced Turning Signals
These two items impact the driving and walking public. Both have been introduced but we only see partial implementation. The second countdown from Green to Amber is a smart move_ both for those walking and driving.
The use of a standard green arrow signal for an advance left turn also makes good sense and conforms to broader practice.
But when is the city going to finish off the complete conversion. We need to see 100% done, not 45 or 55 or 65% but the total job. By not forcing itself to a definite deadline, the Mayor and City Council are delaying full benefits and increasing the displeasure about city operations performance.
On City Recycling and Provincial Programmes
The province (Ministry of Environment), Oct 16, 2008 announced a consultation on Waste Diversion Act Initiatives http://www.ene.gov.on.ca/envision/land/wda/ along with supporting documentation.
This review will include what is going/should go into the Blue Box/Bin.
Also, there is Waste Electronics and Electrical Programee study under the WDO with a final report due, March 2009.
While Toronto takes in much of your computer electronic stuff, it has a very limited programme for recycling your old TV. There are private facilities for doing this recycling. And the city uses one for its Environmental Day intake. But if you have something to get rid of, outside of your ward's ED programme, the city say but it out with your other garbage!
Surely, a city that is "environmentally"and cost recovery obsessed with definite goals can do better
Private TV recycling costs about $12-15 a set. If they city can administer tags for bags surely, it can do tags for TV's and other stuff under full cost recovery too. Does it have to wait for the province to kickstart a programme?
More Recycling - Plastic Film/Bag Stuff
You hopefully are aware that the city has just announced it is taking in styrofoam and some plastic bags. Make sure you bag your bags and select only those that make the grade for best market criteria for recycled materials. You might want to learn more at http://www.myplasticbags.ca/: look at the stuff under "plastic film" too.
But it has apparently excluded bags that are coded Type 4, LOW-DENSITY POLYETHYLENE and only wants Type 2, HIGH DENSITY . For a complete story on those plastic numbers, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_recycling
You will notice Type 4 on almost all your bread bags (or least, those in our household). While much plastic film is not coded, we would think that if a manufacturer does it is done for a positive purpose_ that is, recycling.
We would think (and hope) that the city staff who have written their website pages and news releases would use the standard industry numbers that we see on packaging. Instead they leave it to the householder standing in front of the big blue bin to almost guess what is good for city and was is not.
Check out what The Star's Royson James has written lately on this,
Testing our Recycling IQ & Patience, http://www.thestar.com/comment/columnists/article/536021
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