It is -10C.The air snaps with cold.
The sun's feeble heat is no match against the windchill of -19, and the Poyntz West TTC subway entrance is once again closed, necessitating a trip out the East entrance and then a wait at the light to recross Yonge. (And yes, the subway entrance sign has been broken like that since forever.)
The thing about crossing Yonge Street at that intersection is that you have one choice: you can cross only on the north side of Poyntz. You're banned from crossing on the south side, it being a hotbed of pedestrian activity hindering the flow of left-turners out of the parking garage and right-turners from Poyntz.
Just to ensure those pesky pedestrians don't impede the cars, if you don't remember to press the button or get to it too late, then the little hand telling you not to cross remains red while the light turns green for the cars. Either way, you turn into a popsicle waiting for the light to change (or in the summer, melt into the pavement, as this is by far not the first time this entrance has been closed), and you have to wait again to cross to the southwest corner.
This being the TTC, nothing's happening behind the barriers and yellow tape. And, as usual, it is also calendar-challenged. With escalators, the TTC whines about having to wait for parts as being their reason for unreasonable delays. But these are steps, made of concrete and tile. In construction-rich Toronto, it's hard not to bump into suppliers of concrete and tile. And given the construction mobs that attend TTC sites -- when you can find any activity that is -- there is bound to be someone who knows how to construct steps. Even the most menial of labourers I know, knows how to build steps. So what's the hold-up?
Tags: TTC
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