Toronto’s $63M electric ferry: “Drowning in dysfunction”
Two years to buy ferries with no way to charge them, diesel is the temporary solution
This is literally the first bullet point in any electric vehicle manual: it needs to be fucking plugged in.”
Toronto is the largest city in Canada, a global economic engine, a world class Multicultural Mosaic, and yet is governed like a frat house full of finance majors who think Excel is a cocktail.
Today I want to talk about a story that perfectly captures why Toronto is drowning in dysfunction. Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce you to the electric ferry that can’t charge.
Yes, that’s a real sentence. Welcome to another episode of why Toronto can’t have nice things.
Let’s start with the story that first hit me when I got back from vacation overseas. It’s almost poetic. Toronto, our beloved, broken metropolis, decided it was time to replace the aging, gas guzzling ferries that take people to the Toronto islands. Nice idea, forward thinking, eco-conscious. Finally, a green initiative that makes perfect sense.
So, in 2021 city council approved the purchase of fully electric ferries. They cost around $63 million for two of them. Timeline 2025, and as of 2024 the ferries are ready. There’s just one tiny problem: We forgot to build the charging stations.
I will say that again, we forgot to build the charging stations. The city ordered electric ferries without planning where or how to charge them. It’s like buying a Tesla and realizing you don’t have a driveway, no garage, no power hookup, so now you’ve got a $63 million paperweight.
This is not a joke, and the fix? That’s gonna take several more years, no backup plan, no temporary solution, no common sense.
You know what the city’s answer is? “We’ll just run them on diesel until the infrastructure is ready.”
“Every decision feels like it’s made by a committee of squirrels and pigeons with a Pinterest board”
Yes, that’s right, they’re going to run electric ferries on diesel. Let that marinate in your brain for a moment. Remember this is not a joke. It’s not a skit. This is like watching a financially illiterate household try to plan a renovation. This is like, you’re a couple with maxed out lines of credits, credit cards and a leaky roof and no idea how much money’s in your joint account, if any at all.
One day you say, “Let’s install solar panels.” Why? Because it’s good for the planet. Fine, great idea, noble idea. So, you buy the panels, you install them on the roof, then you realize the roof still leaks. Your electric panels are old, and you never actually applied for the grid hookup.
Now, you’re broke. Your roof is ruined, and the panels are ornamental, but they make your neighbors think that you’re energy conscious. Congrats! You just Toronto-d yourself.
The City of Toronto operates exactly like this household, except they’re not spending $20,000 on panels. These councillors are spending billions of dollars on things they know nothing about, absolutely nothing. And instead of ruining a single home, they’re compromising the function of an entire city.
Let’s be clear, this isn’t a ferry problem. This is a governance problem. It’s what happens when decisions are made by people who are overpaid, under qualified, unaccountable and allergic to common sense. You had three years to figure out that electric ferries needed charging infrastructure.
How did this type of experienced group of councillors miss it? This isn’t nuclear science. This is literally the first bullet point in any electric vehicle manual: it needs to be fucking plugged in.
Now let’s zoom out a minute, because this isn’t just about ferries. This is about Toronto’s entire political class. Every decision feels like it’s made by a committee of squirrels and pigeons with a Pinterest board.
Affordable housing: we have a housing crisis, and it takes a decade to approve a 10 story apartment.
Transit: the Eglinton Crosstown has been under construction for over 15 years. That’s longer than it takes to build an entire subway system in Asia and ours leaks.
Budgeting: City council just approved property tax hikes over 9 per cent, while still running deficits.
Where is the money going? Toronto is being run like a broke homeowner who shops a Restoration Hardware with their kid’s college fund, no priorities, no foresight, just vibes.
And here’s the kicker: these people get re-elected. They fail upwards. Every election, we shrug and vote for the same types of do-nothing candidates who promise to consult the community and then disappear into a committee forever.
You have Gord Perks, representing the city for 19 years. Paula Fletcher and Shelley Carroll for 22 years. Is Toronto better off, 20 years later with this type of leadership?
This is no longer negligence. It’s Civic Malpractice. So what now do we throw up our hands, move to Calgary? That’s almost tempting. No, Toronto doesn’t need better ferries. It needs a purge.
We need to start firing municipal politicians like that means paying attention, showing up and voting smart in local elections,
Not just the mayor, who’s been milking the system for decades, counselors, school trustees, planning board members. We need candidates who have run things before, businesses, organizations, anything beyond a Twitter account.
This is no longer negligence. It’s Civic Malpractice.
We need to demand our politicians start treating City Council like a boardroom. If you spent $63 million on unusable assets in a business, you’d be fired before the morning coffee break, and yet here we give them a pension for complete ineptitude. Think about that. Toronto deserves better. We’re one of the greatest cities in the world, rich in culture, talent and opportunity, but we’re being run by the “F” team, a team of absolute failures.
So, here’s your homework: share this video. Comment below the video on YouTube: what’s the dumbest thing Toronto City Council has done lately?
And most importantly, start organizing for 2026 municipal elections matter more than most of us realize. Subscribe to owlmortgage.ca we break down the madness so you don’t go mad because your city, your home, your mortgage, they’re all tied to the clowns running the circus.
Let’s clean this mess up. Let’s take back our city.
*****
Self-described as friendly, helpful, and dedicated, Vince Gaetano has long loved helping people achieve their dreams of homeownership and teaching them how to save money to pay off their mortgage faster than what a bank would like them to. As the founder, owner, and principal broker at OwlMortgage.ca, Vince is motivated to work hard by his three boys for whom he always seeks to set a good example. Whether it’s working hard on relationships, school, or business, hard work will always have a positive outcome. When he’s not hard at work at OwlMortgage.ca, Vince enjoys family time, golfing, enjoying great food with friends and family, and traveling.
