In Ontario, the topic of commuting has been discussed by many. As more people are leaving the hustle and bustle of downtown Toronto due to the high cost of living, the population of other cities in the GTA has been rising. One populous city outside the province’s central hub is Mississauga—Canada’s sixth largest city and growing. This makes it the third-biggest city in Ontario, and the second-biggest in the GTA. So, as an ever-growing city in the GTA, more and more residents are curious as to how citygoers and rural folks are travelling in Mississauga. What methods of commuting are the most popular in Mississauga? What happens if you don’t have a car? Let’s take a look at how citizens can commute in Mississauga, whether it’s by plane, train, or automobile.
Where is Mississauga located?
Surrounded by Oakville and Milton to the West, Brampton to the North, and Toronto to the east, the city of Mississauga is visited by many commuters and residents daily. Due to the city’s proximity to Toronto, the city has built up a thriving multicultural population, as well as a central business district in the heart of the city. Even more, the city of Mississauga is home to Toronto Pearson International Airport, the busiest airport in Canada! Mississauga is also known for landmarks, such as Square One Shopping Centre and the award-winning ‘Marilyn Monroe’ condo towers.
How do Mississauga citizens commute?
Driving by car in Mississauga
Like any city, cars are typically a primary method of travelling in Mississauga. It’s one of the only cities in the Greater Toronto Area that is serviced by seven major highways, offering some of the fastest access to major destinations, not only in Canada but also within the United States.
Arguably the most iconic highway within the city is Highway 401. Dubbed “Ontario’s main street,” this multi-lane highway runs from Windsor in the west to the Quebec border in the east. This is by far the busiest highway in North America, with a complex system of express lanes and ramps. It passes through Mississauga with six different interchanges within the city. Additionally, you have Highway 403. This connects the Queen Elizabeth Way with Highway 401, providing an east and west link through the center of Mississauga. A convenient interchange at Hurontario Street allows easy access to the Mississauga City Center. This houses tons of residential retail, restaurants, and entertainment.
Highway 409 will provide drivers with a direct link from Highways 401 to 427 straight to the Toronto Pearson International Airport, while Highway 410 provides a link from Highways 403 to 401 through Mississauga and Brampton. To top off the list of notorious highways within the city, we also have Highway 407. Highway 407 is the world’s first completely electronic toll road. It is a 108 km highway running from east to west, traveling across the northern and western boundaries of Mississauga. It spans the northern section of the GTA from Highway 403 in Burlington to Highway 7 in Oshawa.
Public transit in Mississauga (MiWay)
MiWay, a municipal transit system in Mississauga, has lots to offer for those who don’t own a vehicle or drive. As the third largest municipal transit system in the province, it constantly services the growing population of 741,000 in Mississauga. The MiWay transit system operates a total of 96 routes throughout the city, running to practically every place you can imagine! These routes run all through the city, delivering you to destinations such as Square One via the 40 Bus. If you’re travelling much further, the Pearson International Airport can be accessed via the 24 N and S busses as well as the 107 N and S Malton Express busses.
The MiWay is also your key to arriving at multiple different restaurants and entertainment facilities the city has to offer.It connects with the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) to the east, allowing people in the city to commute to work or events in Toronto. Riders can transfer at Renforth Station, Humber College North Campus, Westwood Square Transit Terminal, Long Branch GO, Toronto Pearson International Airport as well as the Kipling Bus Terminal, which serves as MiWays largest transfer location with the TTC. It also connects with Brampton Transit to the north, Oakville Transit to the west, and all GO Transit stations within Mississauga to routes in the GTA.
How does MiWay operate?
As of now, MiWay operates a total of 450 fully accessible busses, 15 of them being hybrid electric vehicles. The MiExpress and MiLocal routes service various business districts within the city. These businesses include Airport Corporate, Dixie, Sheridan Park, Gateway, and Meadowvale.
A monthly bus pass with MiWay will cost you $141 per month, providing you with free transportation and transfers for the entire month. You can also use your Presto card for quick access and load your pass onto there! This is the preferred method for most, as your Presto card will allow you to pay for all public transportation services in the GTA, as well as GO Transit trains and buses.
GO Transit in Mississauga
GO Transit is a public transit system that services the Greater Golden Horseshoe area. The famous green and white trains and buses are key to serving this area of over 7 million people. For many, GO Transit has been crucial to commuting to and from work every day without the hassle of owning a vehicle. With GO, travelling in Mississauga from outside of the city has never been easier. During an average weekday, GO runs 332 train trips carrying over 206,000 riders. Additionally, GO has 2,386 daily bus routes carrying roughly 49,000 passengers. This equates to over 200,000 taking GO Transit every day!
GO Transit in Mississauga has three train lines and several GO bus routes that provide frequent transportation throughout the day. The service, running between Milton and Toronto, has four different stops in Mississauga. These include Mimico, Long Branch, Port Credit, and Clarkson. This consists of the Georgetown line that runs between Georgetown and Toronto. This line will provide you with a stop in the northeast quadrant of the city. Furthermore, the Lakeshore line runs from Hamilton to Oshawa, with two stops in Mississauga that connect to downtown Toronto. Several GO bus routes provide non-rush hour service to different GO train stations as well, with added service from York University and Square One Shopping Mall.
With so many different routes, it comes as no surprise as to why many commuters in Mississauga choose GO Transit as a viable method of daily transportation.
Mississauga Transitway Bus System
Completed in 2017, the Mississauga Transitway is a rapid bus transit system in Mississauga. This 18km route spans from Winston Churchill Boulevard in the west to the junction of Highways 401 and 427 in the east, bordering Toronto. The Mississauga Transitway is home to transit provided by MiWay and GO Transit buses. This bus-only roadway gets thousands of passengers to and from their locations daily. As a result, this allows more people to use transit as a form of Mississauga commuting outside of driving. These bus services operate using a mixture of both express and local routes that stop at stations constructed along this route.
The Transitway system consists of two busways and bus-priority lanes. The western busway runs parallel to Highway 403 and stretches from Winston Churchill Boulevard to Erin Mills Parkway. Buses use a dedicated shoulder lane on Highway 403 and Centre View Drive to go directly to MiWay’s City Centre Transit Terminal. The eastern busway begins east of Hurontario Street, also parallel to the 403. This stretches from Cawthra Road, following Eastgate Parkway to Eglinton Avenue.
As mentioned above, the Transitway is used by MiWay standard busses for travelling within the city with multiple destinations, stopped by request. The GO Transit-operated highway coaches and double-decker buses also use this, stopping at all GO Transit routes at Winston Churchill, Erin Mills, Dixie, and Renforth stations. Of course, these can differentiate, depending on the route.
The future of travelling in Mississauga
As the City of Mississauga grows, many plans exist to maintain a city that provides efficient and accessible transit. They are currently in their second implementation of the MiWay five-year transit plan, which ends in 2026. This plan focuses on refining and expanding the MiWay transit system and refurbishing travelling in Mississauga. This includes the expansion and improvement of lines near major employment areas. Additionally, it will have more connections to GO Rail service and hubs, such as Toronto Pearson International Airport.
In the future, they plan on connecting with the Hurontario Light Rail Transit project. The Hurontario Light Rail Transit project is a provincially owned transit system that will bring rapid transit to the cities of Mississauga and Brampton, operating along the Hurontario corridor.
Travelling in Mississauga: In conclusion
As the city of Mississauga continues to expand, so do the means of travelling in Mississauga. No matter where in the province you are driving, getting to your destination safely and securely cannot be done without proper auto insurance. Are you making the move to Mississauga? If so, a move is the perfect time to contact your isure broker and let them know your postal code is changing.
