It seems like even celebrities can’t escape Toronto’s standstill traffic.
Over the weekend, Irish singer-songwriter and former One Direction band member, Niall Horan was in town for his third concert tour, The Show: Live On Tour, and was forced to ditch his vehicle just to make it to his show on time.
The “Slow Hands” singer had two back-to-back shows at Scotiabank Arena on Friday, June 28, and Saturday, June 29. In a now-viral video posted by fan account @niallhorannation, the 30-year-old artist can be seen walking along the stretch between Yonge and Bay Streets under the Gardiner Expressway to the entrance of the concert venue.
“Traffic’s too bad in Toronto so we’re walking to the venue. Let’s do it” Horan says, as a parody version of The Proclaimers’ “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)” plays in the background.
“In all of the years playing shows I don’t think I’ve ever walked into a venue,” he says in the video, which has since been viewed over 500,000 times.
@niallhorannation Niall walking to Scotiabank Arena because of the traffic in Toronto @Niall Horan #niall#nialler#niallhoran#horan#theshow#tslot#theshowliveontour2024#theshowliveontour#niallhoranvids#niallhoranconcert#niallhorannation#1d#onedirection#lovers#tslottoronto #tslottoronton1 ♬ original sound – niallhorannation
“Not Toronto traffic embarrassing us in front of Niall,” one fan wrote in response to the TikTok, while another begged someone to “show this to the government.”
Over the past year, more and more celebrities have been spotted ditching their vehicles just to escape Toronto’s brutal traffic. Last April, Toronto Raptors president Masai Ujiri was filmed walking along the centre median of Lake Shore Boulevard amid the frustrating gridlock.
Later that month, Maple Leafs defenceman Mark Giordan was spotted walking along Lake Shore Boulevard ahead of a high-stakes game against the Tampa Bay Lightning at Scotiabank Arena.
Even Hollywood A-lister Tom Cruise has criticized the city’s traffic. In an interview with ETalk last July, the Mission: Impossible actor asked, “What’s up with the traffic in Toronto? Have they figured this out?”
According to technology company TomTom’s annual traffic index released in January, Toronto ranks #3 on the list of the most congested cities in the world, with commuters taking an average of 29 minutes to complete a 10-kilometre trip.
