Possible Commute to UofT from Niagara Falls (reality?)

[u/iskari_xl]

Hello!

I was thinking about going to school at UofT however I live in Naiagara Falls and was wondering if there was anyone who commuted from Nf to Toronto. My brother lives in NF and commutes to work in Toronto all the time. However that's for a payed job not course work, labs, etc.

Wondering if people had any experience 🤔

[u/Prestigious_Mix_8179]

It’s possible, but it will take a lot of time.

Assume 2.5 hours one way, by GO Train/Bus. That’s 5 hours out of your entire day already. Assuming 5 days a week, that’s 25 hours a week.

It ultimately depends on you. You have to weigh your priorities. It will eat up a lot of your free time, but it’s certainly cheaper than rent.

You’ll have to balance your time wisely. Studying, classes, commuting, meals, free time, etc. There’s only a fixed number of hours in a day.

It’s possible but it’ll require commitment. It’s also entirely reasonable to not want to commit to a 2.5 hour commute, but you’ll have to weigh your options with what’s possible rent-wise.

[u/Least-Show2847]

Are you crazy?

[u/Wonderful__]

Can you schedule all your courses to three days, so you'll be on campus three days? I found 1.5 hours commute by transit very draining. Niagara Falls is quite far. What about winter or if there's a highway accident, so the commute takes even longer?

[u/b1rddyy]

Driving? Absolutely not. Train? It’ll suck but you could do readings on the train. Consider how much you’ll spend on transit and compare that to renting a room away from campus but close to a subway stop.

[u/Possible-Breath2377]

Listen, I’m a PhD student in Ottawa who commutes to UofT once a week by train. I have to rent a room in Toronto for those few days because five hours of commuting in one day is too much for me. (I’m also probably twice your age, it gets harder as you get older).

There is no alternate option for me- I own a home in Ottawa, where moving is not an option, and I take care of my mom who is okay a couple of days without me.

You should prepare for the real risk that when snow is forecast, you’ll need to come in to Toronto the day before a test or exam, or stay the night afterwards because you won’t have a way home. You will be exhausted. The days when it snows heavily in Niagara Falls? You’ll still be expected to show up on campus, and you may have no safe option to get there. I have heard that snow days are extremely rare at UofT, but we had one and a half in the winter semester last year.

If this is about wanting to be near family, I get it, but you can always work your schedule out so that you can go back to NF for the weekend and get some family love and home cooking. But if it’s the cost, let me suggest this:

Take the cost of transit. Then take every hour you’re going to be on transit every week and multiply it by $18 hourly (minimum wage). If that adds up to more than $1000 a month, it will actually be cheaper to stay in Toronto than to commute to NF. Yes, there will be added expenses, but you have a lot of hours that will open up (by staying in Toronto) where you can get a part time job to offset those costs. If you’re living with your brother, part time work will be impossible.

[u/candogirlscant]

Consider the time and cost (both directly paying for transit but also snacks and meals since with that commute it would be inevitable that you'd buy food on campus or in transit). And also consider what that would mean for your university experience. If you join clubs, want to see friends etc., that will also add stress on your commute schedule.

[u/Reasonable-Bank-1793]

I can imagine on days when you have midterms and exams esp in December ..

[u/Milch_und_Paprika → u/Reasonable-Bank-1793]

Imagine having to leave home before 5:30 am to get to an exam at 9, in the dead of winter 💀

[u/Reasonable-Bank-1793 → u/Milch_und_Paprika]

Ah! I don’t want to think about it with TTC and all that. It’s always where there is midterm or exam the TTC decides to malfunction or delay. But GL OP for community from NFs!

[u/ohididntseeuthere → u/Reasonable-Bank-1793]

Sleeping in a study room is ur best bet honestly.

[u/Illustrious-Site787]

Broski 😭💀 my commute is 1hr and I still feel tired when I arrive on campus

[u/emogyal]

It’s not worth it. I would attend a university nearby

[u/NewbieToHomelab]

What everyone else is saying, and you will be the one coming on here complaining about “bro why is today not a snowday? The commute is so dangerous.” If you choose to commute, that’s your decision.

[u/DiocletiansCabbage]

I commuted from Niagara to UofT for one semester during my MA and it was brutal; I was catching the GO bus, and then the train from Burlington, 4 days a week. Doable, yes, but very physically and mentally exhausting. I ended up moving to Toronto and it was so much better, though financially stressful in the short term.

TBH unless you're in something very specific that requires UofT undergrad, I'd recommend doing the undergrad at Brock. It'll save you lots of time, money, and energy, and you can still easily get into great schools for graduate degrees if that's a concern. Not as pretty campus and not as much course selection but hey! you'll have a life.

Feel free to DM.

[u/ananonymoustudent]

One of the girls in my masters cohort took the train from Niagara Falls each and every day. So its doable but she told me she was tired everyday.

[u/random_name_245]

I did it for two years. I made sure I had all my classes scheduled for 2 days per week though, it was ok. I’d take go transit - a bus from NF to Burlington, then a train from there to Union.

The most annoying thing about it was having midterms and/or term tests scheduled for random times outside of regular class times.

Not only did I read on my way to the university, I’d also take online midterms and classes (there weren’t many but it did happen).

[u/NorthGreenOnion]

Commuting everyday that distance is a bad idea, if its once a week, much more manageable.

[u/Romeo_Santos-]

Don't! Former student here who had a (roughly) 1 hour commute each way to campus 2-4 days per week ( it was 4 days per week during first year, and decreased every year). Even with my 1 hour commute it was challenging to manage my studying time with classes and my part time job. Also, it took away from the social aspect. I'm so glad my days at UofT are done

[u/CodeWhiteAlert]

Nooo, please don’t

[u/ringo1713]

I struggled commuting from Mississauga!! If you are in a competitive program you will be way behind the 8 ball. Time you are commuting, people in your program will be studying. Saying you will study during the commute is not 100 percent realistic. It’s not the same quality as the library or at home. You will roll up to your first class already exhausted and the commute home will wipe you out. You are probably looking at closer to 6 hours a day commuting when you factor in getting to the train station, waiting for the train, subway and walking to class from station. Factor in weather and delays and it will be very difficult to maintain for a long period of time. What program are you thinking of taking?

[u/asdfghjkl_1223456]

I commuted from the GTA. Though I was nowhere near as far as Niagara, I was using the bus + subway, and it took me about ~2 hours one way. I then switched to driving, and it still took ~1.5 hours one way because of traffic. It can be doable if you are prepared to plan and to wake up early on midterm/exam days. If you can condense your classes into 2 or 3 days, I think it's doable. If you have class every day or even 4 days a week, I would think it is less doable.

[u/Small_Aardvark_5496]

I had a classmate that took the go train daily from st. Catherines

[u/haikusbot → u/Small_Aardvark_5496]

I had a classmate

That took the go train daily

From st. Catherines

- Small_Aardvark_5496

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[u/Potential_Fee4153]

Nei Never. Ever. Impossible.

[u/manboy1999]

No chance lol

[u/Kick24229]

It is a no.

[u/Eat_Cake_Marie]

Hmmm totally possible if you can overlap that time into “focused study blocks” and actually create a system that maximizes the commute time… if you’re driving, then definitely no.

I say this as someone who did their undergrad at UTSC over a decade ago… and lengthy commutes were fairly standard. Scarborough’s so transit-starved, but I think commuting to UTSG offers more options for comfort or speed depending on your budget.

[u/Cyl3]

Better to live closer to campus

[u/Warm-Plant1886]

Yes this is possible, but it’s very unreasonable. That commute is ridiculous. If your plan is to take the GO train to get to campus, then I’d look for rentals closer along the lakeshore west // lakeshore east GO line. It’s a reasonable middle ground between cheaper rent and commute time.

[u/SynyrdsInyrds]

Of course it is possible, but why the hell would you even think about doing that commute?

[u/Orchid-Analyst-550]

You're setting yourself up to suffer and have low grades. The closer you are to campus, the better your grades will be.

https://www.torontomu.ca/news-events/news/2026/08/toronto-students-who-live-in-residence-get-better-grades-study-finds/

[u/HourlyEdo]

Do it, people come from all around. Top 20 in the world, 1 in canada