What stuns me is this: People angry with the tolls continue to use the road.

If a trip on the 407 is too expensive, why not take Highway 7, the 401, the 403, Major Mackenzie Drive... ? If there is anything that the Greater Toronto Area has in spades, it is roads. Yes, those routes are congested, but they are free and it isn't as though the 407 is running freely at rush hour either.

It is a basic economic principle - as demand increases, so does the cost. That is what is happening on the 407. Traffic volume has been increasing steadily since the highway's construction. That has prompted the 407 corporation to attempt to accommodate more traffic by adding lanes and extending the highway to the West. They are funding these improvements with toll increases.

Logically then, if everyone decided not to take the 407 (to protest toll hikes, perhaps?), the corporation would have to reduce rates to induce them back. That's called a boycott, and if you are really upset about rates (as opposed to those of you trying to find a way to get a free ride) I highly recommend it. If you can't take the traffic on the alternate routes, pay the toll and get over it!

Stop trying to have it both ways. You can have the shorter drive or the free drive, not both.