Doug Ford, former Toronto city councillor and 2018 mayoral hopeful, and Jagmeet Singh, federal leader of the New Democratic Party

What was your first impression of your date ?

FORD: Jagmeet was a very nice man. He was very open to listening to my opinions and thoughts on transit.

SINGH: We had met a couple times before, but on the date he was quite an affable guy. He was very warm and friendly. Really a gentleman.

Was there a moment when you thought, what have I got myself into?

FORD: When we were cycling down Bloor St., I realized how out of shape I was.

SINGH: No, I knew what I was getting into. I knew he was going to have a very different opinion but I’m very comfortable talking with folks of all political views. We started the date at a diner, a place that as a vegetarian I would probably not have chosen myself. It was an interesting start to the day.

What facts or viewpoints had you not considered/heard before?

FORD: The actual number of cyclists that were using the installed bike lanes.

SINGH: He did help me hone my argument on the relationship between public transit and congestion. So, if transit ridership is low and it’s having negative impacts on traffic we should look at how to better use those services. But if ridership is high then it’s actually helping traffic problems by reducing the number of cars on the road.

How much did your view change about the issue?

FORD: There are not nearly as many cyclists using the lanes as I had heard or thought would be using them.

SINGH: My overall view did not change. I still believe we need to make serious investments in public transit and that will have positive results for the whole city.

What was the best strategy your date used to persuade you?

FORD: My date didn’t persuade or change my opinion. Actually experiencing it for myself helped reinforce my original thoughts on them.

SINGH: He had strong anecdotal arguments. He said instead of just talking about this, let’s go look at it on the ground — though sometimes that worked against him.

What was the worst?

FORD: No comment.

SINGH: He repeatedly tried to make the argument that traffic was terrible everywhere, but as we drove around, traffic was quite good and we got around very quickly.

What part of your date do you wish you could do over?

FORD: I would have brought Jagmeet to the outskirts of Scarborough (by the zoo), as per my original idea, to take transit into the city. However, we had to stay closer to the core as the commute from my location would have taken too much time.

SINGH: I wish we could have biked on a warmer day to show Doug how great it is to bike in the city.

The next time you run into your date will it be awkward?

FORD: Absolutely not. He is a very nice man and we had a great time.

SINGH: No, not at all. We bonded.

What surprised you most about your date?

FORD: That he cycled on our date within the city and then hopped into his BMW and drove back to his constituency.

SINGH: He was a really good sport. He just jumped on a bike, which he admitted he hadn’t done in a while. When I noticed how comfortable he was riding, he said, “It’s like riding a bike!”

How would you rate this political blind date out 10?

FORD: 9

SINGH: 9. I’d encourage everyone to take some time and talk with someone that may hold different views than them. It was interesting and a lot of fun.

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NEXT WEEK:

Both London, Ont. Mayor Matt Brown and Toronto Councillor Giorgio Mammoliti believe in helping drug addicts but they can?t agree on how to treat them. A visit to Vancouver?s Downtown Eastside doesn?t resolve the debate. (courtesy: TVO)

Both London, Ont. Mayor Matt Brown and Toronto Councillor Giorgio Mammoliti believe in helping drug addicts but they can’t agree on how to treat them. A visit to Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside doesn’t resolve the debate.

MAMMOLITI: “They told us that the safe injection sites would actually take it off of the streets but instead what I’m seeing is it’s making it worse on the streets.”

BROWN: “That’s where we disagree because before there was a supervised injection site, these issues existed.”

This episode of Political Blind Date, produced by Open Door Co., Nomad Films and TVO, airs Tuesday at 9 p.m., on TVO and tvo.org. The Toronto Star is the series media partner.

Political Blind Date episodes

The six-part series airs Tuesdays on TVO at 9 p.m. and on tvo.org. See thestar.com for weekly pre- and post-show coverage.

Nov. 7 — MARIJUANA

Garnett Genuis, Conservative MP, Sherwood Park-Fort Saskatchewan, and Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, Liberal MP, Beaches-East York.

Nov. 14 — TRANSIT

Doug Ford, former Toronto councillor, and Jagmeet Singh, NDP federal leader.

Nov. 21 — SAFE INJECTION SITES

Matt Brown, London, Ont. mayor, and Giorgio Mammoliti, Toronto councillor, York West.

Nov. 28 — CORRECTIONS

Cheri DiNovo, NDP MPP, Parkdale-High Park, and Marie-France Lalonde, Liberal MPP and Minister, Ottawa-Orleans.

Dec. 5 — HOUSING

Maria Augimeri, Toronto councillor, York Centre, and Adam Vaughan, Liberal MP, Spadina—Fort York

Dec. 12 — CARBON TAXES

Arthur Potts, Liberal MPP, Beaches-East York, and Shannon Stubbs, Conservative MP, Lakeland.

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