Is traffic bad in Toronto?

Travel Info
How difficult is it to own a car in Toronto (parking and traffic wise?) I want to live in the city, but teach (I'm a high school teacher) further out in the suburbs... Almost all the schools cannot be reached by public transportation...

Travel Tips

I live outside of Washington, DC and traffic here is very bad - I've been working in Toronto on and off for a year, and I'd say it is very close to just as bad.

Another poster said that traveling out is better - that may be true but during Rush Hour the main highways are terrible, the 401 all the way in both directions across the city, and the 404 both North and West. Just a mess. The 407, an expensive toll road, is much clearer, but too expensive.

I don't know what kind of time you are looking at. In my experience, the roads are a mess by 7 AM for morning rush hour and by 3 (especially the 401) for afternoon rush hour.

I don't know much about the Gardiner and the Queen's expressways, since I have not worked near them. And I don't know about parking, since I only stay downtown when I can use public transport only.

Hope this helps.
Others

Traffic can be very bad but since you would be doing a commute that would be opposite to many, you may be ok.

I think it would depend on the specifics.
actually, most high schools can be accessed by the ttc, yrt, drt, etc. So make sure that that option is actually truly exercised.

in the morning all of the major highways (401, 403, 404, DVP, 410, 427, the Allen, the Gardiner) are usually OK from 8PM - 6AM and 10AM - 3PM. If you're rich you can take the 407 which is high speed at all times.

During rush hour, the highways are usually pretty bad although they are differ based on times. 401 on the East Side is ok during rush hour, but on the West is terrible. The Allen is terrible all of the time. The DVP is trafficy any time the sun is up. The Gardiner is usually busy but not bumper to bumper except during rush hour. The 427 is wide so it's not usually packed, but it is dangerous to drive as people are usually rushing on it. The 404 is usually bumper to bumper in both directions during rush hour.

Google MTO Compass for the GTA and RESCU for within Toronto if you want to check out traffic cams on your route.
Commuter for many, many years.