Have you been to Toronto? my experience is that it is not cold nor snowy.
I lived there, I took the path in the summer because it's super hot and humid in the summer. The winters were mild and not snowy at all.
And then if the regional/municipal governments have the equipment for it, a foot or two of snow a month really doesn't impact travel all that much (maybe for a few hours if there is a big storm).
Snowfall near the lake can be lower because of the mediated temperature. (Unlike south of the lake like in Buffalo were you can get high lake-effect snow). In a dense core, you can have very different patterns of accumulation due to road and building layout.
Winters can be sporadic. Last year's was bad. Year before was light.
This is last year: https://www.theweathernetwork.com/en/news/weather/severe/his...
What years were you there? I don't see how less than 'foot of snow total' is possible.
edit: These are the yearly totals (if the site's stats are to be believed). https://toronto.weatherstats.ca/charts/snow-yearly.html
Eyeball average puts it at like 100cm+