GO Train to Return to Barrie

Media Release from the City of Barrie:


GO TRAIN ON TRACK AND SET TO
RETURN TO BARRIE
Thursday, September 28th, 2006 – Barrie – MP Patrick Brown, Mayor
Hamilton and City Council are pleased to announce they have reached a
three way agreement that will see the return of GO train service to Barrie.
Significant issues, such as ownership and value of the rail corridor and
station lands, as well as the cost-sharing formula for future operating costs
have been resolved and up to four GO Trains are expected to serve Barrie by
late 2007.
“The City of Barrie and the Federal Government working as a team have
been successful in accomplishing their mutual goal of returning the GO train
to Barrie. The citizens of Barrie deserve this†said an enthused Brown.
“Mayor Hamilton and Council deserve credit for helping broker such a
significant deal for the City of Barrie, this goes to show that when
Governments work together we can achieve real results.â€
“The return of GO train service to Barrie is important and desirable for our
community and Council is pleased to see another of their top ten priorities
completed for this term of office†comments Mayor Hamilton. “The City
showed long term vision and planning by purchasing the rail line from CN to
ensure passenger rail service would eventually be restored to the City.â€
This project is the result of joint efforts and finances, totaling $30M, by the
Federal and Provincial governments and the City of Barrie. Support from
Transport Minister Lawrence Cannon and MP Patrick Brown were
instrumental in reaching this agreement.

www.city.barrie.on.ca/WCMAdmin/Images/www.citybarrie.on.ca/PDF_Files/September%2028%20-%20Federal%20Annoucement%20GO.pdf

That is good news. It seems like GO has been making small, but meaningful, announcements like this every few months, for the past year or so. It is very encouraging to see. It may not be anything ground breaking, but if GO where to continue this trend for another 2 or 3 years the improvments that would be made to the system as a result would have a really positive, and large, impact.

A-Channel's local Barrie video report is here. It includes the cost ($30 million), interviews with commuters etc.
They will build a new station from scratch in the city's south end in a green field development. (it is too bad they will not be using the city's old train station downtown).

www.achannel.ca/home/news_34917.aspx

^That is not entirely a bad thing. They can use the new greenfield station to attract a strong commuter base that will help make the line viable. Then maybe a few years in the future the line can be extended to the downtown area and an additional stop added that could help add some new riders and help downtown development and access. Greenfield commuter stations may not be ideal from an urban development point of view, but from GO's perspective and what is going to make the line successful in a short period of time, the choice is obvious.

Sprawl aboard!

That is good news. It seems like GO has been making small, but meaningful, announcements like this every few months, for the past year or so. It is very encouraging to see. It may not be anything ground breaking, but if GO where to continue this trend for another 2 or 3 years the improvments that would be made to the system as a result would have a really positive, and large, impact.

Click to expand...

What's so good about this? People in Toronto can't use the GO train but meanwhile we're expanding it to Barrie. What's next Huntsville?

Greenfield commuter stations may not be ideal from an urban development point of view, but from GO's perspective and what is going to make the line successful in a short period of time, the choice is obvious.

Click to expand...

How else are they going to build a typical GO giant parking lot in the middle of nowhere?

If they build a 400-series Canal Road bypass, I'll probably be able to drive to Barrie, get on the GO train, and be at Union station faster than if I took TTC straight through the 416.

edit - I wonder if they're actually gonna run more than 4 trains per day on the Barrie line...

^I don't disagree with you in principle but if Toronto wants better access to the GO train network, why don't they make this a priority and spend the time and effort to pursue it? Much like Barrie, Guelph, K/W and other cities on the fringes and outside the GTA have or are doing. Even then your statement is not entirely true. GO is purchasing Ottawa's Bombardier Talents which would indicate that the kind of inner/inter-regional service they are often used for is on GO's radar, perhaps leading to better service within the City of Toronto.

Leave it to GO to go out of the way to build a station in a place hard to service with transit but easy to access by car. I wish the Ontario government would stop funding GO again. All GO does is reinforce the sprawl and car-dependent lifestyle of the 905. Really, GO only removes cars from the city of Toronto itself, but in the 905 it only makes the traffic congestion worse. Funding for GO should go to the local transit systems instead, the REAL transit systems.

I find myself of two minds on this. I agree that we should fund transit with high-density areas of Toronto rather than longer lines out to the suburbs. However the European example provides with a model of two complementary systems, good suburban rail and good urban transit. It is too bad we have to play one off against the other.

The fact is there are commuters in Barrie and perhaps this will take some people off the roads. The concern if this will actually generate MORE car trips if it encourages people to live a long way from where they work, something we must overcome if we are going to have sustainable cities.

Of course if we must choose I think we should build subways along Queen St and Eglinton.

Seflishly I go up to Barrie quite frequently..and as I am not a car owner I find myself taking the increasingly more expensive Greyhound/ON options. For this reason I welcome this GO option.

^ You're only option is to go up to Barrie one night and return to Toronto the next morning. I just watched the linked video and learned only 2 of 4 daily trips will continue on to Barrie...

If you want to take a GO bus to Newmarket from Union or Yorkdale, then take a local bus to Barrie, you have that option too.

But you already had that option...how long would take take, anyway? I once took the GO bus home from Guelph and it took 5 hours.

it is about one hour from Yorkville on the Greyhound. I looked into the GO Bus a whle ago and then it was 2.5 hours but I should check into it again..I think they have service throught to Bradford.

Leaving at night and coming back to T.O in the morning is what I usually do so that works.