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GO Transit: Service thread (including extensions)

With the Gardiner going to be in a state of construction for the next 3 years. Is there a possibility that we'll see a boost in ridership on the LSW?

I ask because with developer Vandyk pretty much going bankrupt, and the Mimico Grand Central project all but dead. I wonder if it would be in MX's benefit to temporarily increase parking at Mimico station in order to try to entice new riders to take the train. Again, I said "temporarily" increase parking. Once construction on the Gardiner is complete, put the land back up for sale.


View attachment 557017
Spending money on zero revenue temporary paving seems unwise.
 
https://www.cp24.com/news/ontario-not-proceeding-with-planned-up-express-changes-minister-1.6849432


I particularly enjoy the residents' description of Weston as being unserved while it has literally the most train service of any suburban station in Canada.
Are these decisions made with any data?

I'm just suprised I haven't seen anything than: we want to make trains faster, and we're reversing because the public doesn't like it.

So far I've seen that (hardly) faster is about a couple of minutes as trains still need to slow when passing Weston/Bloor... But again this wasn't from the horses mouth... but here on UT.

Don't we decide these things at least mostly based on some hard facts? I get public wants/needs matter, but I don't understand how we make these decisions and then reverse them just as quick without any real numbers...
 
Are these decisions made with any data?

I'm just suprised I haven't seen anything than: we want to make trains faster, and we're reversing because the public doesn't like it.

So far I've seen that (hardly) faster is about a couple of minutes as trains still need to slow when passing Weston/Bloor... But again this wasn't from the horses mouth... but here on UT.

Don't we decide these things at least mostly based on some hard facts? I get public wants/needs matter, but I don't understand how we make these decisions and then reverse them just as quick without any real numbers...
Pretty sure the concept of an express train that only saves 2 minutes wouldn't have passed any quantitative analysis. The reversal is also clearly done without data analysis given that it all happened within 24h.
 
Pretty sure the concept of an express train that only saves 2 minutes wouldn't have passed any quantitative analysis. The reversal is also clearly done without data analysis given that it all happened within 24h.
If the trains were allow to travel through the stations at their optimal speed and not have to decelerate/ accelerate, then the time savings would be greater than 2 minutes.
 
Are these decisions made with any data?

I'm just suprised I haven't seen anything than: we want to make trains faster, and we're reversing because the public doesn't like it.

So far I've seen that (hardly) faster is about a couple of minutes as trains still need to slow when passing Weston/Bloor... But again this wasn't from the horses mouth... but here on UT.

Don't we decide these things at least mostly based on some hard facts? I get public wants/needs matter, but I don't understand how we make these decisions and then reverse them just as quick without any real numbers...
I mean we are building a subway to Scarborough with likely a sheppard extension. Data. F data.
 
People on these threads tell me that I shouldn’t whine to advocate for transit in Mississauga but dang it I’ll humble myself and accept that crying is exactly how we’re making our decisions.
It's unbecoming and causes people to lose respect for you. But it sounds like you're willing to pay that price.
 
Whining had nothing to do with the reversal of this decision. It's clear Michael Ford who is related to the Premier, managed to pull the nepotism card.
If no one whined Michael would still be sleeping on his couch with a bag full of nachos while the tv is playing. Enough whining happened that someone woke him up from his slumber and said oh wait this is good for my career. Then he used his card. So there may have been a combo here. But whining was a part of it. Otherwise he would still be at home sleeping.

Btw he’s not actually a ford. And he never finished school. But like we have no transit requirements we don’t have any school board trustee or councillor requirements.

Whining was a part of getting the subway in Scarborough built.

Whining was part of keeping a lrt stop on eglinton at Leslie.

Whining was apart of making eglinton west underground.
Whining was part of reversing course and putting bus lanes in the old RT route.

Whining will be part of the decision making that gets Brampton its downtown underground lrt.
 
Are these decisions made with any data?

I'm just suprised I haven't seen anything than: we want to make trains faster, and we're reversing because the public doesn't like it.

So far I've seen that (hardly) faster is about a couple of minutes as trains still need to slow when passing Weston/Bloor... But again this wasn't from the horses mouth... but here on UT.

Don't we decide these things at least mostly based on some hard facts? I get public wants/needs matter, but I don't understand how we make these decisions and then reverse them just as quick without any real numbers...

I won't repeat what I just posted in the UPX thread - but to summarise - I bet the data puts a whole new spin on the case for Weston. It is one of the fastest-growing TOD case studies in the GTA. And yes ML has the data.

Re Mimico parking and others - I have a new proposal for parking at GO - instead of "reserved" spaces, which are often empty when renters decide to work from home - convert the top 25% of parking to a tap-in format with gates, and sell the closer-to-the-platform space to first comers, with the gates counting the number of spaces yet to sell. Kind of like overbooking airplane seats, it makes better use of available spaces. And probably revenue neutral or even positive to the reservation format, with no need to manage signs or enforcement. Admission by tapping your Presto Card, and if you don't want to pay, you park further away or higher in the garage.

At Mimico, there is a huge temptation to park in empty reserved spaces, especially after about noon, because the unreserved lot is generally at overflow.

- Paul
 
If the trains were allow to travel through the stations at their optimal speed and not have to decelerate/ accelerate, then the time savings would be greater than 2 minutes.
I have continued to wonder if we have also fully exhausted options to expedite their run through the USRC too. There's no need for them to make any significant ladder climbs, and wondering if they could be allowed a higher speed vs GO / VIA.
 
At Mimico, there is a huge temptation to park in empty reserved spaces, especially after about noon, because the unreserved lot is generally at overflow
At Oshawa Station there has been a pilot in place since before the pandemic wherein after 11 am, the reserve spots are free and open to the general public to park in as long as they vacate the spot before the start of service the next day.
I have no idea why Metrolinx has not extended this to other stations.
 

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