News   Mar 28, 2024
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Rail Deck Park (?, ?, ?)

What an ignorant post, from someone who probably never actually visited the park. In any case, the Initial Business Case described that the route "goes underground just west of Strachan Ave", so this whole discussion is pointless anyway.

Perhaps it wouldnt have to go underground that far west, if they were able to use the land under the Gardiner.

This is just a business case, not an EA, and it states in the business case that alignments, etc, are subject to change based upon assessments and engineering reports.
 
When I worked at the Globe and Mail a number of years ago, at its former location on Front Street, my desk overlooked the sunken rail corridor. Knowing the desperate need for public park space in that area, it seemed like a no-brainer to cover it, though the engineering challenges of building over an active series of rail lines are pretty obvious. Moreover, one person responded to my concept by saying, "If they can build a supporting structure to create useable space, there would be immediate pressure to put more towers above it."

These are concepts I worked up at the time the Globe was soliciting staff ideas for a new building at the Front. St. site. Here was mine (with apologies to Frank Gehry's Novartis campus in Basel, Switzerland). I suspect traffic controllers and nearby residents would object to large video screens in their midst...
Rail line endviews 2.jpg
Aerial park.jpg
Building 1.jpg
Building screens.jpg
 
Spadina Avenue ruins Rail Deck Park, especially if it extends east of Spadina. A 6-lane, nearly always traffic-packed thoroughfare smack dab in the middle or abutting against parkland is on no one’s mind as a good idea.

I hope the planners consider a land bridge over Spadina to isolate park-goers from that traffic mess.
 
Spadina Avenue ruins Rail Deck Park, especially if it extends east of Spadina. A 6-lane, nearly always traffic-packed thoroughfare smack dab in the middle or abutting against parkland is on no one’s mind as a good idea.

I hope the planners consider a land bridge over Spadina to isolate park-goers from that traffic mess.

There's an existing linear park below Spadina that already accomplishes that. I'm hoping that Rail Deck Park will maintain this connection, and maybe improve the quality of the landscaping.


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Call me crazy, but if we're decking over the rail corridor, maybe we should add some more tracks on top while we're at it. The USRC is choked as it is.
 
Call me crazy, but if we're decking over the rail corridor, maybe we should add some more tracks on top while we're at it. The USRC is choked as it is.

Crazy :p - it will unseparate it from vehicular and streetcars for one. On a more serious note though, that stretch of the corridor can get pretty deep - and maybe sufficient to allow for two levels of tracks (perhaps leading to an underground platform/concourse - as originally envisioned by one of the USRC studies). Also one of the unspoken goals of the Spadina RER station and OL alignment is probably using the former as a terminus for some lines to relief USRC?

AoD
 
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Call me crazy, but if we're decking over the rail corridor, maybe we should add some more tracks on top while we're at it. The USRC is choked as it is.

Two levels of tracks may not matter if the platform capacity at Union has maxxed out....but.... what happened to the plan for a new station stop at Spadina ?

The key point is, once the rail deck is added it will be difficult if not impossible to change much of the trackage afterwards. So whatever design is used, it better be the right one for the rail service planned and it better anticipate future needs.... HSR? HFR? RER? Measure twice, cut once.

- Paul
 
Two levels of tracks may not matter if the platform capacity at Union has maxxed out....but.... what happened to the plan for a new station stop at Spadina ?

The key point is, once the rail deck is added it will be difficult if not impossible to change much of the trackage afterwards. So whatever design is used, it better be the right one for the rail service planned and it better anticipate future needs.... HSR? HFR? RER? Measure twice, cut once.

- Paul

Of course, but the goal is for the second level of tracks to lead to a new underground concourse (envisioned in some of the old GO/Mlinx studies).

Also - other cities are far, far more efficient at the use of existing tracks/corridors (and even station platforms). We are absolutely pathetic at it.

AoD
 
The second track level was to be underground if I understood correctly. That being said the current renovation at Union should still have taken into account this possibility in it's design.
 

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