GO Transit: Service thread (including extensions)

[Richard White]

I think the problem is ebike charging. You can leave your ebike downtown but providing infrastructure to charge (potentially dodgy) ebikes sounds a lot more complicated.

Maybe we could resolve this by developing a list of approved/UL validated ebike manufacturers for parking and charging in a public lot.

Indeed.

All you need is one dodge e-bike to go kaboom and set off a chain reaction.

 

[micheal_can]

Having a bike park is not going to satisfy this clientele unless it has charging ports.... these are mostly ebikes.

The invective against the bike owners is not appropriate. This is a situation that ML has inadvertently drifted into. ML needs to extricate itself without attaching "blame".

At the end of the day, no transit jurisdiction hauls bikes in large numbers. In the Netherlands, a bike ticket costs 10 euros... about $18 per ride. The bike coaches that were ok for Niagara tourist trains are not really ok for more mundane commuter trains.

- Paul

Requiring an additional fare for a bike makes sense.

 

[afransen]

Perhaps a better solution is to develop a system like the below, but for ebike battery swapping. This is for electric scooters and popular in Taiwan. Perhaps a smaller form factor could work for ebikes.

World's Largest Battery Swapping Network

Accelerating the shift to cleaner, smarter and safer urban transportation.

www.gogoro.com

 

[WB62]

Then make it a longer consist.... I have seen 12 cars. Instead of complaining about the problem, we should be wanting a solution that does not include banning bikes.

I’m personally not calling for the outright banning of e-bikes, there must be a middle ground solution somewhere.

I fully agree with running 12 car trains, it’s more than overdue at this point, and while it wouldn’t really make a dent in the bike issue; it would make a slight difference.

 

[T3G]

I don’t have an in depth understanding of GO’s operations, but my question is: why are they still running six-car trains?

There's a big problem with transit operators, and politicians, failing to accurately recognize, and plan for, demand, especially in the post-pandemic era.

I can probably count on one hand the number of TTC bus routes which are accurately calibrated to their ridership demand, especially on weekends.

 

[Allandale25]

I’m personally not calling for the outright banning of e-bikes, there must be a middle ground solution somewhere.

I fully agree with running 12 car trains, it’s more than overdue at this point, and while it wouldn’t really make a dent in the bike issue; it would make a slight difference.

The future Heritage Road Layover may help. In the meantime, I wonder if there are any other barriers to 12-coach trains on the weekend?

 

[micheal_can]

I’m personally not calling for the outright banning of e-bikes, there must be a middle ground solution somewhere.

I fully agree with running 12 car trains, it’s more than overdue at this point, and while it wouldn’t really make a dent in the bike issue; it would make a slight difference.

I am talking regular bikes. Let's start with that.

 

[dowlingm]

can’t wait for Metrolinx to advise their board that their ability to add service is limited as infra improvements come on line, because they are running L12 on services normally only needing L10 or even L6 for basically no additional revenue, and forgoing the ability to run additional service L6s where they would pick up net new riders, because people on the internet thought it was mean to not underwrite the business model of Skip The Dishes and similar apps, whose delivery workforce seemingly (according to those posters) almost entirely consisting of a student cohort that the feds are threatening to significantly downsize in the rest of the 2020s.

 

[micheal_can]

can’t wait for Metrolinx to advise their board that their ability to add service is limited as infra improvements come on line, because they are running L12 on services normally only needing L10 or even L6 for basically no additional revenue, and forgoing the ability to run additional service L6s where they would pick up net new riders, because people on the internet thought it was mean to not underwrite the business model of Skip The Dishes and similar apps, whose delivery workforce seemingly (according to those posters) almost entirely consisting of a student cohort that the feds are threatening to significantly downsize in the rest of the 2020s.

New riders? Maybe not, but more revenue? Yes.

 

[lenaitch]

Maybe we could resolve this by developing a list of approved/UL validated ebike manufacturers for parking and charging in a public lot.

A far as I know ebikes are already subject to UL/CSA certification.

 

[lenaitch]

Perhaps a better solution is to develop a system like the below, but for ebike battery swapping. This is for electric scooters and popular in Taiwan. Perhaps a smaller form factor could work for ebikes.

World's Largest Battery Swapping Network

Accelerating the shift to cleaner, smarter and safer urban transportation.

www.gogoro.com

Just going from the link, but that sounds like a network of common or at least related platforms. I don't know how we could imagine that happening in an open economy. Electric bikes come in all shapes and sizes. Batteries are integral to the frame/body or are mounted on. It would be an ideal world where everything electric was powered by a version of AA or AAA batteries, and maybe some day we will get there. Maybe someday battery packs of EVs will all be interchangeable. I'll believe it when I see my Dewalt tools accepting Bosch or Makita batteries.

 

[lenaitch]

I will leave it to our rail experts to opine; but I will note that CN/CP already co-produce (share lines), in 2 significant areas in the country, in both cases running traffic unidirectionally down one line and up the other.

That suggests, that for the most part, a two-track corridor should work (one east, one west); there would obviously be a need for some additional track near major yards and such.

Also, what yard are you envisioning CP replacing? Leaside is gone, Obico is gone, not sure what's going on w/Lambton this week, LOL

Final thought, our experts here have suggested that CP may just move Toronto yard (Agincourt) entirely.

None of which is to suggest the Missing Link/Midtown by-pass would be cheap; nor do I have the requisite info to compare value for money vs quad-tracking Milton.

It is interesting to note that those two zones of directional running were achieved between the two companies without government intervention. It also seems they lack similar enthusiasm to share trackage in Toronto. I assume both of those zones solved common problems and avoided any need for large infrastructure layout. It also seems that is lacking here unless a third party or two ponies up the coin. From the freight railways' perspective, what is the problem?

Single track routing obviously works in those two corridors, at least well enough for them to want to stick with it. The Toronto area is the recipient of traffic from all points of the compass. Both CN and CP route a lot of their trans-Canada traffic through the US then back in. The Toronto area is also where trains get assembled and broken requiring more movement, slower movements, track space, etc.

I assume the new yard people mention is Agincourt. If some kind of common ROW took CP traffic away from its current alignment, then it would be in the wrong place. Again, not necessarily a bad idea, but where and who pays.

 

[afransen]

Just going from the link, but that sounds like a network of common or at least related platforms. I don't know how we could imagine that happening in an open economy. Electric bikes come in all shapes and sizes. Batteries are integral to the frame/body or are mounted on. It would be an ideal world where everything electric was powered by a version of AA or AAA batteries, and maybe some day we will get there. Maybe someday battery packs of EVs will all be interchangeable. I'll believe it when I see my Dewalt tools accepting Bosch or Makita batteries.

It doesn't need to be all e-bikes, but perhaps those who would find swapping quite useful would choose an ebike model that is compliant.

I think EV battery swapping is unlikely to become dominant because it requires pretty sophisticated machinery to accomplish due to the weight. Scooters and ebikes can be user swapped.

 

[Bojaxs]

Maybe people in downtown Toronto should just get off their butts and actually go get their food themselves. Hopefully then there won't be any decent money to be made being a food courier, and we'll see a huge reduction in e-bikes crowding the train.
I stopped using these apps long ago cause the delivery charges are too high. How hard is it to take the elevator down to the underground and visit one of the many food courts? I haven't worked in downtown Toronto since 2012. Are things that different nowadays?

 

[Bojaxs]

There's a guy posting on the GO Transit Reddit who seems to have a good grasp of the working culture at Metrolinx. A disgruntled, former employee? He doesn't believe that the Milton line expansion will happen. Apparently MX doesn't want to play ball with CP over track rights.