GO Transit: Service thread (including extensions)

[stevensontransit]

I've rode the 21A Milton train bus route from Milton GO to Union station bus terminal at around 1:20 pm and already there were lot's of people boarding the bus and by the time the bus got to Meadowvale GO at 1:50 pm it was already at capacity on a MCI D4500CT #2456 and some passengers there and at further stops were left behind because there are no more seats left in the bus as they are 100% occupied. This happens when ridership on the GO surpasses 2019 levels with all of the RTO mandates taking place, population growth in Milton, and the train bus route still runs hourly when before pre-pandemic it was every half an hour.

How would you react to my riding experince?

 

[sixrings]

I've rode the 21A Milton train bus route from Milton GO to Union station bus terminal at around 1:20 pm and already there were lot's of people boarding the bus and by the time the bus got to Meadowvale GO at 1:50 pm it was already at capacity on a MCI D4500CT #2456. This happens when ridership on the GO surpasses 2019 levels with all of the RTO mandates taking place, population growth in Milton, and the train bus route still runs hourly when before pre-pandemic it was every half an hour.

How would you react to my riding experince?

I would react by letting you know they widened the highway to Milton for your driving pleasure. Getting all day service to Milton GO. That’s crazy talk.

 

[stevensontransit]

I would react by letting you know they widened the highway to Milton for your driving pleasure. Getting all day service to Milton GO. That’s crazy talk.

yeah the milton line desperately needs an all day service no doubt considering those explosive demand in recent years! but sadly CN rail has been taking too much control on that track corridor.

 

[T3G]

I've rode the 21A Milton train bus route from Milton GO to Union station bus terminal at around 1:20 pm and already there were lot's of people boarding the bus and by the time the bus got to Meadowvale GO at 1:50 pm it was already at capacity on a MCI D4500CT #2456 and some passengers there and at further stops were left behind because there are no more seats left in the bus as they are 100% occupied. This happens when ridership on the GO surpasses 2019 levels with all of the RTO mandates taking place, population growth in Milton, and the train bus route still runs hourly when before pre-pandemic it was every half an hour.

How would you react to my riding experince?

I had the same experience with taking the first bus out of Milton in the morning - which I only ended up having to take due to Metrolinx's idiotic procedure of closing the train doors a minute before the scheduled departure time from the end station. (Seriously, what the hell is that? It's like the TTC and Metrolinx are having a competition to see who can do the stupidest things a human being has ever done). And in the morning the next bus was only half an hour away! I can't imagine how bad it gets after the noon hour with hourly frequencies.

I wonder what it must be like to live in a country where things work?

 

[sixrings]

yeah the milton line desperately needs an all day service no doubt considering those explosive demand in recent years! but sadly CN rail has been taking too much control on that track corridor.

The government can make a deal. It simply doesn’t want to. Three term majority Ontario government and how many years federal liberals. Don’t worry. We’re building a bullet train to Quebec City so Peterborough residents can get to Toronto faster than Milton riders. Good times.

 

[Bordercollie]

The government can make a deal. It simply doesn’t want to. Three term majority Ontario government and how many years federal liberals. Don’t worry. We’re building a bullet train to Quebec City so Peterborough residents can get to Toronto faster than Milton riders. Good times.

Is that corridor so busy that you can't make slots for an hourly GO train? Really?

 

[sixrings]

Is that corridor so busy that you can't make slots for an hourly GO train? Really?

I agree with what you’re saying but apparently it’s all or nothing. That means we get nothing. Actually we should be happy with the service we got now that I think about it. Thank you metrolinx!!!

 

[Bordercollie]

I agree with what you’re saying but apparently it’s all or nothing. That means we get nothing. Actually we should be happy with the service we got now that I think about it. Thank you metrolinx!!!

So what would make sense would be instead of building this stupid tunnel build 2 dedicated tracks on the Belleville sub for a fraction of the price.

 

[T3G]

So what would make sense would be instead of building this stupid tunnel build 2 dedicated tracks on the Belleville sub for a fraction of the price.

Or, even better, nationalize the goddamn corridor.

It is absolutely ludicrous how a first world nation lets freight operators hold back the expansion of their passenger services. Completely unacceptable.

Nitpick: the Milton line sub is the Galt, not Belleville.

 

[Bordercollie]

Or, even better, nationalize the goddamn corridor.

It is absolutely ludicrous how a first world nation lets freight operators hold back the expansion of their passenger services. Completely unacceptable.

Nitpick: the Milton line sub is the Galt, not Belleville.

Well the right of way is owned by the railway so there is nothing you can do. You would have to buy it at market value and they would need to be willing to sell.

 

[sixrings]

Well the right of way is owned by the railway so there is nothing you can do. You would have to buy it at market value and they would need to be willing to sell.

As northern light likes to suggest. There’s nothing stopping from expropriation. If we can do it for houses why can’t we do it for a railway?!

 

[T3G]

As northern light likes to suggest. There’s nothing stopping from expropriation. If we can do it for houses why can’t we do it for a railway?!

Because megacorporations have more rights than private individuals.

No one ever bats an eye about people being kicked out of their homes, but if you so much as think about suggesting that freight trains should be forced to (because they won't do it of their own accord, or without an obscene price tag) play nice with passenger trains, lots of people start handwringing about how will the poor multi billion dollar corporation be able to do business?!?!?!? (Apparently, European countries where the state owns rail infrastructure don't have freight. Interesting.)

 

[turbanplanner]

Because megacorporations have more rights than private individuals.

No one ever bats an eye about people being kicked out of their homes, but if you so much as think about suggesting that freight trains should be forced to (because they won't do it of their own accord, or without an obscene price tag) play nice with passenger trains, lots of people start handwringing about how will the poor multi billion dollar corporation be able to do business?!?!?!? (Apparently, European countries where the state owns rail infrastructure don't have freight. Interesting.)

Realistically, I hate the railways and I mostly agree with you. But I'll be the devils advocate and point out CP's mainline being constrained could finically harm the country

 

[Dan416]

Someone else had suggested Metrolinx just build their own 2 tracks in the corridor. If CP is amenable to that, it is just a matter of $$$ and is doable.

 

[T3G]

Realistically, I hate the railways and I mostly agree with you. But I'll be the devils advocate and point out CP's mainline being constrained could finically harm the country

I don't know how many trains run on the Galt sub today, but a few years ago it was around 7 or 8 - really long ones, to be sure, but once they were out of the way, they're out. If the number remains similar then I can't see how much of a constraint it really could be to have passenger trains running every 30-60 minutes on it.

Someone else had suggested Metrolinx just build their own 2 tracks in the corridor. If CP is amenable to that, it is just a matter of $$$ and is doable.

That approach has its own set of complications - there aren't many locations along the corridor where there's room to add 2 more tracks without running afoul of the various industrial lots. The Humber River crossing would also need an entirely new bridge constructed. And I think there was also a discussion somewhere of how, if ML were compelled to build their own tracks, they would have to rebuild all the stations to sit on the south side of the corridor, though I'm not entirely sure as to why. Taking all of that into account, I'm not sure how doable it actually is.

The easiest solution would be to declare a provincial emergency, and evacuate Milton as a failed town.