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syn
Senior Member
I see.
So they wouldn't notice they're completely different vehicles with much greater capacity?
No wonder Ford has such an easy time fooling Scarberians.
robmausser
Senior Member
You mean vs. saying that they have LESS now? A subway that only has one stop
sixrings
Senior Member
Well one day the RT trains will just die. And on that day there won't a subway ready. There won't be plans for a subway. There won't be money for a subway. Just buses. Guess what's better than a bus? A LRT.
sixrings
Senior Member
I'm still waiting for any evidence that Ford is anything but stupid? It's ok to retract that comment. I won't think less of you. I'll think more of you.
Allandale25
Senior Member
I think it can depend on the location. Maybe he doesn't want LRT taking up car lanes in Toronto but so far he's allowed the Hurontario and Hamilton LRT procurements to proceed even though in some places they will remove car lanes.
sixrings
Senior Member
Ford was against the RT conversion to LRT and that was not taking up car Lanes. Something about respect for Scarborough and these residents don't deserve to wait for a train in the cold. But I think ROB didn't even know the RT line was grade separated. It's so ridiculous I could be wrong but that's my memory.
robmausser
Senior Member
Thats what irked me the most with Rob Ford. Fine, you dont like LRTs taking up lanes, but then you attacked the Scarborough LRT, which never took up any lanes of traffic...dumb.
robmausser
Senior Member
Your memory is right. At the meeting in Scarborough one of Rob Fords talking points in favour of the subway over the Scarb LRT was that it wasnt going to take up lanes of traffic *SMH*
Bureaucromancer
Active Member
Honestly... Would enhancing the 401 buses be such a bad solution? I'm becoming quite enamored of a phased implementation of the 407 Transitway (starting with Unionville stations and bus only ramps to eliminate running time), and am getting the feeling that something BRT like on the 401 east would do almost all of what makes people wish for subways out here.
IF a surface 409 HOV/HOT lane can be managed from the airport to Liverpool or Brock this becomes a ridiculously small (transit component) project that amounts to protecting some turns, building less than five bus ramps and painting lanes where pulling on and off the highway adds more trip time than it saves.
On the one hand this will be terrible politically if it's done on it's own as an alternative to the subway or LRT,, but on the other could be VERY viable as a companion piece to a Sheppard LRT, and would ideally be a low profile project by MTO talked up as more an HOV than transit plan.
I'm thinking a project scoped as (roughly):
IF a surface 409 HOV/HOT lane can be managed from the airport to Liverpool or Brock this becomes a ridiculously small (transit component) project that amounts to protecting some turns, building less than five bus ramps and painting lanes where pulling on and off the highway adds more trip time than it saves.
On the one hand this will be terrible politically if it's done on it's own as an alternative to the subway or LRT,, but on the other could be VERY viable as a companion piece to a Sheppard LRT, and would ideally be a low profile project by MTO talked up as more an HOV than transit plan.
I'm thinking a project scoped as (roughly):
- Reconfigure 404/Sheppard ramps for reasonable access to Don Mills Mills station, connecting GO 407 buses to Sheppard and the DRL
- This is pretty easy for southbound, and while more complicated for northbound could be done minimally with a dedicated lane on Sheppard and prioritized left turn at Yorkland. Something nicer and less diversionary can always come later when we know the ultimate configuration of the rail station.
- 401 HOVHOT/Bus Bypass lanes from 404 to Brimley
- If we absolutely CAN'T pull traffic lanes or make the shoulder work this might have to be an elevated guideway, but it's a relatively short length and potentially useful if rail ever did happen. If this is the case shortening to Kennedy and putting dedicated lanes on on Progress west of STC (possibly cutting the Kennedy corner via William Kitchen Rd) is perfectly viable.
- If we CAN cram normal HOV lanes in going west to the airport new ramps to Yorkdale terminal becomes an obvious addon, along with a bus lane on Yonge from Sheppard to York Mills.
- Progress bus lanes from STC to Centennial
- optimizing the access to Triton from Progress would be nice, especially in the east, but this probably means grade separation and depends on the ultimate configuration of the station. Again a place where incremental upgrades seem a good idea to me.
- new busway in highland creek corridor from Centennial southeast to Ellesmere
- in a perfect world. HOV Progress to Neilson, new (bus only) westbound 401 to Progress ramp and a Neilson bus lane would also work.
- Ellesmere bus lane to UTSC and Kingston Rd
- I actually always wonder if Pulse and especially something like this shouldn't possibly use Military Trail, have a stop at the Highland overpass and access a proper busway in the 2A median to the 401, but I'm really digressing, and suspect political problems with this one.
- At this point it's linked up to Durhams Hwy 2 enhancements. 401 HOV from ~Kingston to Liverpool Rd would be NICE, but using Hwy 2 and focusing on improving access time from 2 to Pickering GO is probably more in the spirit of a quick and dirty fix to get the GO 51 buses out of traffic and better connected to local service.
BurlOak
Senior Member
It's almost like Ford thinks there's a different between a City of 3/4 million and a City of 3 million.
TheTigerMaster
Superstar
Well duh. The only part of Ontario that Doug gives a damn about is Toronto.
hw621
Senior Member
Etobicoke, North
ShonTron
Moderator
Member Bio
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One of the problems with the SRT conversion was that it was meant to be compatible with Transit City - the same low floor LRVs that are now running in Waterloo Region. This was so it could share the same maintenance centre at Sheppard and Conlins Road as the Sheppard East LRT. The idea was poorly pitched all-around. If built correctly, (with the Malvern extension and a better terminal at Kennedy) it would have been a major improvement.
The LRT should have been planned as a high-floor system, reducing the work necessary to rebuild the SRT stations. It would have been quite distinct then from Transit City. You could then pitch it as a distinct, high-speed system, and could have called it a light metro to appease the blockheads. By virtue of running underground, the Eglinton-Crosstown LRT escaped the Fords' wrath and will open in two years or so.
The LRT should have been planned as a high-floor system, reducing the work necessary to rebuild the SRT stations. It would have been quite distinct then from Transit City. You could then pitch it as a distinct, high-speed system, and could have called it a light metro to appease the blockheads. By virtue of running underground, the Eglinton-Crosstown LRT escaped the Fords' wrath and will open in two years or so.
