GO Transit: Service thread (including extensions)

[smallspy]

Interesting (to me) question for our resident train experts.

I remember a discussion about trains that change directions needing a brake test.

The train I am currently on overshot Etobicoke North and had to back up. Then proceeded to Malton....wherein there was a (short) delay for a brake test. any reason the test did not take place at EN or is it just a case of them saying "oops we forgot to do the brake test"?

A brake test is only necessary if the operating crew changes positions within the train. If they back up the train - from the front end - than no brake test is necessary.

The "brake test" that the crew performed at Malton may have been something that they crew did because they may have felt that the brakes were not operating as they should. And if they overran the platform at Etobicoke North, I'd wager that's exactly what it was.

Dan
Toronto, Ont.

 

[TOareaFan]

A brake test is only necessary if the operating crew changes positions within the train. If they back up the train - from the front end - than no brake test is necessary.

The "brake test" that the crew performed at Malton may have been something that they crew did because they may have felt that the brakes were not operating as they should. And if they overran the platform at Etobicoke North, I'd wager that's exactly what it was.

Dan
Toronto, Ont.

Thanks!

 

[canarob]

I don't believe that enough details have been shared to know if they are planning grade separations, though I think they did mention that they are still being considered. Honestly, the presentation wasn't particularly detail-heavy, and the poster boards should be posted soon so that will help with clearing a few things up.

It's not by GO, but one of the future options for Highway 7 in the Main Street Unionville Precinct Master Plan involves a grade separation. In my opinion, it would be insane to undertake all this redevelopment without including a grade separation that will no doubt be needed in the future, if not now.

http://www.markham.ca/wps/portal/Ma...charette&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social

 

[gweed123]

It's not by GO, but one of the future options for Highway 7 in the Main Street Unionville Precinct Master Plan involves a grade separation. In my opinion, it would be insane to undertake all this redevelopment without including a grade separation that will no doubt be needed in the future, if not now.

http://www.markham.ca/wps/portal/Ma...charette&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social

Agreed. If it's a GO train corridor, and it's a fairly major roadway, if redevelopment is being done in the area, then a grade-separation should be done at the same time. And Highway 7 is about as major of a roadway as they come, short of being a 400-series highway.

 

[nfitz]

Here's something that surprised me. I was looking at GO options from downtown to near the GO stop in the Park and Ride at 401/25 in Milton. I'm realizing the main GO service to Milton (route 21 from downtown and route 27 from Finch) runs along Main Street, past the GO station, and terminates at Martin (aka old Highway 25). Meanwhile, the Waterloo and Guelph GO services (25 and 29) stop at the Park and Ride and 401/25 and then get back on the 401 to go Square One (except the very rare 25A which twice a day meets a GO train in Milton).

Why don't they simply extend the 21 and 27 up Main Street to the Park and Ride at 401, to provide a connection with the 25 and 29? I'd think it would give the 21 and 27 a better place to run around, and wait, as well.

 

[ShonTron]

Here's something that surprised me. I was looking at GO options from downtown to near the GO stop in the Park and Ride at 401/25 in Milton. I'm realizing the main GO service to Milton (route 21 from downtown and route 27 from Finch) runs along Main Street, past the GO station, and terminates at Martin (aka old Highway 25). Meanwhile, the Waterloo and Guelph GO services (25 and 29) stop at the Park and Ride and 401/25 and then get back on the 401 to go Square One (except the very rare 25A which twice a day meets a GO train in Milton).

Why don't they simply extend the 21 and 27 up Main Street to the Park and Ride at 401, to provide a connection with the 25 and 29? I'd think it would give the 21 and 27 a better place to run around, and wait, as well.

Good question - it's a logical connection, allowing at least passengers from routes 25 to connect to 21 to more easily go to east Milton and Meadowvale. Only a rush hour Milton Transit bus makes a connection right there - I guess the attitude that to use GO Transit, you should have a car or a parent to pick you up - still hasn't been extinguished.

To a lesser degree, I would also like to see the GO train-buses 31M and 31L that currently terminate at Bramalea GO to continue to Bramalea City Centre. Only the 31N does that right now.

 

[xtremesniper]

They should also make it so that VIVA Purple can easily stop at Unionville, it would make connections so much easier.

Agreed that Unionville is a bit of a problem. The second exit doesn't help as it just leads to the same place. they should stick an exit to Enterprise drive or a direct access point to Kennedy. For parking I have a feeling they will just expand the Unionville surface lot further back to Kennedy, there is still a ton of space to use there. If they could figure out how to build a small garage like at Centennial at Markham that would be useful as well. I don't think Millikens lot currently fills up, but when it does there appears to be an abandoned industrial site to the south that they can use to expand as a surface lot. Agincourt is probably the tightest station in terms of parking, but a garage is probably possible if they bought that run down hotel and used it's space. Kennedy has such good TTC connections it probably doesn't really matter, as well as the fact that it is actually negative peak ridership. (more people get off in the mornings than get on) Stouffville, while not in the study, is going to be tight in a few years. Its use is growing really fast and doesn't really have anywhere to expand. it may be best to try and encourage active transportation to it, biking shouldn't be too difficult given the size of the town.

Indeed, the main issue is that the second exit only allows turning right toward Kennedy, while the other exit lets you go to both Kennedy AND Enterprise Dr. The primary bottleneck (aside from the fact that not everyone who is going to Kennedy sticks to the alternate exit) is that before you can reach freedom, you have to get past a pedestrian crossing where the slow and not-too-exited-to-go-home people will cross in a single-line fashion to the secondary parking lot at the back.

If you aren't out of the lot in the first 30s-1m, you're stuck behind that for at least 5m, and by then you have everyone else reaching their cars and now you have a funnel of about 5 or so parking exits worth of cars streaming into a one lane exit.

I've tried to stick around to see how long it takes for the lot to empty on an average train unload. It takes roughly 10-15 minutes. Ridiculously pathetic.

 

[yyzhyd]

Indeed, the main issue is that the second exit only allows turning right toward Kennedy, while the other exit lets you go to both Kennedy AND Enterprise Dr. The primary bottleneck (aside from the fact that not everyone who is going to Kennedy sticks to the alternate exit) is that before you can reach freedom, you have to get past a pedestrian crossing where the slow and not-too-exited-to-go-home people will cross in a single-line fashion to the secondary parking lot at the back.

If you aren't out of the lot in the first 30s-1m, you're stuck behind that for at least 5m, and by then you have everyone else reaching their cars and now you have a funnel of about 5 or so parking exits worth of cars streaming into a one lane exit.

I've tried to stick around to see how long it takes for the lot to empty on an average train unload. It takes roughly 10-15 minutes. Ridiculously pathetic.

I'm not one of the infamous runners at Unionville so yeah I am stuck waiting. In the winter it's worse, sometimes taking 20-25 minutes to get out and just praying that the next train doesn't arrive before I exit. LOL
The traffic patterns are absolutely terrible entering and exiting. What they SHOULD do is build a lot on the West Side of the tracks (leaving enough ROW for a future second set of tracks) and and an underground connection. This would allow all the people coming from the West (i.e. Warden etc) to park on that side and thus not clog up the exit to YMCA Blvd. and the people going east. Everyone will be happier IMHO.

 

[xtremesniper]

I'm not one of the infamous runners at Unionville so yeah I am stuck waiting. In the winter it's worse, sometimes taking 20-25 minutes to get out and just praying that the next train doesn't arrive before I exit. LOL
The traffic patterns are absolutely terrible entering and exiting. What they SHOULD do is build a lot on the West Side of the tracks (leaving enough ROW for a future second set of tracks) and and an underground connection. This would allow all the people coming from the West (i.e. Warden etc) to park on that side and thus not clog up the exit to YMCA Blvd. and the people going east. Everyone will be happier IMHO.

During my stint as a train rider, I was basically forced into being one of those "infamous" runners just for the sake of making the most of my time at home during which I would study and do all the things I needed to do before the next work day.

Now that I'm more of a GO bus rider (to the same station), I find it's so peaceful to walk around that lot when there are no trains around. lol.

I agree and yet I disagree about adding a west side lot. Doesn't matter though because I've been told they don't own that land and currently it's occupied by a pond (might be a water filtration system).

An underpass exit that connects to Enterprise like a highway ramp would be the most ideal, but also pretty expensive. Your primary point is right though: There is a huge crush of people trying to go west to Warden and they don't have a good way of getting there at all. Not to mention that stretch of Enterprise going west is only going to get more and more congested (and speed limits lowered) as Downtown Markham continues to get built up.

The station location is unfortunate given that it's going to be just far enough to discourage walkers from the Downtown area, and if those people don't bike then they're going to drive the 30 second ride over anyway to join the fray.

 

[innsertnamehere]

The west side is the location of the possibly-maybe-in-the-future arena.

 

[drum118]

Metrolinx announced yesterday that the off peak ridership is up 29% since going to 30 minute service and 41% for the west section. Even late night trips are up.

I find my travel a lot better with the 30 minute than the 60 these days.

 

[gweed123]

Metrolinx announced yesterday that the off peak ridership is up 29% since going to 30 minute service and 41% for the west section. Even late night trips are up.

I find my travel a lot better with the 30 minute than the 60 these days.

That's a pretty good bump! I would expect that during the summer time (since I believe it was only implemented in late August, no?) those numbers will climb even more, with people going to Jays games, and the Waterfront, and many other things in downtown TO, especially on weekends.

 

[innsertnamehere]

you lose off peak student use (me) in the summer though, and students constitute a large proportion of off peak users due to their oddly timed class schedules.

 

[drum118]

you lose off peak student use (me) in the summer though, and students constitute a large proportion of off peak users due to their oddly timed class schedules.

From my travel in off peak most riders I see in the west are non students. I look very close at the ridership going to/from Oakville and students makeup a small percentage of riders using it in the first place in off peak. Clarkson see next to none to the point the MT 110 rarely sees 10 riders in either direction any time of the day.

I can not comment to peak time since I never use the line then.

 

[denfromoakvillemilton]

Metrolinx announced yesterday that the off peak ridership is up 29% since going to 30 minute service and 41% for the west section. Even late night trips are up.

I find my travel a lot better with the 30 minute than the 60 these days.

They need to fill in the gaps on late night weekend service. Don't go back to hourly after 9