GO Transit: Service thread (including extensions)

[Allandale25]

Re Kitchener Corridor. Here's what it said in the February 25, 2016 provincial budget:

"As a first step to phasing in GO RER, Metrolinx is continuing to implement short-term service improvements that will result in new travel options across the seven corridors of the GO rail network. In 2016–17, planned network-wide GO rail service improvements include the addition of up to:

• Six new trips during the morning/afternoon commutes (i.e., peak trips) on the Milton, Richmond Hill and Stouffville corridors;
• 10 new trips during the midday/evening (i.e., off-peak trips) on the Kitchener corridor to/from the City of Brampton; and
• 52 new trips on each weekend day (i.e., a typical Saturday) on the Kitchener corridor to/from the City of Brampton and the Barrie corridor to/from Aurora.

The additional service is dependent on a number of factors, including negotiations with freight rail companies, the implementation of infrastructure and the delivery of new rail equipment." (emphasis added)

So although they implied by the end of the 2016-2017 fiscal year, they appear to have given themselves the so-called "cushion" by adding in words like "dependent", "negotiations", and "implementation".

 

[TOareaFan]

^i agree with your conclusion that they left themselves "outs" or "cushions" as you call them....but they did not imply anything..they stated it

 

[denfromoakvillemilton]

Go dropped the ball - no way around it. All day service Brampton should be up in September.

 

[crs1026]

The additional service is dependent on a number of factors, including negotiations with freight rail companies, the implementation of infrastructure and the delivery of new rail equipment." (emphasis added)

So although they implied by the end of the 2016-2017 fiscal year, they appear to have given themselves the so-called "cushion" by adding in words like "dependent", "negotiations", and "implementation".

One understands that there are uncertainties and dependencies. In effect, they said "we will try, but lots of things could get in the way". That's reasonable.....provided everyone works in good faith to get to the finish line and provided the unforeseens aren't swept under the carpet.

I haven't heard that negotiations failed, that infrastructure is outstanding, or that equipment hasn't arrived. So, is GO still trying? Did something actually go astray?

- Paul

 

[nfitz]

wherein it is stated that ....maybe somewhere else there is a differentiation between calender 2017 and fiscal 2017 or, maybe, the gov't was intentionally vague to give themselves a 9 month cushion.

They also didn't achieve the second stage of the 2015-16 off-peak Brampton service. When questioned back about the September 2015 service changes, that they'd only delivered on 14 of the promised 18 daily off-peak trains, their PR person commented that the fiscal year was only half-way done. So clearly the promises were based on fiscal year, not calendar year.

 

[TOareaFan]

^the headings of the columns confirm they are talking fiscal not calender. If you are talking about calender years there is no need to show (for example) "2016-17"...thanks for posting it.

After years of construction and $1.3B spent, they introduced the trains that were always going to have the lowest ridership (M-F in the middle of the work day)......if they use low ridership on those trains to justify delaying or scaling back the full roll out that would be asinine logic.

I have, however, been thinking that a big change that has occurred in the meantime is the adjustment/repurposing of the UPX trains....I am actually thinking that a more cost appropriate service model for all off peak hours might just be running a 6 car train back and forth between some point in Brampton and Weston.

 

[mdrejhon]

I expect a low-key stealthiness by GO until they suddenly announce "unexpected" service improvements like true Brampton hourly AD2W (rather than the half-day imposter AD2W wanna-be) as well as the Niagara Seasonal stopping in Hamilton (new date for prerequisites completion: Late 2016 after the seasonal service stops, bumping that to spring 2017)

 

[mpd618]

It's almost certainly the 2 additional trains to Kitchener. The schedule that I was given projects them starting in September.

That's been in the works for a while and I do believe has had various announcements. September is not that soon, and the facilities to launch those extra "peak direction" trains aren't done yet. I don't see why right now would make sense for any kind of announcement on that service. We'll see soon enough, of course.

 

[TOareaFan]

That's been in the works for a while and I do believe has had various announcements. September is not that soon, and the facilities to launch those extra "peak direction" trains aren't done yet. I don't see why right now would make sense for any kind of announcement on that service. We'll see soon enough, of course.

DelDucca pressers are a bit like bombardier lrt vehicles....if you go too long between deliveries people wonder if there will ever be another one.

 

[crs1026]

I have, however, been thinking that a big change that has occurred in the meantime is the adjustment/repurposing of the UPX trains....I am actually thinking that a more cost appropriate service model for all off peak hours might just be running a 6 car train back and forth between some point in Brampton and Weston.

Hmmm.... 20 min off peak UPX would save the same money and not create a less convenient Brampton service. Two Brampton fares is the same revenue as three Bloor fares so you don't want to make the longer haul less marketable.

As the chart shows, we are heading for off peak and weekend service on Barrie and Stouffville also. If GO has some data that says this traffic isn't economically viable, we need to hear about that before those deliverables come due. I doubt the market is any different there. I'm still suspecting that they just don't have their act together.

- Paul

 

[TOareaFan]

Hmmm.... 20 min off peak UPX would save the same money and not create a less convenient Brampton service. Two Brampton fares is the same revenue as three Bloor fares so you don't want to make the longer haul less marketable.

I just think that if you ran small trains between (lets say) Bramalea and Weston every 15 minutes that connected to Weston ...and those schedules were co-ordinated with UPX such that people could step off of GO and onto UPX (ie a very quick transfer) you could get a very high level of service/frequency at a lower cost and see if ridership builds.

If you do the scheduling properly and have the trains meet conveniently at Weston then I doubt the transfer (that would have no additional cost to rider) would cause much sense of inconvenience.

 

[crs1026]

If it were an across the platform transfer, I could buy it....but it would likely require use of the tunnel, in one direction anyways. A bit tricky especially if you have to use the elevator. I like the added frequency, but there might not be track enough for that west of Bramalea

- Paul

 

[salsa]

DelDucca pressers are a bit like bombardier lrt vehicles....if you go too long between deliveries people wonder if there will ever be another one.

The difference between Del Ducca pressers and Bombardier streetcars, is that there will always be another one no matter what.

 

[smallspy]

Dan, any idea why the delay? Is it lack of trained crews? (If so, that's a failure to plan that ought to be better known)

Not sure. I know that they have been really close to the limits of equipment utilization for a while now, and the new cab cars are helping out immensely in that respect - but the 3 new trainsets starting at the end of June are just going to put pressure back on in that respect. They've had some staff retirements too, but nothing more than the usual "going rate" as far as I know.

That's been in the works for a while and I do believe has had various announcements. September is not that soon, and the facilities to launch those extra "peak direction" trains aren't done yet. I don't see why right now would make sense for any kind of announcement on that service. We'll see soon enough, of course.

Of course. But there is nothing else projected to happen in terms of service improvements on the Kitchener Corridor until then, so what else could it be?

Dan
Toronto, Ont.

 

[TOareaFan]

Of course. But there is nothing else projected to happen in terms of service improvements on the Kitchener Corridor until then, so what else could it be?

Dan
Toronto, Ont.

Of course it is the two new trains/extensions to Kitchener......they will hold a presser in the next two weeks (re)announcing the 100% increase in train service to Kitchener starting in September and showing the work behind them as "important" infrastructure investments necessary to get Ontario moving.

Then sometime around Labour day, they will return there to (re)re-announce it as starting next week we will increase trains to Kitchener by 100% to get Ontario moving.

If we were able to compound all of these 100% announcements everybody in the corridor would have their own train by then.