GO Transit: Service thread (including extensions)

[elitehollywood]

What this success points out, to me, is people's preference to trains over buses and the success of weekend service to this popular tourist attraction should really be having GO saying...."....mmm is it right that we have all these trains parked on the weekend on all of our lines" ....Toronto itself is a very big tourist attraction and is the entertainment/fun hub for the whole region. Yet we have established GO lines that go to it but only during the week.....instead of shutting down the limited service lines (Barrie, Milton, Georgetown, etc) on the weekend....perhaps they should make the service levels the same on Saturday on Sunday (or even more...perhaps there is less freight movement on the weekend freeing up space) so that people getting from the burbs to the fun in Toronto would have an option of a train....an option that they might not consider the bus matching.

it's kinda funny why they can't run barrie trains on weekends. or least a couple here and there with return trains. im sure it would steal all grey hound's business if they ran a couple on weekends to toronto. lol

 

[ShonTron]

The schedule for the K-W service is posted on the Grand River Transit website:

http://grt.ca/web/transit.nsf/$All/BEBE556F652326F18525764A004FF0F1?OpenDocument

 

[Platform 27]

What this success points out, to me, is people's preference to trains over buses and the success of weekend service to this popular tourist attraction should really be having GO saying...."....mmm is it right that we have all these trains parked on the weekend on all of our lines" ....Toronto itself is a very big tourist attraction and is the entertainment/fun hub for the whole region. Yet we have established GO lines that go to it but only during the week.....instead of shutting down the limited service lines (Barrie, Milton, Georgetown, etc) on the weekend....perhaps they should make the service levels the same on Saturday on Sunday (or even more...perhaps there is less freight movement on the weekend freeing up space) so that people getting from the burbs to the fun in Toronto would have an option of a train....an option that they might not consider the bus matching.

My own rattling-around-the-back-of-my-head trial balloon would be coming up with some sort of a train schedule serving those who quasi-relocate to cottage country over the summer, especially those who leave one spouse and the kids at the lake while they driving into Toronto on Monday morning and out on Thursday or Friday afternoon. You could push Richmond Hill trains further up along the the Bala sub to the ONR station in Gravenhurst on a couple of runs, and turn that into a transfer point for car journeys onwards to the cottage on Rabid Dog Lake ~40 km away.

Being able to circumvent that hellish cottage-rush traffic on the 400 would be a huge selling point, but admittedly the whole thing only works if there's a car waiting at the northern end. Some kind of partnership with a rental car agency might be worth pursuing to make it more useful.

 

[Northern Light]

My own rattling-around-the-back-of-my-head trial balloon would be coming up with some sort of a train schedule serving those who quasi-relocate to cottage country over the summer, especially those who leave one spouse and the kids at the lake while they driving into Toronto on Monday morning and out on Thursday or Friday afternoon. You could push Richmond Hill trains further up along the the Bala sub to the ONR station in Gravenhurst on a couple of runs, and turn that into a transfer point for car journeys onwards to the cottage on Rabid Dog Lake ~40 km away.

Being able to circumvent that hellish cottage-rush traffic on the 400 would be a huge selling point, but admittedly the whole thing only works if there's a car waiting at the northern end. Some kind of partnership with a rental car agency might be worth pursuing to make it more useful.

I and some friends suggested this very idea to the Minister a few years back, pitching Niagara, Peterborough, Huntsville and Owen Sound as the destinations.

I (nor my friends) are taking undue credit for the idea which has been bandied about by a few folks over the years (more than a few in the case of Niagara) but we'd like to think writing to the Minister made some difference. (Though the Niagara announcement came about 9 months after we wrote, so we're calling it our 'baby' LOL)

Niagara down, St. Pete's next; hopefully Huntsville after that. Owen sound is big track issue.

***

In terms of using Bala I agree w/you (or re-extending Barrie to Washago...yes I know a tiny piece of the ROW is gone....but there's a lovely waterfront park to put the track through!!! LOL)

The key w/Bala though is that CN needs to have its 'alternate' main line back.

The old Northbay - Ottawa route. That would allow a huge percentage of traffic to bypass Toronto and Bala.

But you know before they re-lay that, they will wait for the gov't to fund High Speed Rail (which it will, one day....) ....and then they will point out that there is insufficient room in the Kingston Sub for all that passenger traffic, so the gov't can buy the corridor and rent back some freight space in off-hours, as long as they pay to relay NB-Ottawa. (w/taxpayer money)

See CP Havelock, the passenger service proposals seem to be an excuse to give CP back an alternate main line from Smith's Falls. Don't get me wrong I support passenger rail....just saying.....

****

The key to making the idea work though is to have extensive inter-modal planning, particularly car rental/sharing at the cottage country stations. But also Shuttle Buses to Wasaga Beach Provincial Park (assuming a spur right into the park isn't feasible); and from Huntsville, a shuttle bus that takes you to the campgrounds and resorts of Algonquin.

 

[Long Island Mike]

Go Transit Niagara Falls Service...

WW: Good information on GO Transit's Niagara Falls service...
With the consistent ridership would GO consider making this service permanent? I feel the support for this is definitely there...LI MIKE

 

[CodeMonkey]

WW: Good information on GO Transit's Niagara Falls service...
With the consistent ridership would GO consider making this service permanent? I feel the support for this is definitely there...LI MIKE

It would be nice to see the Niagara falls service become permanent. However if a push for weekday service where to happen, alot of investment and research would have to happen first. The line between Niagara Falls and Hamilton would have to be upgraded and expanded to two tracks to handle the load, second Metrolinx is still looking into electrification of the existing GO Network so that will also have to be taken into account. And third the raised track bridge that allows ships to pass has to be address as well as station upgrades.

 

[Long Island Mike]

Go Transit Niagara Falls Service...and the Welland Canal bridge...

CM: There are two things to think about here: As mentioned the Welland Canal Bridge in Merritton problem would have to be looked into to allow those passenger trains "windows" to travel in.

The other would be if CN would allow the line to be electrified for GO use in the future and would GO (and VIA for that matter) be better off if they acquired the line from CN - or is it too important a freight line for them?
Thoughts from LI MIKE

 

[RedRocket191]

It is CN's main line to Niagara, so the line is very significant to CN. But, the corridor is very wide for most of the length. It may be possible to install two new passenger-only tracks without having to purchase the corridor.

 

[CodeMonkey]

The other would be if CN would allow the line to be electrified for GO use in the future and would GO (and VIA for that matter) be better off if they acquired the line from CN - or is it too important a freight line for them?
Thoughts from LI MIKE

Right now with the lakeshore lines the agreements that being worked out would still have CN use them on the agreement of sale. However GO will be granted more power to scheduled trains along the line at the same time the right to install overhead powelines. Same can happen with the Niagara line if CN is feeling good to sell. But don't expect any ROW if they can't buy the track as GO is currently looking at abandoning their ROW if they expand past Oshawa on the Lakeshore East line.

 

[lordmandeep]

lol over 1hr and 40 mins from Waterloo to Square one.


However, people would take that bus.

 

[Dan416]

So Cambridge is Zone 26, Kitchener/Waterloo are Zone 27. I guess Zone 25 wll be Campbellville when the train stops there.

 

[madmolecule]

Part of it is switch modernization which partly the Siemens deal (Siemens is doing the controls), part of it is creating a better track layout to reduce switches, improve winter operations, add a third track to the fly-under between Bathurst and Spadina, and allow 12 car trains to park at Bathurst. The new switches and layout will allow trains to operate in the corridor at more than double the speed they are currently restricted to. All the details (not the work schedule yet) can be found at www.gotransit.com/unionstationrenewal.

The highlights are:
1. New track in fly-under starting construction June 2009.
2. Union Station gets the new roof under contruction starting July 2009.
3. The current construction in Bathurst yard completes May 2009.

Photos are of track construction just east of Union, taken today. They have been working for about the past two months (mostly weekends all through the night), moving around from one track to another. Does anyone know what they are doing and how it fits into the GO/Union expansion? Thanks.

 

[nfitz]

It's the switch upgrade I think; so that they can run 45 km/hr (or is it 30 km/hr?) into Union, rather than crawling at 15 km/hr.

 

[rbt]

It's the switch upgrade I think; so that they can run 45 km/hr (or is it 30 km/hr?) into Union, rather than crawling at 15 km/hr.

I understand they:

1) are upgrading to 45mph switches (30mph with current signalling)
2) improving the location of the switches in some cases to reduce congestion points
3) improving storage area to store 12 car trains and possibly more trains than before

It is bound to improve things a little bit.

 

[CodeMonkey]

Part of it is switch modernization which partly the Siemens deal (Siemens is doing the controls), part of it is creating a better track layout to reduce switches, improve winter operations, add a third track to the fly-under between Bathurst and Spadina, and allow 12 car trains to park at Bathurst. The new switches and layout will allow trains to operate in the corridor at more than double the speed they are currently restricted to. All the details (not the work schedule yet) can be found at www.gotransit.com/unionstationrenewal.

The highlights are:
1. New track in fly-under starting construction June 2009.
2. Union Station gets the new roof under contruction starting July 2009.
3. The current construction in Bathurst yard completes May 2009.

They haven't even made a dent yet in taking down the old roof and its now October. Unless their waiting for it to fall down first, that would save some demolition money.