News   Apr 02, 2026
Early Work Commencing on St Clair-Old Weston Station
 2.5K     3 
News   Apr 02, 2026
Cranes Up, Foundations Underway at Peter Gilgan Mississauga Hospital
 1.1K     0 
News   Apr 02, 2026
City Council March, 2026 Settlements: Negotiations Advance Projects Across Toronto
 2.8K     2 

GO Transit: Service thread (including extensions)

I haven’t seen an extra train scheduled in a while:
B0C3E5E3-2614-4419-A5AF-25919591E8C4.jpeg
 
Willybru21 said:
I haven’t seen an extra train scheduled in a while:
Click to expand...
There's often extra trains on evenings and weekends after major events (Skydome, BMO Field, ScotiaBankSomething, CNE, etc.). There was a lot earlier this year, though they have diminished in recent weeks with the crew shortages.

I'm not sure what this one was about - it seems to have originated at Union rather than Exhibition. Was there another event on downtown this evening? Neither Jays nor TFC were playing.
 
nfitz said:
There's often extra trains on evenings and weekends after major events (Skydome, BMO Field, ScotiaBankSomething, CNE, etc.). There was a lot earlier this year, though they have diminished in recent weeks with the crew shortages.

I'm not sure what this one was about - it seems to have originated at Union rather than Exhibition. Was there another event on downtown this evening? Neither Jays nor TFC were playing.
Click to expand...
Yeah I know, I was pointing it out because I haven’t seen once since the crew shortages started, hopefully that means the situation is getting better.
 
Willybru21 said:
Yeah I know, I was pointing it out because I haven’t seen once since the crew shortages started, hopefully that means the situation is getting better.
Click to expand...
I don't know if it's getting better, but with the huge cut to scheduled Lakeshore service (going from every 15 minutes to every 30 minutes mid-day), then there's surely now more crews for extra and fill-in runs.
 
Allandale25 said:
For weekend service or more off-peak service to Bramalea, I wonder if part of the challenge is the frequency of CN"s switching on the south side, east of Bramalea and CN being hesitant to giving up more track time.
Click to expand...

In the current hourly Kitchener Line service pattern, trains meet at Malton station. There are 3 tracks through that segment, and at least 2 tracks through all other segments where CN is switching. This leaves at least one track available for CN switching movements to occur without obstructing GO trains. The main conflict is simply the fact that CN needs to cross back and forth between the north and south sides of the corridor between switching movements. Since the GO trains in both directions pass through that area around the same time, there is about a 30-45 minute window each hour with no scheduled GO trains, giving CN plenty of time to move across the corridor.
 
reaperexpress said:
In the current hourly Kitchener Line service pattern, trains meet at Malton station. There are 3 tracks through that segment, and at least 2 tracks through all other segments where CN is switching. This leaves at least one track available for CN switching movements to occur without obstructing GO trains. The main conflict is simply the fact that CN needs to cross back and forth between the north and south sides of the corridor between switching movements. Since the GO trains in both directions pass through that area around the same time, there is about a 30-45 minute window each hour with no scheduled GO trains, giving CN plenty of time to move across the corridor.
Click to expand...

From what I have seen in the field, the roadswitcher‘s current activity may force it to leave some cars sitting on the main line (often T1) while it works the north side west of Bramalea (Halwest). That leaves CN with only one lane for through trains, assuming GO ties up T3. And sometimes the roadswitcher needs a sustained period of occupancy on T3, either to work or to clear T1/T2 for through freight activity.

Again, that doesn’t suggest GO service is a non-starter, but it does place some limits on what CN can accept, and one has to assume that CN expects further cushion in case its needs change - the status quo may not be comfortable if traffic or customers change.

If one looks ahead to 30 minute headways, there is a real need for more track to facilitate local switching. The Weston Sub has been upgraded with considerable investment in service tracks, so there will be less concern in that stretch, but west of Airway over to Peel is tight.

- Paul
 
Start your speculation engines.

MEDIA ADVISORY

Premier Ford to Make an Announcement
August 25, 2022
Premier's Office


Premier Doug Ford will be joined by Caroline Mulroney, Minister of Transportation, to make an announcement.


Date:

Friday, August 26, 2022


Time:

Remarks at 12:00 p.m.

A media availability will follow.


Location:

Niagara Falls, ON


Livestream:

With English closed captioning ― Premier’s official YouTube channel

With French interpretation and closed captioning ― Premier’s official YouTube channel - French


Notes:

Media representatives can register to attend by emailing Stephanie.Bellotto@ontario.ca. Accredited media only.


Media Contacts
Stephanie Bellotto
Premier’s Office
Stephanie.Bellotto@ontario.ca
Click to expand...
 
Bowmanville had its infrastructure package go to tender before the election, maybe it’s Niagara’s turn. Or maybe it’s more trains for the new schedule cycle.
 
You must log in or register to post here.

Back
Top