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The Urban Jungle
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GO Transit: Service thread (including extensions)

denfromoakvillemilton said:
Just a personal note, but having all those stops in Scarborough hurts the LSE's ridership imo.
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True, but they're valuable for the future because we should be pushing people from that far out in Metro to use GO rather than the TTC subway for their commutes. That way, we don't spend billions on suburban subway :p

I recognize though that that particular point of view is part of a greater discussion about electrifying GO (to speed up the trip through Scarborough, and to free up capacity that a faster trip through Scarborough will be able to fill) and of course integrating fares so people in the inner suburbs can afford GO.
 
MrsNesbitt said:
True, but they're valuable for the future because we should be pushing people from that far out in Metro to use GO rather than the TTC subway for their commutes. That way, we don't spend billions on suburban subway :p

I recognize though that that particular point of view is part of a greater discussion about electrifying GO (to speed up the trip through Scarborough, and to free up capacity that a faster trip through Scarborough will be able to fill) and of course integrating fares so people in the inner suburbs can afford GO.
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They should be doing so, even now, because the GO train will always be faster then the subway downtown. Scarborough subway will be a huge failure when fare intergration and all day service on the Stouffville line happpen.
 
MrsNesbitt said:
Then of course Pickering to Whitby we just fly past everything at top speed. Makes my heart ache for what GO-ALRT could've been if it had all been that standard of track :p
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What I've always found strange is that despite the beautiful standard of construction, GO can't run at top speed on the Pickering-Whitby segment. The speed limit is only 85 mph (137 km/h) even though the line seems me a higher standard of construction than the Lakeshore West corridor, where the speed limit is 95 mph (153 km/h) allowing trains to get up to their top speed of 150 km/h.
 
reaperexpress said:
What I've always found strange is that despite the beautiful standard of construction, GO can't run at top speed on the Pickering-Whitby segment. The speed limit is only 85 mph (137 km/h) even though the line seems me a higher standard of construction than the Lakeshore West corridor, where the speed limit is 95 mph (153 km/h) allowing trains to get up to their top speed of 150 km/h.
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I don't believe they need a zone speed greater than 85 in that section. Keep in mind that go is also limited by equipment capabilities and there GOI. Higher zone speeds also require a different standard of maintenance for obvious reasons. I just don't think the extra speed is warranted in that section, especially since all trains there make all stops.
 
Jag202 said:
I don't believe they need a zone speed greater than 85 in that section. Keep in mind that go is also limited by equipment capabilities and there GOI. Higher zone speeds also require a different standard of maintenance for obvious reasons. I just don't think the extra speed is warranted in that section, especially since all trains there make all stops.
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It's over 8 km from Ajax to Whitby, which is plenty of space to get up to 150 km/h. But indeed, it wouldn't make any difference between the other stations.

My argument would be that even if the time savings aren't that significant, having GO trains flying by the 401 traffic serves as a remarkably effective advertisement for the system. 130 km/h is already faster than off-peak 401 traffic, but not by that much.

In any case it certainly isn't a priority to be changed, I just found it curious.
 
You're right that that is a bizarre speed limit, considering the superb quality of that stretch of track including the concrete ties. Perhaps once GO is REX-ified and electrified the limit can be raised again, since as was noted, sitting in traffic in Ajax and watching a GO train sail past in all its glory is enough to give drivers pause to think.

I also agree that Scarborough riders should be taking GO instead of the subway downtown, because to be honest who wants or needs to sit through stops at every Chester and Castle Frank on the line? And yet, most don't still: they pack on the subway at grimy old Kennedy and head on a slow trudge to Bloor-Yonge. I think it's almost such an ingrained behaviour in Scarborough that few people will choose GO in spite of its speed. Of course the majority of transit riders in Scarborough get to the subway via TTC buses, and frankly integration of GO and buses can be abysmal. I take the 86 from work to Guildwood GO some days, and that involves getting off at Celeste Drive and then crossing the veritable six-lane freeway that is Kingston Road there to cross a wide parking lot to the platform. Whereas in Durham, DRT buses loop at GO stations the way TTC ones do at subway stations. This is of course not even to mention lack of fare integration and the price of GO in general, which means a lot for less-than-affluent areas like much of Scarborough.
 
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I didn't want to alarm anyone prematurely but about 3-4 weeks ago the union began sending out a strike vote ballot. That strike vote was due yesterday. And while I don't know the results, the majority of the people I've spoken too have voted yes...

So that that your all suitably panicked, here's the good news.
The union and the company have come to a memorandum of settlement, coincidentally shortly after the union began sending out our strike vote, though they didn't advise us of that until this past week. Seems the possibility of a strike has given them the impetus to act now after having gone more than a year and a half without a contract. As for the settlement, everyone is still disseminating the information within so its too early to tell which direction the wind is blowing there. In any case a ballot to vote on the settlement has been sent out to us and is due on Aug 14, the results of which will be known by the 15th. If the vote is in the negative at that time, the very real possibility of a strike exists and the GTA will have to brace for transpo-armageddon, as I've been calling it. Hopefully it doesn't come to that, but lest now you can't say I didn't warn yah. I'll provide an update on the situation at that time.
 
vegeta_skyline said:
I didn't want to alarm anyone prematurely but about 3-4 weeks ago the union began sending out a strike vote ballot. That strike vote was due yesterday. And while I don't know the results, the majority of the people I've spoken too have voted yes...

So that that your all suitably panicked, here's the good news.
The union and the company have come to a memorandum of settlement, coincidentally shortly after the union began sending out our strike vote, though they didn't advise us of that until this past week. Seems the possibility of a strike has given them the impetus to act now after having gone more than a year and a half without a contract. As for the settlement, everyone is still disseminating the information within so its too early to tell which direction the wind is blowing there. In any case a ballot to vote on the settlement has been sent out to us and is due on Aug 14, the results of which will be known by the 15th. If the vote is in the negative at that time, the very real possibility of a strike exists and the GTA will have to brace for transpo-armageddon, as I've been calling it. Hopefully it doesn't come to that, but lest now you can't say I didn't warn yah. I'll provide an update on the situation at that time.
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thanks for the heads up.

innsertnamehere said:
I thought metrolinx just signed a contract? It was in the news a couple days ago.
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I think that was for the office workers.
 
^That was the collective agreement between Metrolinx and ATU for GO bus drivers and various other GO staff. I presume Vegeta's talking about a collective agreement between Bombardier and Teamsters Rail for GO train operators.
 
innsertnamehere said:
I thought metrolinx just signed a contract? It was in the news a couple days ago.
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denfromoakvillemilton said:
thanks for the heads up.

I think that was for the office workers.
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Yup office workers and our contract technically isn't with Metrolinx its exactly as Platform 27 said. Although ML does have the final say in a lot of things. Such as how the UPX & Milton trains will be operated i.e. continuing to operate in the same fashion with no CSA. Something our union would strongly oppose but Bombardier really has no say in.
 
Oh my goodness let's hope for a positive outcome. For all of the university students heading back to school come September, transpo-armageddon isn't looking like a particularly fun possibility.
 
MrsNesbitt said:
Oh my goodness let's hope for a positive outcome. For all of the university students heading back to school come September, transpo-armageddon isn't looking like a particularly fun possibility.
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Do a lot of university students use GO Trains? I'd think only a few McMaster and students downtown would.
 
nfitz said:
Do a lot of university students use GO Trains? I'd think only a few McMaster and students downtown would.
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McMaster for sure gets some, but UofT downtown gets big numbers from students in the west end and in Durham.
 
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