Interlined Transfers

[44 North]

Glad to see someone finding the videos of use

Great video. But while focusing on the Tree of Life you missed one of the best parts just behind it. The views from above down onto the platforms! Haven't been to DC, but if there was a best subway/metro station in North America feel it'd be a toss-up between Lionel Groulx (maybe another of Montreal's) and one of DCs downtown stations. That expansive open feel and massive exposed concrete is just too impressive.

 

[junctionist]

It's like stepping into another world. But if you talk to transit officials here, they just don't get what it takes to produce a great project and system. Even when we aspire to better design like with the Spadina line extension, it's not on the same level. Witness the cheap concrete walls at platform level in the Spadina line extension stations versus the pre-fabricated architectural concrete panels at Lionel-Groulx. The 50-year-old platform walls of Lionel-Groulx look better than the new concrete platform walls on the Spadina line extension.

It's like there, they designed a transit system to serve people well and to be the most attractive form of transportation. Features like cross-platform transfers are an offshoot of that drive to make transit the most efficient and attractive form of transportation. They would be a great feature for the relief line's interchange stations because most people will be transferring from line 2 in the east end to go downtown. A megaproject like a new line would be a good justification to rebuild one of the existing line 2 stations from the ground up.

Transit is designed to be a lower class form of transportation here in Ontario, and that's a problem. Our politicians need the cars rolling off the assembly lines in Oshawa, Brampton, and Oakville and onto the GTA driveways of the middle and upper class. Transit is just something to be used reluctantly when free and convenient parking isn't available. So it's underbuilt and ugly instead of well engineered, extensively built, and attractive.

Montreal also offers cellphone reception for all networks in most parts of the subway. They're working to offer service everywhere by next year. Deep underground in the Montreal Metro, you get full bars of reception. Such features could only be adopted here with great reluctance because at some level of management, transit is always supposed to be lower class. There's still some unease here among upper management in Toronto about truly building great transit. Transit has to be most attractive form of transportation to get the best return on the investment.

 

[rbt]

Montreal also offers cellphone reception for all networks in most parts of the subway. They're working to offer service everywhere by next year. Deep underground in the Montreal Metro, you get full bars of reception. Such features could only be adopted here with great reluctance because at some level of management, transit is always supposed to be lower class. There's still some unease here among upper management in Toronto about truly building great transit. Transit has to be most attractive form of transportation to get the best return on the investment.

To be fair, TTC also gets full bars and pretty solid cellphone data speeds in all stations and a large chunk of tunnel (downtown and the new extension thus far).

The big 3 opted not to offer service in that location (there is no exclusivity, they were offered a contract on the network); you'll need one of those other providers (Freedom) to use that network.

 

[nfitz]

Plenty of cross-platform interchange examples worldwide, actually. Not sure who had the first one built as stacked platforms though.

Certainly for cross-platform - there's many examples in New York City for sure. However if you aren't availing yourself of the change that is a simple cross-platform, you end up with two sets of stairs (or escalators or elevators) to make your change.

It's the Lionel-Groulx type stacking where you've got two lines intersecting with the simple cross-platform or one stair change that I was curious about where it got started.

To be fair, TTC also gets full bars and pretty solid cellphone data speeds in all stations and a large chunk of tunnel (downtown and the new extension thus far).

The big 3 opted not to offer service in that location (there is no exclusivity, they were offered a contract on the network); you'll need one of those other providers (Freedom) to use that network.

I hadn't realised they'd started the next phase, and were working on the tunnels.

The big 3 might not have signed up, but with Rogers, I can now call from platforms with wifi calling enabled, and my regular phone app functions fine.

 

[rbt]

I hadn't realised they'd started the next phase, and were working on the tunnels.

Yeah. AFAIK WIFI is restricted to stations only but cell coverage was installed from Bloor to King about a year ago, and King to St. George about 6 months ago. About my only use has been looking up the GO platform though.

BAI seems to expect the Big3 will sign up after the system has full coverage (both stations and tunnels) available.

 

[Johnny Au]

I use the cellular plan in the tunnels specifically to see when my bus is coming (allowing me to judge rather it is worth taking the 109 Ranee bus from Eglinton West or to walk from Glencairn).

Yes, I use Freedom.

 

[muller877]

Yeah. AFAIK WIFI is restricted to stations only but cell coverage was installed from Bloor to King about a year ago, and King to St. George about 6 months ago. About my only use has been looking up the GO platform though.

BAI seems to expect the Big3 will sign up after the system has full coverage (both stations and tunnels) available.

Way off topic but...
http://www.ttc.ca/About_the_TTC/Com.../November_21/Reports/Wireless_Network_in_.pdf

RFP stated that they MUST sign contracts with carriers representing 60% of cell phone users in Toronto (2 of the big 3). Why has the TTC continued to let BAI run this? Do they suck at writing contracts or maintaining them?