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Should we add two more track to the subway system?

denfromoakvillemilton

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Just throwing some ideas around, can the Yonge university spadina line add two more tracks, can the Bloor Danforth do the same? And for building new subways, like the DRL, can they be four tracks, instead of two? Is the demand there?


Thanks for the answers.
 
It will never happen, but along Yonge I'd say there is demand. The way I'd do it is it would be quad track from Union to Eglinton. The "local" tracks would stop at Eglinton, hitting all the stops. Meanwhile the "express" tracks would be every two kilometers (Union, Queen, Bloor, St. Clair, and Eglinton) and then continue north to the end of the line.
 
No, I'd rather we build subways elsewhere than add tracks to existing lines. It would probably cost the same amount anyway. Outside of New York, most systems in the world don't have express tracks.
 
It would probably be cheaper to simply build a brand new express subway from Queen to Sheppard. Could run under Bay than under Yonge from Davenport to near Eglinton (the Yonge subway being further east), and then non-stop to Sheppard Yonge under Duplex, etc.
 
No, I'd rather we build subways elsewhere than add tracks to existing lines. It would probably cost the same amount anyway. Outside of New York, most systems in the world don't have express tracks.

It would probably be cheaper to simply build a brand new express subway from Queen to Sheppard. Could run under Bay than under Yonge from Davenport to near Eglinton (the Yonge subway being further east), and then non-stop to Sheppard Yonge under Duplex, etc.
http://stevemunro.ca/?p=8860

This is part of the reason why I bring it up. If we had two more tracks, things like this would not be an issue.
 
http://stevemunro.ca/?p=8860

This is part of the reason why I bring it up. If we had two more tracks, things like this would not be an issue.
If there was space in the existing cut between St. Clair and Eglinton for 2 more tracks, thinks like that wouldn't have been an issue anyway, as they could simply build a detour to replace the track bed in stages.
 
demand is there but for that cost, it would be more efficient to build a new line elsewhere to serve more people
 
Nope, don't think they should - however, they should significantly improve the passenger flows at existing stations through rebuilds.

AoD
 
No, I'd rather we build subways elsewhere than add tracks to existing lines. It would probably cost the same amount anyway. Outside of New York, most systems in the world don't have express tracks.

Sections of Chicago's system (North Side Main Line), the majority of the Broad Street Line in Philadelphia and the London Underground (mostly in inner suburbs, such as the common track shared by the District and Piccadilly Lines or a section of the Metropolitan) also have four tracks, but yes, New York is the only place where they make lots of use of it.

It's funny that Philly has a four-track subway (at least on the north side), yet it's overbuilt for what they need today. They have express trains still during the peak, yet long waits between them. It's the classic case of having (mostly) all the transit infrastructure they will ever need (between on-paper amazing regional rail network with airport rail link, streetcars, interurbans, commuter subway, four track main line), but not enough demand/service to get full benefit from it. Opposite problem to Toronto.

Here's what it looks like at Girard and Broad, the junction of a streetcar route (the 15) and a four-track local-express subway:

http://goo.gl/maps/U7rl0

A KFC with drive through and parking on one corner, a gas station and full-service McDonald's with drive through on another, a one-story CVS Pharmacy on another, and a two-story 1930s-vintage building on the fourth.
 
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