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From the Star:
Can GO get going?
Feb 01, 2007 04:30 AM
Curtis Rush
Staff Reporter
With its own figures showing a drastic drop-off in on-time performance, GO Transit is scrambling for solutions – including a plan to revamp its summer schedule to better reflect actual travel times.
In a meeting that took on the atmosphere of a crisis planning session, senior GO Transit staff and operations personnel spent all day yesterday trying to map out a strategy to get trains back on schedule and plan for a possible conductors' strike in less than two weeks.
Posting a memo on its website last night, GO advised riders that buses won't replace train service if there is a strike.
CN conductors are in a legal strike position just before midnight on Feb. 9, possibly bringing GO's commuter trains to a standstill. CN supplies crews to all trains except those on the Milton line, which would remain in service.
Figures obtained by the Star show that last October was the worst performing month in the past two years, with only 82 per cent of trains on time.
Performance ratings for November, December and January weren't available, but they have fallen steadily below 90 per cent since the CN train derailment last July shut down service for three days.
GO Transit aims for on-time performance factors in the low 90s to the mid-90s.
The delays facing many commuters are aggravated once they are in Toronto. In a separate meeting, TTC representatives heard that complaints by riders were on the rise.
City councillors on the transit commission were told yesterday that the system has 106 fewer buses and 28 fewer streetcars at rush hour than in 1986 when ridership numbers were about the same.
For GO, the disruptions have been particularly bad over the last week, including a suspected act of vandalism on the Georgetown line Tuesday night when a train struck a 45-gallon drum filled with ice and debris placed across the tracks.
Bill Jenkins, director of customer service for GO Transit, said management is "very, very concerned" about the deplorable delays and cancellations.
A new strategy to tackle the most severely disrupted train lines was discussed and will be rolled out soon, but Jenkins admitted the strategy could take months to employ.
First, GO Transit plans to tackle the worst-performing corridors and work its way through the other problem areas.
The biggest problem areas identified at the meeting were the Lakeshore east-west line, the Richmond Hill line and the Georgetown line.
In what could be the most pivotal time in GO's history, managers also discussed how to move the 165,000 daily train passengers should CN conductors strike if their negotiations for a new contract collapse.
Jenkins said all options were discussed relating to a possible shutdown of GO trains, including whether CN management could serve as conductors. CN currently employs about 109 conductors on GO's routes.
Talk of changing the summer schedule to better reflect actual travel times is also being considered. But GO officials say they don't want to adjust schedules just to make their on-time performance look better.
"We obviously met these schedules in the past so we want to get back to that," Jenkins said. "That was one of the topics today: How do we improve? We're very, very concerned."
The agency would like to build in a buffer for its winter schedule, but can't because of the uncertainties that ice and snow present to the rail network and passenger movement.
GO Transit's managing director and CEO Gary McNeil was said to be tied up in the management meetings and didn't return calls.
However, in an earlier interview, he said GO Transit made a mistake last summer by not building in scheduled delays for train travel during the busy construction period.
Trains operate on a set schedule and rarely are changed.
GO buses aren't so encumbered. Schedules take into account traffic delays. For instance, buses leaving Hamilton for Toronto at peak periods have a later arrival time than those leaving at non-peak times.
"We didn't bother looking at actual construction schedules," McNeil said.
"So, for example, when we were actually doing work on a section of track, we didn't build in five minutes of additional travel time that we probably should have.
"We're probably going to have a summer schedule, which reflects construction actually happening. So people will know it's going to take them a little longer to get to Union Station, (and) at least they can schedule their travel time accordingly."
Fuming riders are venting on the Star's website.
"My GO train has been late every day since January 7 from Rouge Hill," wrote Glenda Mazerolle, a Pickering native.
Meanwhile, city councillors on the TTC board were told of the system's money troubles.
"We have situations where we leave people behind at stops because we can't pick them up, and that causes people to look for ways to travel other than transit," said Mitch Stambler, service planning manager for the TTC.
The proposed operating budget requires a $279.8 million subsidy from city council, up $33.5 million from 2006.
The TTC voted to look for savings to maintain the subsidy at last year's level but won't know how much subsidy it will get until city council decides in April.
AoD
Can GO get going?
Feb 01, 2007 04:30 AM
Curtis Rush
Staff Reporter
With its own figures showing a drastic drop-off in on-time performance, GO Transit is scrambling for solutions – including a plan to revamp its summer schedule to better reflect actual travel times.
In a meeting that took on the atmosphere of a crisis planning session, senior GO Transit staff and operations personnel spent all day yesterday trying to map out a strategy to get trains back on schedule and plan for a possible conductors' strike in less than two weeks.
Posting a memo on its website last night, GO advised riders that buses won't replace train service if there is a strike.
CN conductors are in a legal strike position just before midnight on Feb. 9, possibly bringing GO's commuter trains to a standstill. CN supplies crews to all trains except those on the Milton line, which would remain in service.
Figures obtained by the Star show that last October was the worst performing month in the past two years, with only 82 per cent of trains on time.
Performance ratings for November, December and January weren't available, but they have fallen steadily below 90 per cent since the CN train derailment last July shut down service for three days.
GO Transit aims for on-time performance factors in the low 90s to the mid-90s.
The delays facing many commuters are aggravated once they are in Toronto. In a separate meeting, TTC representatives heard that complaints by riders were on the rise.
City councillors on the transit commission were told yesterday that the system has 106 fewer buses and 28 fewer streetcars at rush hour than in 1986 when ridership numbers were about the same.
For GO, the disruptions have been particularly bad over the last week, including a suspected act of vandalism on the Georgetown line Tuesday night when a train struck a 45-gallon drum filled with ice and debris placed across the tracks.
Bill Jenkins, director of customer service for GO Transit, said management is "very, very concerned" about the deplorable delays and cancellations.
A new strategy to tackle the most severely disrupted train lines was discussed and will be rolled out soon, but Jenkins admitted the strategy could take months to employ.
First, GO Transit plans to tackle the worst-performing corridors and work its way through the other problem areas.
The biggest problem areas identified at the meeting were the Lakeshore east-west line, the Richmond Hill line and the Georgetown line.
In what could be the most pivotal time in GO's history, managers also discussed how to move the 165,000 daily train passengers should CN conductors strike if their negotiations for a new contract collapse.
Jenkins said all options were discussed relating to a possible shutdown of GO trains, including whether CN management could serve as conductors. CN currently employs about 109 conductors on GO's routes.
Talk of changing the summer schedule to better reflect actual travel times is also being considered. But GO officials say they don't want to adjust schedules just to make their on-time performance look better.
"We obviously met these schedules in the past so we want to get back to that," Jenkins said. "That was one of the topics today: How do we improve? We're very, very concerned."
The agency would like to build in a buffer for its winter schedule, but can't because of the uncertainties that ice and snow present to the rail network and passenger movement.
GO Transit's managing director and CEO Gary McNeil was said to be tied up in the management meetings and didn't return calls.
However, in an earlier interview, he said GO Transit made a mistake last summer by not building in scheduled delays for train travel during the busy construction period.
Trains operate on a set schedule and rarely are changed.
GO buses aren't so encumbered. Schedules take into account traffic delays. For instance, buses leaving Hamilton for Toronto at peak periods have a later arrival time than those leaving at non-peak times.
"We didn't bother looking at actual construction schedules," McNeil said.
"So, for example, when we were actually doing work on a section of track, we didn't build in five minutes of additional travel time that we probably should have.
"We're probably going to have a summer schedule, which reflects construction actually happening. So people will know it's going to take them a little longer to get to Union Station, (and) at least they can schedule their travel time accordingly."
Fuming riders are venting on the Star's website.
"My GO train has been late every day since January 7 from Rouge Hill," wrote Glenda Mazerolle, a Pickering native.
Meanwhile, city councillors on the TTC board were told of the system's money troubles.
"We have situations where we leave people behind at stops because we can't pick them up, and that causes people to look for ways to travel other than transit," said Mitch Stambler, service planning manager for the TTC.
The proposed operating budget requires a $279.8 million subsidy from city council, up $33.5 million from 2006.
The TTC voted to look for savings to maintain the subsidy at last year's level but won't know how much subsidy it will get until city council decides in April.
AoD