Toronto Eglinton Line 5 | ?m | ?s | Metrolinx | Arcadis

[Amare]

Wow that is so untrue I dont even what to comment any further man. Like come on get a grip. Why does everyone on here complain so much and not do anything about it?

I'll put it this way. Montreal and Quebec as a whole had been plagued with corruption with their construction industry for years to the point it was affecting various infrastructure projects (they still are, but things have improved substantially). If you told anyone 10 years ago that they would be building a massive rapid transit system financed in large part by the private sector before a city like Toronto or Vancouver, 90% of people would laugh and say it would never happen in their lifetimes.

How does this relate to Toronto you might be asking? Well in Toronto it's the complete opposite, we dont have anywhere close to the amount of corruption that Montreal once had and we yet still cant even get our act together with the construction of an LRT project (not let alone a massive subway project). Don't get me wrong, the Crosstown is pretty big in it's own right, but we manage to hack and slash it so much that it cant even operate to its fullest potential. For goodness sake we cant even activate full signal priority, and that's just an outright laughable joke. It's almost the equivalent of having a train stop at an at-grade crossing to wait for traffic to pass, before the train starts and continues again (in other words it makes no sense, but yet that's what we're doing here in Toronto).

The Crosstown project just paints a small picture of the overall portrait of what's wrong with Toronto today. These days, very few things are built to its fullest capability due to the limiting mindsets of various organizations, politicians, and individuals. Unfortunately, it's these groups who are in prominent positions and they have a large influence on what happens in this city.

 

[rbt]

Do what about it?

The more successful BIA organizations are driven by a single individual who often doesn't own a business but genuinely wants to improve the neighbourhood; they can be quite effective at altering the streetscape in small ways and occassionally even huge ways like the Bloor/Yonge rebuild.

Of course, you need to show why those investments will be profitable to the businesses you wish to raise money from. You can't just spend money for the sake of spending money.

Anyway, that is something a single individual can do to have a genuine impact on one portion of the city. It's also a proven way to build your brand to transition to city councillor.

 

[MisterF]

Yay for 10 minute frequencies during rush hour. Yes, frequency of service and the level of priority that service is granted are directly related. Cities set thresholds differently based on local street-grid, etc but you're not going to see 3 minute frequencies with railway style crossing bars in North America.

That's where you're wrong. The Calgary LRT runs every 3 minutes in rush hour (at least it did pre-pandemic) and it has complete priority over car traffic. It frequently crosses major multi-lane roads with significant traffic but never stops at red lights (except the downtown transit mall section). It has exactly what you say won't happen. It also has selective elevated sections and short tunnels to avoid major conflict points, something that could easily have been incorporated into the Crosstown.

 

[Steve X]

That's where you're wrong. The Calgary LRT runs every 3 minutes in rush hour (at least it did pre-pandemic) and it has complete priority over car traffic. It frequently crosses major multi-lane roads with significant traffic but never stops at red lights (except the downtown transit mall section). It has exactly what you say won't happen. It also has selective elevated sections and short tunnels to avoid major conflict points, something that could easily have been incorporated into the Crosstown.

The downtown section is really the downfall of the C-Trains. That really is the so called "limited transit priority".

I only wished they elevated the VP/O'Connor/Pharmancy intersection and combined it into one station. That would be the slowest stretch along the crosstown. They could implement better priority by giving trains priority when approaching minor streets like Ionview, Sloane, etc so in theory the trains might have to wait at major intersections reducing any chance of hitting a red at only a few location. The signals could be timed for a green wave for the rush hour direction (westbound for AM, eastbound for PM). Also don't activate any pedestrian signals such as at Wynford when a train is approaching and give trains priority over left turns.

This is probably way too complicated for this city. They feared cars turning into trains more than ever. Some idiots and impatient drivers deserved to be hit for their reckless driving. It's time to stop favouring them by letting them turn left before trains going through.

 

[SunriseChampion]

The more successful BIA organizations are driven by a single individual who often doesn't own a business but genuinely wants to improve the neighbourhood; they can be quite effective at altering the streetscape in small ways and occassionally even huge ways like the Bloor/Yonge rebuild.

Of course, you need to show why those investments will be profitable to the businesses you wish to raise money from. You can't just spend money for the sake of spending money.

Anyway, that is something a single individual can do to have a genuine impact on one portion of the city. It's also a proven way to build your brand to transition to city councillor.

And then what? A single councillor with bold ideas can't affect change either.

It's a structural mentality we're dealing with here.

 

[Amare]

And then what? A single councillor with bold ideas can't affect change either.

It's a structural mentality we're dealing with here.

To be honest, a city councillor has more say than you're letting on here. Take for example Mark Grimes, one of the more useless councillors in the city in terms of getting anything done. Not only is he the city councillor for Etobicoke-Lakeshore, but he's also the Chair of the Board for Exhibition Place.

In Etobicoke-Lakeshore he has a big time voice in changing the types and scale of the developments we see taking place in the area, and he also has a big say in getting transit built for the area. The man has been there for more than 15 years and has done little to improve various things in the area, not because he has no say, but rather because he's inept and only seeks extremely marginal improvements with no long term vision. On the other hand he is also the Chair of the Board for Exhibition Place, who had a big time influence in getting that hideous monstrosity of a mistake on the lake known as Hotel X being built.

The reason why most people probably think a city councillor has very little to no sway, is because the majority of our city councillors that we have/have had in the past have no vision whatsoever and only choose to deal with small scale issues on a day to day basis. Small scale issues like: Is your garbage getting collected properly and on time.

The signal priority issue on the Crosstown is an issue that could easily be resolved if there was a group of city councillors who actually banded together, and demanded that Toronto Transportation Services (TTS) enabled transit priority signalling. This would put pressure on Tory, who would then pressure TTS to change this. But since this is Toronto, it wont happen because of the mediocrity mindset that politicians have here.

 

[SunriseChampion]

You're right, of course.

I think my fixation on destroying the Gardiner has me stuck thinking of how ineffective any single person can be when it comes to major infrastructural decisions.

I should probably go see a psychologist for help with my Gardiner obsession.....it's probably as unhealthy as the Gardiner itself. Over and out.

 

[drum118]

By June, most or all of the guideway will be in place from Victoria to Kennedy. By the fall, all tracks should be in place for the same area.

Pharmacy Stop will have 3 shelters per platform. The westbound has 3 and the eastbound has one at this time. Switches have been installed to the east of Pharmacy including 2 signal mast facing west and one facing east for the westbound track. There are a number of ATO boxes by the platforms and switches.

Back filling taking place east of Kennedy. I am at a lost why there are a slopping hump above the roof of the tunnel being seal so back filling can be done.

All of the overhead post are installed, as well having support brackets on them.

 

[Coolstar]

There are a number of ATO boxes by the platforms and switches.

You mean at the Pharmacy stop? I thought the surface section was manually controlled unless the ATO boxes have a different role.

 

[Steve X]

You mean at the Pharmacy stop? I thought the surface section was manually controlled unless the ATO boxes have a different role.

Could be for train detection or even brake assist to align with the platform (probably not likely).

 

[salsa]

Took some photos yesterday around Don Mills & Eglinton

 

[Rainforest]

How does this relate to Toronto you might be asking? Well in Toronto it's the complete opposite, we dont have anywhere close to the amount of corruption that Montreal once had and we yet still cant even get our act together with the construction of an LRT project (not let alone a massive subway project). Don't get me wrong, the Crosstown is pretty big in it's own right, but we manage to hack and slash it so much that it cant even operate to its fullest potential. For goodness sake we cant even activate full signal priority, and that's just an outright laughable joke. It's almost the equivalent of having a train stop at an at-grade crossing to wait for traffic to pass, before the train starts and continues again (in other words it makes no sense, but yet that's what we're doing here in Toronto).

Good transit priority is certainly desirable. However, the lack of such priority is a relatively minor shortcoming that won't substantially undermine the utilty of the Crosstown service.

It's not like the Yonge subway always runs uninterrupted. Doesn't wait for the crossing traffic, obviously, but is still affected by signal problems etc, and gets delayed occasionally.

Plus, once the Crosstown rails are in place, improving the transit priority can be done in the near future and that won't involve any major capital expenses.

 

[crs1026]

Good transit priority is certainly desirable. However, the lack of such priority is a relatively minor shortcoming that won't substantially undermine the utilty of the Crosstown service.

I would say the opposite, on two grounds.

One is that there is an objective, quantitative reduction in trip time possible with transit priority, and it's a matter of minutes, not seconds on a cross town trip. We are investing billions in a line but nailing its feet to the floor by not making it as marketable and useful as possible. I don't have an actual statistic to cite, but I am confident that an ambling, stoplight pausing LRT will appear to the public as much closer to a traditional streetcar than a high quality higher order transit option. This is not "minor" in terms of marketability or modal share... or ridership and revenue.

The bigger issue is the adamant refusal of Toronto's Transportation Department to embrace transit priority at all, anywhere, in the city. It may be true that nothing at a technology level prevents this function from being retrofitted to Crosstown. It's the bureaucracy that stands in the way, coupled with the lack of awareness at the political level that this technology is a gamechanger. And the bureaucracy is dug in. It's no different than Council endorsing energy conservation but not knowing what a LED light bulb is, and therefore not reacting if Toronto Hydro were to insist that only tungsten light bulbs be used in the city.

This *is* a big deal.

- Paul

 

[Monarch Butterfly]

I would say the opposite, on two grounds.

One is that there is an objective, quantitative reduction in trip time possible with transit priority, and it's a matter of minutes, not seconds on a cross town trip. We are investing billions in a line but nailing its feet to the floor by not making it as marketable and useful as possible. I don't have an actual statistic to cite, but I am confident that an ambling, stoplight pausing LRT will appear to the public as much closer to a traditional streetcar than a high quality higher order transit option. This is not "minor" in terms of marketability or modal share... or ridership and revenue.

The bigger issue is the adamant refusal of Toronto's Transportation Department to embrace transit priority at all, anywhere, in the city. It may be true that nothing at a technology level prevents this function from being retrofitted to Crosstown. It's the bureaucracy that stands in the way, coupled with the lack of awareness at the political level that this technology is a gamechanger. And the bureaucracy is dug in. It's no different than Council endorsing energy conservation but not knowing what a LED light bulb is, and therefore not reacting if Toronto Hydro were to insist that only tungsten light bulbs be used in the city.

This *is* a big deal.

- Paul

The people inside the Transportation Department would be the same people against speed limiters or governors in cars, but will demand them on transit vehicles. See link.

 

[Amare]

Good transit priority is certainly desirable. However, the lack of such priority is a relatively minor shortcoming that won't substantially undermine the utilty of the Crosstown service.

It's not like the Yonge subway always runs uninterrupted. Doesn't wait for the crossing traffic, obviously, but is still affected by signal problems etc, and gets delayed occasionally.

Plus, once the Crosstown rails are in place, improving the transit priority can be done in the near future and that won't involve any major capital expenses.

I'd describe it as much more than a minor shortcoming. Having no signal priority will allow for bunching to happen on the at-grade section of the line, much in the same way bunching occurs on the 510 Spadina route. The TTC's poor line management will certainly allow for it there's no doubt about that. Even though all vehicles will have GPS which will allow them to know the exact positioning of each vehicle, it's clear they dont know how to use it properly.

Implementing transit priority iin the future certainly can be done in the future, but the thing with Toronto is this: if it doesnt happen from the outset , there's a very slim chance of it ever being implemented.