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rbt said:
It's possible it could be done by then.

If the funding report is on time this summer and if that new revenue stream is approved of quickly (Spring 2014 budget) then the ARL could be electrified by 2017. It wouldn't take more than a year to ground everything in the corridor and union station and put up overhead.

The question is, do all the bridges between the airport and Union have the necessary clearance? Bathurst and Highway 427 are the only 2 I can think of which haven't been touched recently and both appear from a distance to be fine.

Kitchener would require a lot more work but ARL electrification could be completed in 3 years.


If the Liberals and NDP vote in the new revenue stream then they will both want as many contracts as possible active during the election both to make themselves look good and to make it much more difficult for the opponent to remove them as part of the election.

If they wait for new taxation to be their mandate (voted in by public) then yeah, it's not happening by 2017.
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So, are you suggesting that all this talk of revenue streams being needed to expand the public transit system for the benefit of the citizens of Toronto/GTA and the first thing they will do is electrify the ARL (not the GO train sharing part of the corridor but the ARL)?

That will be a sure fire way to get all the citizens of Toronto/GTA fired up about the new expense streams they have to support transits new revenue streams ;)
 
TOareaFan said:
So, are you suggesting that all this talk of revenue streams being needed to expand the public transit system for the benefit of the citizens of Toronto/GTA and the first thing they will do is electrify the ARL (not the GO train sharing part of the corridor but the ARL)?
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No, I said "they will both want as many contracts as possible active during the election". Anything which can be tendered within 1 year of revenue being approved will be tendered.

$1B to electrification of the Kitchener line is one of the easier things to tackle and the ARL comes along for the ride. The central component does not require bridge modifications and rolling stock does not need to be ordered for the ARL so it would be completed first.

Dundas Street BRT, Hamilton LRT, and Yonge extension tunnels (not stations, just tunnels/launch point) are additional possibilities for rapidly tendered construction contracts. Possibly Brampton/Durham Region BRT too but I'm not familar with it's progress.

I would add Kitchener LRT to that list but it isn't listed on the bigmove next wave page. If this area is part of the revenue base then they will have funding for that project very quickly.


These smaller projects are about 50% of the revenue over 4 years ($1.5B/year), leaving 25% of revenue for EAs/engineering larger projects like DRL and Lake Shore REX which are still a long way from tendering.

25% goes to local items which for the TTC likely means either operating subsidy or tothe backlog of SOGR or required projects (elevators, second exists/fire safety, ...).
 
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rbt said:
No, I said "they will both want as many contracts as possible active during the election". Anything which can be tendered within 1 year of revenue being approved will be tendered.

$1B to electrification of the Kitchener line is one of the easier things to tackle and the ARL comes along for the ride. The central component does not require bridge modifications and rolling stock does not need to be ordered for the ARL so it would be completed first.

Dundas Street BRT, Hamilton LRT, and Yonge extension tunnels (not stations, just tunnels/launch point) are additional possibilities for rapidly tendered construction contracts. Possibly Brampton/Durham Region BRT too but I'm not familar with it's progress.

I would add Kitchener LRT to that list but it isn't listed on the bigmove next wave page. If this area is part of the revenue base then they will have funding for that project very quickly.


These smaller projects are about 50% of the revenue over 4 years ($1.5B/year), leaving 25% of revenue for EAs/engineering larger projects like DRL and Lake Shore REX which are still a long way from tendering.

25% goes to local items which for the TTC likely means either operating subsidy or tothe backlog of SOGR or required projects (elevators, second exists/fire safety, ...).
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Yup, I agree. I would expect to see the electrification of both Georgetown and Lakeshore, the Yonge extension, the Dundas BRT, and the Hurontario LRT announced immediately following the approval of the revenue tools.

Aside from a few at-grade crossings, Lakeshore is already pretty much ready for electrification, isn't it? If so, they could have at least prep work underway before the next election (assuming the government goes until 2015 as scheduled).
 
gweed123 said:
Yup, I agree. I would expect to see the electrification of both Georgetown and Lakeshore, the Yonge extension, the Dundas BRT, and the Hurontario LRT announced immediately following the approval of the revenue tools.

Aside from a few at-grade crossings, Lakeshore is already pretty much ready for electrification, isn't it? If so, they could have at least prep work underway before the next election (assuming the government goes until 2015 as scheduled).
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Sounds nice, but I really can't see Yonge extension being announced without the DRL.

As for the removal of grade crossings, I really don't see the need for most, if not all, of the grade crossings left on the Lakeshore Corridor, as most are minor streets. There's plenty of places in the US (Metro New York, Philadelphia Regional Rail, parts of the NEC, Metra Electric) and the UK where busy, electrifed track crosses streets at grade. Heck, look at Calgary and Edmonton, whose high-level LRT systems have full railway-style grade separations all over, complete with crossbucks, lights, bells and gates.
 
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ShonTron said:
Sounds nice, but I really can't see Yonge extension being announced without the DRL.
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The entire Next Move will be announced on the same day as funding is approved if NDP are onboard for implementing taxation prior to an election mandate.

Tendering actual construction contracts is dependent on engineering. Yonge is ready enough for some parts to go forward but the DRL is still many years away.

To show actual progress during the election and make it difficult for the conservatives to roll it back if they win, everything which can be tendered for construction will be. Both Liberals and NDP will be staking their campaigns on actually getting something done.
 
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Pearson UP Express station:

313494_10151571398863035_1985831263_n.jpg


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rbt said:
I would add Kitchener LRT to that list but it isn't listed on the bigmove next wave page. If this area is part of the revenue base then they will have funding for that project very quickly.
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Kitchener's LRT (a) has its funding already in place, and (b) is not Metrolinx's responsibility as it's outside their jurisdiction.

Woodbridge_Heights said:
My understanding is that the UP train will come from the other direction than the LINK train. IE, LINK train approaches from the West and UP Train approaches from the East. I will have to look through the design drawings to be sure though
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No, both come in from the same northwest side (map here). Although Metrolinx has made been some changes to the design the private operator had that we saw in the EA, the recent images seem to show that the station hasn't been fundamentally rethought: the UP tracks will dead-end up against the current end wall of the people mover station just inboard of the people mover tracks, and the UP station will be a skinner projection that will extend out from the existing platform space on top of those flat concrete beams to the northwest.

You can see from the photos drum posted that the people mover was designed so there's a bit of a dip where the tracks drops down in elevation as it heads away from the station. That corresponds to where the UP guideway would climb up and pass over the left people mover track and head directly north towards Highway 409.
 
ShonTron said:
Sounds nice, but I really can't see Yonge extension being announced without the DRL.

As for the removal of grade crossings, I really don't see the need for most, if not all, of the grade crossings left on the Lakeshore Corridor, as most are minor streets. There's plenty of places in the US (Metro New York, Philadelphia Regional Rail, parts of the NEC, Metra Electric) and the UK where busy, electrifed track crosses streets at grade. Heck, look at Calgary and Edmonton, whose high-level LRT systems have full railway-style grade separations all over, complete with crossbucks, lights, bells and gates.
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If they announce an official accelerated EA at the same time as the Yonge extension, I wouldn't be too upset about that.

And yes, that certainly does make sense. Theoretically then electrification could begin around a year after any funding announcement? Or thereabouts?

rbt said:
The entire Next Move will be announced on the same day as funding is approved if NDP are onboard for implementing taxation prior to an election mandate.

Tendering actual construction contracts is dependent on engineering. Yonge is ready enough for some parts to go forward but the DRL is still many years away.

To show actual progress during the election and make it difficult for the conservatives to roll it back if they win, everything which can be tendered for construction will be. Both Liberals and NDP will be staking their campaigns on actually getting something done.
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Yup. More shovels in the ground makes things a lot harder to cancel, especially when it's multiple projects spread across the entire region.
 
nfitz said:
Ditto with Ottawa.
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Yup, and construction begins next month. Although I could have sworn when I took the bus downtown last week that there's some LRT-related construction in LeBreton Flats. Definitely digging a hole, but could be for the next stage of the residential development in the area. Wouldn't be surprised if it was indeed a portal/launch shaft location for the tunnel, considering that the tunnel is supposed to start just east of LeBreton Station.

Thankfully the Ottawa project I think is beyond cancellation from the Provincial government. If the Federal Tories backed it, it would be a pretty big leap for the Provincial Tories to come in and pull the funding, especially considering it's only $600 million (a drop in the bucket compared to Toronto's $8.4 billion).
 
Had a look at the Black Creek Bridges today from Rogers Rd bridge.

The bypass track is in place on the new #2 bridge as well north of it were it will cut into track 1.

Track and ties being place south of the bridge and will cut into the #1 track well south of Rogers Rd.

I have a video of it and it will also show up on a CP loco video that had an exBoston & Main loco leading it.

By the looks of thing, the cut in will be 1 day thing and in place for the first Via Train Sat.

Stop by the airport today and caught this view of the elevated spur being built. The LCD sucks on this camera in bright light that you can't see what you are shooting until to late.
[video=youtube;DsPo34HOc_U]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsPo34HOc_U[/video]

http://www.youtube.c...h?v=iIl-YgXpSKM
 
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