Toronto Union Pearson Express | ?m | ?s | Metrolinx | MMM Group Limited

^ Correct. No new existing platforms will be needed at Bloor on the east side. Rather, the 4th track (on the eastern side) will be build at a truss over Bloor will be shifted (overnight) a few metres to the east to create the proper alignment. You can see the need for the shift if you stand on the eastern platform at the very south end and look south.
 
I wonder if the tunnels at Weston have been extended east for a new potential eastern platform beside a new track 1? Or maybe not in anticipation of the station closing when Mount Dennis comes online?
 
Neutrino said:
I took the Union Pearson Express today for the first time: the 17:15 from Weston to Union. I couldn't stop raving about it to my friends and family. If this is the future of GO, I am sold ten times over. Ridership was solid: on the way to Union, 90% of seats in my car were filled plus a few standees. However, driving and walking through Weston, I saw very vividly the challenge of station access which will either make or break GO train service. Here are some photos of track work at Weston station.
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It's starting to look like something out of the NEC and MBTA.
 
cbrown2009 said:
I wonder if the tunnels at Weston have been extended east for a new potential eastern platform beside a new track 1? Or maybe not in anticipation of the station closing when Mount Dennis comes online?
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The Weston trench/tunnel can already accommodate the 4th track so no changes as far as I know are required.
 
torontocolin said:
The platform at Bloor is already there. It'll need a tunnel extension though.

I don't think there is a party in this race that can afford to cancel that work. Too much future infrastructure service too many diverse ridings depends on it.
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I live right next to Bloor, and watched them install a new fence and ramps, complete with foundation work, on exactly where the the 'expansion line' is supposed to go.

I don't think it's a case of the left arm not knowing what the right is doing, it's the leg putting the foot in the mouth when something cogent is expected. Something is seriously amiss with the sequence and timing of events.
 
crs1026 said:
^I stand corrected. They will need a tunnel and entrance on the east side, however.

- Paul
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No worries. For future reference here's the draft track plan of the location: https://viarailcorridor.files.wordp...nx-railpath-conceputal-plan-november-2017.pdf

The image below isolates the new tunnel entrance on the east side. Just note that for some reason they didn't include the west platform for some reason, or indicate in different colours the new tracks going in compared to the existing tracks.

2IpYpit
 
steveintoronto said:
I live right next to Bloor, and watched them install a new fence and ramps, complete with foundation work, on exactly where the the 'expansion line' is supposed to go.

I don't think it's a case of the left arm not knowing what the right is doing, it's the leg putting the foot in the mouth when something cogent is expected. Something is seriously amiss with the sequence and timing of events.
Click to expand...

This may have been covered here before but they explained at the public meeting where the above track plan was presented that they didn't location the truss exactly in its permanent location during the Georgetown South Project because it wasn't needed to start the UP Express service or for the September 2015 GO trains they added to the Kitchener Corridor. Moving the truss will be pretty simple and only take a few hours at night. It's a very small move. So, it was a phased approach much like the 401 tunnel work that's now happening.
 
steveintoronto said:
I live right next to Bloor, and watched them install a new fence and ramps, complete with foundation work, on exactly where the the 'expansion line' is supposed to go.

I don't think it's a case of the left arm not knowing what the right is doing, it's the leg putting the foot in the mouth when something cogent is expected. Something is seriously amiss with the sequence and timing of events.
Click to expand...

There were certainly some disconnects, and one wonders whether as costs mounted the designers were told "don't worry about the fourth track, we're only building three for now". But that's water under the (to be adjusted) bridge now.

The current structure lacks a proper retaining wall where the railpath is at a different elevation than the new track bed will be. That is not difficult engineering but it will add expense and effort. The lost investment in the current fence and station entrance on the east side is pretty minor compared to the retaining wall and tunnel/entrance construction.

The biggest disconnect that I see is that the west platform is a lot wider than the east platform. Right now, GO mostly uses the (narrow) east platform and UPE uses the high level part of the (wider) west platform. The low-level west long platform (built for GO, not UPE) is a really underutilised investment and GO riders don't get the benefit of its nicer dimensions.

The design for Liberty that came out recently hinted that in the longer term, GO will use the two outer tracks (similar to how NEC is configured) with express/UPE in the middle. That complicates both Etobicoke North and the junction with the Pearson Spur, and it's at odds with how Bloor was designed.

But hey, if we do get express GO and RER, I'm not going to nitpick.

- Paul
 
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crs1026 said:
There were certainly some disconnects, and one wonders whether as costs mounted the designers were told "don't worry about the fourth track, we're only building three for now". But that's water under the (to be adjusted) bridge now....
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In all fairness, the fence and ramps might have been the responsibility of the contractor who built that station, massive design faults, poor workmanship, roof leaks, survey glitches et al. (It had special mention by the Auditor)

But still....you really have to wonder. And that's the grist that feeds the Ford mill...justified or not.
 
The ramp and fence look pretty medium-term temporary to me. GO needed a solution that would last a few years until they were ready to lay down the 4th track (and pay for an extra tunnel entrance). I can't speak to the engineering work that went into designing it, but the finished product looks like something designed to look good for a few years, but not necessarily permanent.

crs1026 said:
The biggest disconnect that I see is that the west platform is a lot wider than the east platform. Right now, GO mostly uses the (narrow) east platform and UPE uses the high level part of the (wider) west platform. The low-level west long platform (built for GO, not UPE) is a really underutilised investment and GO riders don't get the benefit of its nicer dimensions.
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Bloor could switch to having UPX using the east platform or using the two centre tracks if they want to, as operational needs dictate. The current plan will have "local" RER and UPX trains stopping at Bloor and "express" RER trains bypassing it, while only "local" RER trains will stop at Liberty Village, so it they may need to switch tracks between the two.
 
Allandale25 said:
The Weston trench/tunnel can already accommodate the 4th track so no changes as far as I know are required.
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Other than the 401 area, the corridor was built to support 4 tracks from day one with track 1 missing. From Bramalea to Toronto West Diamond is 4 tracks. From West Toronto to Lansdown will support 6 track. From Lansdown to Bathurst will be 8 tracks. There is 5 tracks from UPX Airport junction to Kipling, to allow run around for CN freight trains

They were installing the track 1 last month for the Weston trench.

As for Bloor Station, the fencing is temporarily from Bloor St to Wallace Overpass. The whole railpath in that area will shift to the east to allow for the new track 1 with new fencing, as well a new tunnel entrance under track 1. No more walk in to the current platform.

Best to have UPX on the west side on tracks 3 & 4 like they do today north of Lansdown with UPX shift to track 2 & 3 south, depending on final layout at Bathurst.
 
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