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

mdrejhon said:
I was referring to the Don Valley Parkway, not the Gardiner. Two totally different beasts. The view from the Don Valley Parkway is prettier than it will be from both Gardiner and UPX (except Gardiner's "entering downtown at night on uncrowded late-evening drive" experience, with all the colorfully lighted new condos, SkyDome and CN tower)
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I love the view from the Gardiner, especially at night. Late night driving from the North-East to the South West (401 to DVP to Gardiner) is something I enjoy.

mdrejhon said:
That said, beautified endpoints (terminal exit and downtown entering) is the most important part of the arrival experience for tourists, and UPX will be pretty good in both respects, especially after the Union Revitalization. (Except maybe for those people sitting on the left passenger side of UPX in the last minutes and seconds before entering the station -- they'll be staring at sides of buildings instead of an impressively bustling rail corridor).
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Spoken like a true railfan. :p
 
ehlow said:
They're all good Toronto companies. Good showcase, way better than generic global franchises (McDonalds, Starbucks), since a visitor would want to try something they can't get at home.

Next up Niagara wines?
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They are...I do worry a bit about Balzac....they tend to cater towards serious coffee drinkers and while their product is very good it does not suit the palate of some regular folks who just want a mild, hot beverage. Doesn't make them bad....just that they may appeal to all like the mass purveyors of coffee (and they got to their status as "mass" as much through what they sell as their number of locations).
 
aquateam said:
Spoken like a true railfan. :p
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Even non-rail-fans would also probably prefer the bustling corridor and lake glimpses.

In the first minute nearest Union, UPX initially uses the northmost track within the USRC and you stare into blank windowless concrete or brick walls (a mere ten feet away in places) when sitting at the north side windows on the train.

Another pro for business travellers: Toronto becomes much more tolerable and comfortable in the wintertime! Zero outdoors from Pearson to PATH, due to platform edge doors. You wait completely indoors. Access to many hotels, businesses and fine foods, through indoor connections, and you can still stay indoors going to TTC which will become much warmer at Union after the moats are covered. Stay indoors all the way to Bloor and Eglinton business complexes. Yeah, you probably have to go outside from time to time, but possibly this now makes it possible for a winter-hating wimp from the tropics to do an entire Toronto business trip without ever stepping outdoors! More business travellers will be more comfortable coming in the winter especially as PATH comtinues to expand. I did not think about this earlier, but, now there is an impetus for better PATH signage and map brochures at Union UPX. (City of Toronto, you are listening?)
 
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TOareaFan said:
They are...I do worry a bit about Balzac....they tend to cater towards serious coffee drinkers and while their product is very good it does not suit the palate of some regular folks who just want a mild, hot beverage. Doesn't make them bad....just that they may appeal to all like the mass purveyors of coffee (and they got to their status as "mass" as much through what they sell as their number of locations).
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Let them drink the Mill St beer instead -- you now got a choice of great coffee AND beer while waiting for UPX. They will attract me to UPX. Good coffee especially. Too bad there is a rule against drinking on trains (Unless Ontario changed the law to suit UPX), but we don't want to risk barf on the high end rail shuttle ;)
 
mdrejhon said:
Let them drink the Mill St beer instead -- you now got a choice of great coffee AND beer while waiting for UPX. They will attract me to UPX. Good coffee especially. Too bad there is a rule against drinking on trains (Unless Ontario changed the law to suit UPX), but we don't want to risk barf on the high end rail shuttle ;)
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There is a rule against drinking on trains? How does via get away with it?
 
TOareaFan said:
There is a rule against drinking on trains? How does via get away with it?
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Well, since they are selling alcohol, they likely have to follow the rules of the province that the train is in, and have the required licenses.

From the Liquor License Act

27. Liquor may be sold and served on a railway car only when the railway car is being used for the primary purpose of transporting its passengers and is in transit. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 719, s. 27.
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The problem is that drinking alcohol is public in generally against the law, and sitting on the GO train violates that.
 
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wopchop said:
Well, since they are selling alcohol, they likely have to follow the rules of the province that the train is in, and have the required licenses.

From the Liquor License Act



The problem is that drinking alcohol is public in generally against the law, and sitting on the GO train violates that.
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I get all that...but if via can sell a beer on train in ontario....surely UPe could too if they wanted to.......the suggestion was there was a rule against it....there are rules around it...but not against it.

They may not want to (given the short length of their trips) but that is more an operational matter than a legal one.

As for GO trains....they currently do not sell alcohol...so they have never licensed their trains.....so anyone drinking beer on a GO train must have brought it on with them..and that is public consumption yes. If, however, GO applied for a license to sell booze, and were successful, there would be rules put in around what they could and couldn't do...where and where not they could serve..etc.....but you can be sure that bringing your own booze would be one of the things not allowed (just as it is not allowed to bring a beer into a licensed arena/theatre/etc).
 
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TOareaFan said:
I get all that...but if via can sell a beer on train in ontario....surely UPe could too if they wanted to.......the suggestion was there was a rule against it....there are rules around it...but not against it.

They may not want to (given the short length of their trips) but that is more an operational matter than a legal one.\
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Yes, I agree. There doesn't seem to be a rule specifically against it that I can find.
 
April 27 will see UPX kicking GO off the centre platform for Weston and Bloor Station.

Weston will see the new rebuilt west platform back in service and should be able to handle 12 cars then.

The temporarily east platform at Bloor will be put back into service and only will see 6 cars using that platform. Track 2(1) has been rip out from Dundas to north of UPX platform and being rebuilt from ground up.

They will still not have all the flashing and ceiling up Come April 27 and will be fun trying to work around UPX trains that will (supposed) to start full testing from 5:30 am to 1 am that same day to complete the long over due project
 
Haven't seen it mentioned in here but the Union station is finally visible from inside the Skywalk. They've taken down the temporary construction walls that were blocking it for the most part and it's looking very impressive.

I'll try and take a photo by Wednesday if no one else has by then.
 
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