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Transit Fantasy Maps

01:10 is when the last trains leave the outer terminals, and leave downtown just after 01:30. The last trains arrive at the terminals after 2AM, every night. Not perfect, but for most systems (most systems don't have 24 hour service!), it's late. The best part? There's never more than a 5 minute wait for a subway train, but in Calgary, it can be a lonely 15 minute wait (and that's not too bad for North American LRT for late night service, it should be said).

As for the municipal addresses, even with Google addresses, it makes no sense. Especially when Goofle Maps decides that Wilson Station is on Keele Street, amongst other errors, and makes no sense on a systematic map that you're reading on the subway without wi-fi or even cellphone reception with the overpriced iPhones.

(But then again, I guess that thought makes sense for a system that uses that annoying nagging voice to tell you when you're in the subway to visit the website, look at the yellow pages or call the TTC if you need maps or information, when you could go to a collector - if he's not too grouchy rather than go outside and fine a phone book or a wi-fi hotspot.)

Chicago does it right - L stations have the Chicago numbering system so you can use the two numbers to know where you are in relation to the State/Madison intersection.

sheridan04.jpg

Photo: Chicago L
 
Cold, rainy day, so time for a new map. Possibly my best yet.

subwaymap.jpg


Some notes:
1) Each colour represents a separate, full service subway line. There are 7 lines and 130 stations.
2) Where two lines run parallel to each other, there is a 4 track alignment consisting of one local line, and one express line.
3) At single line segments, all trains stop at all black dots.
4) At dual line segments, local trains stop at both small and large dots. Express trains only stop at large dots.
5) The super node is relocated from Yonge and Bloor to Yonge and Dundas. Four lines service Yonge and Dundas.

Advantages:
1) Pearson Airport is 6 stops away from downtown, via the light blue line, and also accessible along Eglinton.
2) Yonge line gets express service south of Eglinton.
3) There is a DRL from the east and west offering both express and local service to downtown. The existing Dufferin and approximately Coxwell stations on BD are only 3 stops away from downtown via an express train.

Quick disclaimer:
1) My familiarity with the city drops off substantially outside of central Toronto and North York. If a subway line or a station should more logically be a few streets over, it's an innocent mistake. I probably even missed a few existing stops on Bloor or put them in the wrong place.
2) I chose Dundas as the downtown subway corridor, but it could just as easily be Queen St. I just think that Dundas Square is a better spot for the main transfer point than Queen for whatever reason.
 
Interesting idea having the DRL run along Dundas. Especially because Yonge & Dundas is the heart of the city. Overall I like the map :)
 
That Dundas line does look more centred and balanced on the map, a drl should go through the downtown like this, not around the edges, avoiding downtown as much as possible, like some plans have it. ;) Thanks for sharing this map with us, I like it.

Has anyone else been sending their maps to their electoral candidates like I have?
 
I think the light blue express line on Dundas would work better if it ran on the rail corridor like many DRL proposals do. Keeping your brown dundas line and moving the light blue line south would service more people, provide more options to get downtown and a link to the waterfront which will eventually be a popular destination. Ultimately it would be cheaper in the long run too, which is always a bonus.

Didn't look at the intricacies of the rest of the map, but it looks like a good effort.
 
jn_12 said:
I think the light blue express line on Dundas would work better if it ran on the rail corridor like many DRL proposals do. Keeping your brown dundas line and moving the light blue line south would service more people, provide more options to get downtown and a link to the waterfront which will eventually be a popular destination. Ultimately it would be cheaper in the long run too, which is always a bonus.

Didn't look at the intricacies of the rest of the map, but it looks like a good effort.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the feedback. I decided to keep subway lines underneath the street because that's where the people are. Rail lines are better serviced by GO, which of course should be fully integrated with the TTC. As for cost, if you're already building a 2 track subway line, expanding it to 4 wouldn't be much more expensive, and express service is worth every penny.
 
But why Dundas? That brings it too close to Bloor, and too far from the biggest empoyment centres. Sure, you might conclude that Dundas Square might be the coolest place ever to have a subway junction, but east and west of Yonge, it just doesn't have the potential. The railway corridor brings in CityPlace, East Bayfront, West Don Lands, Liberty Village, plus many urban neighbourhoods. Even Queen or King would make more sense.
 
The argument surrounding the DRL, in terms of where it should go, is complicated because the fact is that Toronto really needs two new downtown lines, Dundas and a railway corridor one. I know this seems unthinkable considering the war being waged just to have one, but the distance between Front and Bloor is actually quite big and one line just doesn't seem adequate.
 
Tewder said:
The argument surrounding the DRL, in terms of where it should go, is complicated because the fact is that Toronto really needs two new downtown lines, Dundas and a railway corridor one. I know this seems unthinkable considering the war being waged just to have one, but the distance between Front and Bloor is actually quite big and one line just doesn't seem adequate.
Click to expand...

I don't think it needs two. If we built the DRL along the rail corridor and made some substantial upgrades to the streetcar network, demand could probably work out for the next 50 or so years. Maybe in the far-off future, a branch line could split off from the DRL and head into the more downtown areas, but that probably wont be necessary for a while.

We would probably be better off bringing the streetcar network into 21st century. Getting longer train sets with all door boarding and not having stops every 100m. Does anyone know how much it would cost to. you know, make the network compatible with something like this? Thats not to say I wouldn't support building 5 subway lines downtown, but I'm not holding my breath.
 
Chuck, your (brown line) East York stubway is...bizarre. Where does your green line go in Scarborough...you know there's absolutely nothing along Markham north of Sheppard, right?

Tewder said:
The argument surrounding the DRL, in terms of where it should go, is complicated because the fact is that Toronto really needs two new downtown lines, Dundas and a railway corridor one. I know this seems unthinkable considering the war being waged just to have one, but the distance between Front and Bloor is actually quite big and one line just doesn't seem adequate.
Click to expand...

In the long term, downtown sure can support two lines, and Dundas is a decent choice, splitting the distance between College and Queen. The railway/Front/Union alignment is the other, obviously. Maybe it's megalomanical of me, but the stuff along Dundas doesn't seem to be as untouchable as other routes (the city might have a collective stroke if Queen West or Little Italy or places like that were threatened with evil subway-triggered changes or redevelopment). A shame, though, because the Dundas streetcar is possibly the one that actually works.
 
has anyone ever noticed that the outline of the YUS subway line looks like an arm pointing a finger to union station?
 
scarberiankhatru said:
Chuck, your (brown line) East York stubway is...bizarre. Where does your green line go in Scarborough...you know there's absolutely nothing along Markham north of Sheppard, right?
Click to expand...

Read my disclaimer! I know Scarborough about as well as I know Anchorage, Alaska. In other words, I had no idea nothing exists north of Sheppard on Markham Road. By all means move the line over to McCowan or some other street, or delete it altogether. For Scarborough and Etobicoke, I put lines where they made sense spacially.

As for the brown line, it goes north to O'Connor to the benefit of those living in northern East York. It doesn't connect to Don Mills because so long as the overall subway system is effective, there's hardly a need to connect the Don Mills subway to Bloor. Bringing express service to Yonge and doubling its capacity is much more important.
 
Chuck said:
Read my disclaimer! I know Scarborough about as well as I know Anchorage, Alaska. In other words, I had no idea nothing exists north of Sheppard on Markham Road. By all means move the line over to McCowan or some other street, or delete it altogether. For Scarborough and Etobicoke, I put lines where they made sense spacially.

As for the brown line, it goes north to O'Connor to the benefit of those living in northern East York. It doesn't connect to Don Mills because so long as the overall subway system is effective, there's hardly a need to connect the Don Mills subway to Bloor. Bringing express service to Yonge and doubling its capacity is much more important.
Click to expand...

In the time it took you to write your disclaimer, you could have looked at a satellite photo of Markham Road to see if it was lined with skyscrapers or a whole bunch of nothing. I'm just saying...

There's an extremely good reason to connect Don Mills with Danforth: Thorncliffe Park, a stop at which would generate ten times as many riders as the East York stubway stops. More subway lines are always better than express lines retreading existing corridors, in my opinion...bigger bang:buck ratio and more people benefit.
 
scarberiankhatru said:
In the time it took you to write your disclaimer, you could have looked at a satellite photo of Markham Road to see if it was lined with skyscrapers or a whole bunch of nothing. I'm just saying...

There's an extremely good reason to connect Don Mills with Danforth: Thorncliffe Park, a stop at which would generate ten times as many riders as the East York stubway stops. More subway lines are always better than express lines retreading existing corridors, in my opinion...bigger bang:buck ratio and more people benefit.
Click to expand...

Fair enough regarding Markham Road.

As for express lines, I think that so long as the subway system is already balanced, express lines are worth their weight in gold. The Yonge express line for example would benefit a catchment area where well over 1 million people live, and completely solve capacity problems. The Thorncliffe line would serve what, 20,000 people? That's 98% fewer people, all of whom could just as easily spend 5 minutes on a bus to Don Mills and Eglinton. Because of my express plan, they would then be only 5 stops from Yonge and Dundas with zero transfers.
 
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