TTC: Other Items (catch all)

[APTA-2048]

Did the TTC look at battery power and decide on clean diesel? Or did they ignore this tech and go with their existing relationships whom have given the management way too many steak dinners? I mean that is prohibited (cough cough)

Steve Munro is a bit out of touch with worldwide developments in buses. There are over 5000 of these on the roads and have logged millions of miles. Not a product that has not been tested. Did the TTC review and dismiss this tech? Or just ignore it?

They are also cheaper. Per bus around $500k (versus the $750k for the Nova bus proposal). And has a lower operating cost (nighttime energy rates vs diesel fuel).

It is the Board's duty to ensure that the management has given them all the relevant facts before making a decision. Proper governance. They are not there just to rubber stamp. However, I do think that they should have reviewed the process earlier (assuming management received approval on the process from day 1).

Los Angeles has been less impressed with the BYD buses they had on trial. Though that didn't stop them from purchasing 60 more. Price and local employment appear to have put BYD over the top in terms of score.

With emerging technologies, it's always good to tread lightly. Electric buses, especially in North America, are nowhere near as mature as diesel or even CNG buses. If the TTC really wanted to, they could trial a couple electric buses. But they could just as well see how others' experience goes. Kind of like with the articulated buses.

 

[rbt]

There are over 5000 of these on the roads and have logged millions of miles.

There were no shortage of Hybrids on the road when TTC bought their duds. 5000 units is still well within the experimental range.

Heck, there were probably 100k articulated buses around when TTC got their failed order of that too.

 

[drum118]

Edmonton plans to buy only electric transit buses beginning in 2020

 

[APTA-2048]

It dosn't take aa lotof time on them becuse they don't have the same number of poele baording them constently. I still don't get why you wopuld need to know how much you have left on your card when you baord a vechele . It doesn't make sense to me when you can check it in much more convent palces.

Have you been on Mississauga Transit or Brampton Transit?

And where is it much more convenient for someone leaving their house in, say, northeast Scarborough travelling up into Markham or travelling from UTSC to Whitby to have an idea if they need to load their card. Sure you can always check the website, but I don't think that's much more convenient.

 

[steveintoronto]

If the TTC really wanted to, they could trial a couple electric buses. But they could just as well see how others' experience goes. Kind of like with the articulated buses.

Exactly. Be intrigued and aware by all means, but tread carefully. I believe it might be a real breakthrough, but that doesn't mean taking huge risks, just small ones, and work with others to compare notes. Meantime the manufacturer should be willing to provide a couple of test vehicles, either on loan, or with some form of minimal cost to the user to assess. And some way to service them without sunk costs. The simplicity of electric should make that easy (easier).

The concept must be explored, but already, what worries me most is not the small cost/risk of trying a couple, it's the members of the TTC board who do things in secret and sneak around unaccounted.

 

[amnesiajune]

If the TTC really wanted to, they could trial a couple electric buses. But they could just as well see how others' experience goes. Kind of like with the articulated buses.

Why not put them on some of the lower-ridership routes on a trial basis? For example, they could set up a hub in York Mills station and use them on buses 78, 97A, 115 and 122. Maybe set up a network of electric buses downtown on routes like the 6, 65, 75, 94 and 121, or a network in the east end for some routes out of the 8, 22, 31, 62, 64, 72, 83, 87, 92 and 93.

 

[W. K. Lis]

There is a UT thread on
TTC: Electric and alternative fuel buses
at this link.

 

[Edward Skira]

TCONNECT Free Station Wi-Fi is Complete;

Cellular Connectivity available at 53 underground subway stations


THE TCONNECT WI-FI STATION ROLLOUT

STATUS: COMPLETE

•Every station in the Toronto subway system now has free TCONNECT Wi-Fi

•Since construction began in late 2013, BAI Canada has rolled out TCONNECT to all TTC subway stations

•TCONNECT is BAI Canada’s ad-supported free Wi-Fi service, available in all TTC subway stations

THE CELLULAR ROLLOUT

STATUS: 53 STATIONS LIVE

•Freedom Mobile users can now enjoy access to talk, text and data services at 53 stations; the remaining stations will be completed by the end of 2017

•Construction to bring cellular service to TTC tunnels began in November 2016, starting with the downtown “U”, with a target to finish construction over next three years


CELLULAR CARRIER UPDATE

•The TTC’s cellular network is equipped for all of Toronto’s cellular carriers, though Freedom Mobile is currently the only carrier on the network – it signed on to offer the service to its customers in June 2015

•BAI and the TTC are committed to working together with the other carriers to bring them onto this great service and help their customers stay connected throughout their transit journey

BUILD IT AND THEY WILL COME: TCONNECT Wi-Fi QUICK FACTS

•From January 2017 to August 2017, the number of unique monthly users increased by 44%. (Jan: 2.628 million, Aug: 3.785 million)

•There are approximately 130,000 log-ins per day to TCONNECT free Wi-Fi from 90,000 unique devices

•Users are enjoying more than 9 Terabytes (TB) of data per month. By comparison:

o1 TB of space could hold 130,000 digital photos

oThe Hubble Space Telescope generates 10 TB of new data every year

•On August 10, 2017, there were more than 156,000 log-ins (the most popular day that month

•BUSIEST STATIONS1. Bloor-Yonge 2. Union 3. St. George 4. Eglinton 5. Dundas

•BUSIEST DAY: Thursday


BACKGROUND: THE TTC PARTNERSHIP

•In 2012, BAI Canada signed an agreement with the TTC to build, deploy and operate a wireless communication network for the TTC and its riders

•The installation of this service comes at no cost to TTC riders, the TTC or Toronto taxpayers

ABOUT BAI CANADA

•BAI Canada is part of a group of global experts whose core business is designing, building, operating, maintaining and owning communication networks

•Canadian-owned BAI Communications has deployed some of the largest and most complex underground transit systems in the world – including New York’s MTA System, where the network hosts AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon in over 278 subway stations

•BAI Communications has also been involved in deploying and maintaining wireless networks in subways in Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand and Taiwan


BAI CANADA: OTHER PROJECTS

•In partnership with Metrolinx, BAI Canada is providing the connectivity for the TTC deployment of the PRESTO fare card system

•BAI Canada has designed and launched the Wi-Fi network in Union Station’s Go York Concourse

•BAI Canada is providing connectivity to in-station information screens

 

[APTA-2048]

Why not put them on some of the lower-ridership routes on a trial basis? For example, they could set up a hub in York Mills station and use them on buses 78, 97A, 115 and 122. Maybe set up a network of electric buses downtown on routes like the 6, 65, 75, 94 and 121, or a network in the east end for some routes out of the 8, 22, 31, 62, 64, 72, 83, 87, 92 and 93.

York Mills might be a bit more tricky with getting the charging infrastructure in there. But if the TTC really wanted to, sure they can do their own trial like other cities.

For the record Montreal and Winnipeg have already started their long-term electric bus trials. York Region, Brampton, and Vancouver will start their's in the near future. Following two trials in St Albert, the city purchased 3 buses from BYD. CVS Tours in Victoria currently has an electric double decker on trial from a Canadian startup.

 

[cplchanb]

TCONNECT Free Station Wi-Fi is Complete;

Cellular Connectivity available at 53 underground subway stations


THE TCONNECT WI-FI STATION ROLLOUT

STATUS: COMPLETE

•Every station in the Toronto subway system now has free TCONNECT Wi-Fi

•Since construction began in late 2013, BAI Canada has rolled out TCONNECT to all TTC subway stations

•TCONNECT is BAI Canada’s ad-supported free Wi-Fi service, available in all TTC subway stations

THE CELLULAR ROLLOUT

STATUS: 53 STATIONS LIVE

•Freedom Mobile users can now enjoy access to talk, text and data services at 53 stations; the remaining stations will be completed by the end of 2017

•Construction to bring cellular service to TTC tunnels began in November 2016, starting with the downtown “U”, with a target to finish construction over next three years


CELLULAR CARRIER UPDATE

•The TTC’s cellular network is equipped for all of Toronto’s cellular carriers, though Freedom Mobile is currently the only carrier on the network – it signed on to offer the service to its customers in June 2015

•BAI and the TTC are committed to working together with the other carriers to bring them onto this great service and help their customers stay connected throughout their transit journey

BUILD IT AND THEY WILL COME: TCONNECT Wi-Fi QUICK FACTS

•From January 2017 to August 2017, the number of unique monthly users increased by 44%. (Jan: 2.628 million, Aug: 3.785 million)

•There are approximately 130,000 log-ins per day to TCONNECT free Wi-Fi from 90,000 unique devices

•Users are enjoying more than 9 Terabytes (TB) of data per month. By comparison:

o1 TB of space could hold 130,000 digital photos

oThe Hubble Space Telescope generates 10 TB of new data every year

•On August 10, 2017, there were more than 156,000 log-ins (the most popular day that month

•BUSIEST STATIONS1. Bloor-Yonge 2. Union 3. St. George 4. Eglinton 5. Dundas

•BUSIEST DAY: Thursday


BACKGROUND: THE TTC PARTNERSHIP

•In 2012, BAI Canada signed an agreement with the TTC to build, deploy and operate a wireless communication network for the TTC and its riders

•The installation of this service comes at no cost to TTC riders, the TTC or Toronto taxpayers

ABOUT BAI CANADA

•BAI Canada is part of a group of global experts whose core business is designing, building, operating, maintaining and owning communication networks

•Canadian-owned BAI Communications has deployed some of the largest and most complex underground transit systems in the world – including New York’s MTA System, where the network hosts AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon in over 278 subway stations

•BAI Communications has also been involved in deploying and maintaining wireless networks in subways in Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand and Taiwan


BAI CANADA: OTHER PROJECTS

•In partnership with Metrolinx, BAI Canada is providing the connectivity for the TTC deployment of the PRESTO fare card system

•BAI Canada has designed and launched the Wi-Fi network in Union Station’s Go York Concourse

•BAI Canada is providing connectivity to in-station information screens

why are the other cellular giants being partisan douchebags and not allowing for reception in the tunnels? How much more money do we need to bribe them with before they realise that theyre still stuck in 1990?

 

[Admiral Beez]

Is there an official TTC app for Android that shows where the bus/streetcar is in real time? When I search for TTC apps there are many results, but they all seem to be not affiliated with the TTC, and only show the schedule. I don't need the schedule since I can simply text the number on my stop.

 

[PMT]

There's no "official" app, but your best bet is Transit App, which is endorsed by the TTC: https://transitapp.com/

 

[amnesiajune]

Why are the other cellular giants being partisan douchebags and not allowing for reception in the tunnels? How much more money do we need to bribe them with before they realise that theyre still stuck in 1990?

They don't have any say over whether there's reception in the tunnels (or more accurately, inside trains that are in the tunnels). That's up to BAI Canada, who provide the infrastructure itself. As to why the big cell phone companies don't have service in the subway's network, they just don't want to pay whatever amount that BAI is asking for. There's probably not much return on the tens of millions that it would cost them. Wireless internet is already free, and they have wi-fi calling and texting on their networks, so they wouldn't be giving customers anything besides the convenience of not going through the one-click login page.

 

[kotsy]

make the text bold and larger. It should honestly take a split second to figure out where the train is destined.

And upper case (for front and side)

 

[Avenue]

Can TTC get paid duty cops to direct traffic at intersections during TIFF - 504 diversion so that delays aren't as massive?