TTC: Other Items (catch all)

[Richard White]

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.

When I was working near Square One I needed to know how much money was left on my card so I could add money if needed. Miway had yellow balance checkers at CCTT where I would check my balance but Toronto, namely the TTC does not have such a device. The transactions do not update in real time online so it is a bit of a pain in the butt trying to find your balance that way. The machines do update in real time which is great when you are running low.

When I was going to Hamilton this summer I had a bit of a screw-up. I had a service guarantee rebate because of malfunction at Aldershot. The train broke and I had to wait over a half hour for the next one. It took days for it to show online.

All things consider a quick glance is all I needed to ensure I was able to get home with the amount on my card.

 

[EastYorkTTCFan]

Miway had yellow balance checkers at CCTT where I would check my balance but Toronto, namely the TTC does not have such a device.

That's true currently but they are going to start installing the new version of the reload machines fairly soon in all stations. The reload machines are capable of showing your balance. Don't forget with TorontPrestoto is still in it's infancy cmpoaried to the orher cities. The oter day when I was on one of the new streetcars I was explaining to somone how to use the obaord machines to pay and get a trasnfer. Thye wer surpresed to find out that the TTC was planing to get rid of tokens, ther wer alos supresd that they didn't have to pay the river and few poel we anyed thy coud'nt get atrasfer from them.

 

[Johnny Au]

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.

There's Transit Now Toronto as well. It's the one I personally use.

 

[Richard White]

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.

I highly reccomend Citymapper. I used it in London, UK and now Toronto. It is by far better than Transit Now, NextBus, Rocketman Etc when it comes to using transit. Think of it almost like Google Maps. You can ask it it to give you directions, it will allow you to select a certain mode of transport and even price it out for you.

You can figure out the best route with the time approximations and cost on Citymapper. Transit Now and other apps do not do that as far as I know.

 

[Admiral Beez]

I highly reccomend Citymapper. I used it in London, UK and now Toronto. It is by far better than Transit Now, NextBus, Rocketman Etc when it comes to using transit. Think of it almost like Google Maps. You can ask it it to give you directions, it will allow you to select a certain mode of transport and even price it out for you.

You can figure out the best route with the time approximations and cost on Citymapper. Transit Now and other apps do not do that as far as I know.

Thanks. I'll try the ones you recommend.

 

[Admiral Beez]

There's Transit Now Toronto as well. It's the one I personally use.

https://transitnowapp.com/

"Track in real-time transit predictions and vehicle location. "

Does it GPS track the streetcar?

 

[Johnny Au]

https://transitnowapp.com/

"Track in real-time transit predictions and vehicle location. "

Does it GPS track the streetcar?

Yes

 

[pstogios]

Why do streetcars have to stop at all intersections, even if the light is green? It is annoying. I have no idea why they do it and can we please stop this practice.

 

[amnesiajune]

Why do streetcars have to stop at all intersections, even if the light is green? It is annoying. I have no idea why they do it and can we please stop this practice.

They don't. They have to stop before all switches, to check that they won't inadvertently go in the wrong direction (either because the switch isn't working or because it didn't reset after the last car passed over it).

 

[Richard White]

Why do streetcars have to stop at all intersections, even if the light is green? It is annoying. I have no idea why they do it and can we please stop this practice.

As was said they do it because of the switches. Any idea what would happen if you did 50-60 Kph over a damaged or misaligned switch?

You would jump the switch and derail.

 

[cplchanb]

As was said they do it because of the switches. Any idea what would happen if you did 50-60 Kph over a damaged or misaligned switch?

You would jump the switch and derail.

i guess a follow up question is, is this standard practice for all streetcar/lrt networks around the world that have these intersections? if not why do we have to be so extra vigilant and what makes their switches so much more reliable that they can skip this step?

 

[nfitz]

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

Maybe I have to play with it more, but I wasn't thrilled by it. Maybe it's the word uber everywhere ...

I actually quite like the NextBus app. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nextbus.mobile&hl=en

Simple, quick, etc.

But sometimes, nothing beats simply mapping it all, and getting all those off-route vehicles. And then I simply point Android at http://totransit.ca/

 

[nfitz]

I missed this previously, but there is a confidential report on Danforth Garage (Coxwell-Danforth) at today's commission meeting. Disposal imminent?

Not imminent, as they have replacement facility yet.

I don't know why councillor McMahon is so keen to push this issue. I went past the the other day mid-morning, and the parking lot there was packed. There's a lot of good well-paid jobs there ... I'm not sure how her ward gains, by moving those jobs to Etobicoke, and building more condos with half-empty stores paying people minimum wage.

 

[drum118]

TTC is non standard when it come to intersections compare to Europe from what I saw

The problem with TTC, the switches don't work and there no money to fix the issues

Trying to think of what intersections I watch that I have on video from 2012

 

[amnesiajune]

i guess a follow up question is, is this standard practice for all streetcar/lrt networks around the world that have these intersections?

I don't think so, but the TTC has two unique problems that most other streetcar systems and practically every LRT system doesn't:

1. Our streetcars currently can't reverse because they use trolley poles. Most other cities use pantographs (Toronto will soon), so a streetcar that goes the wrong way can stop and reverse.

2. We have lots of union intersections, where a streetcar going the wrong way on a switch can easily hit a streetcar passing in the other direction. You can even see in drum118's video that a lot of streetcars going straight through will slow down a lot, just in case they do go the wrong way.

The problem with TTC, the switches don't work and there no money to fix the issues

It's much more than a money issue. The company that built the TTC's current switches went bankrupt, and all the designs were lost in a fire, so whenever something breaks the TTC has to custom-order a part that's been reverse-engineered. Some accidents are also just not feasibly preventable, like this one where some road debris got into the switch and prevented it from working correctly.