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TTC: Other Items (catch all)

Admittedly, today's events downtown are somewhat out of the ordinary.

That notwithstanding, they serve to reinforce the case both for the Ontario Line and also for expanding existing near to over capacity stations on Line 1.

Due to unsafe levels of crowding, trains bypassed Osgoode, Queen and Dundas!

The first 2 of these should be substantially enlarged by the Ontario line (this will be incredibly important in terms of exiting capacity in an emergency.

Dundas clearly needs a dedicated north exit off each platform; but I would also argue for enlarged mezzanines by at least 25% and finding room for large stairs/escalators to and from the surface on both the east and west sides.

The TTC already recognizes that St. Andrew, King and College are all close to their breaking points.

Its absurd that we've let it get this bad.
 
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^To be fair, this was the largest crowd ever concentrated in Downtown Toronto in our city's history. Not even the G20, 2015 Pan Am Games, 1992/1993 Blue Jays crowds come close to what we witnessed today. The TTC was actually surprisingly able to manage the crowds pretty well and I have to give them credit for not crippling service with various delays.

The problems we saw today are more related to not having any redundancies in our system directly caused by political ineptness from various levels of governments for eons. Torontonians should also get a pat on the back because they have a role in how we got to this mad state as well.
 
Northern Light said:
Admittedly, today's events downtown are somewhat out of the ordinary.

That notwithstanding, they serve to reinforce the case both for the Ontario Line and also for expanding existing near to over capacity stations on Line 1.

Due to unsafe levels of crowding, trains bypassed Osgoode, Queen and Dundas!

The first 2 of these should be substantially enlarged by the Ontario line (this will be incredibly important in terms of exiting capacity in an emergency.
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Ontario Line would have done absolutely nothing to prevent overcrowding on the streets, which is what lead to the stations being closed. Lines backed up from the stage down the street to the station and onto the train. There is no Line 1 platform or other redesign which could help people leave the station when there is no space on the surface streets. Ontario Line stations in that area would also have been closed.

Additional capacity is always useful for removing crowds from an area after an event but it's not particularly helpful in moving people into an area when that area has already reached (what the police/fire services consider) maximum capacity.
 
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rbt said:
Ontario Line would have done absolutely nothing to prevent overcrowding on the streets, which is what lead to the stations being closed. Lines backed up from the stage down the street to the station and onto the train. There is no Line 1 platform or other redesign which could help people leave the station when there is no space on the surface streets. Ontario Line stations in that area would also have been closed.

Additional capacity is always useful for removing crowds from an area after an event but it's not particularly helpful in moving people into an area when that area has already reached (what the police/fire services consider) maximum capacity.
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While I agree capacity of streets/squares was an issue as well; there was in fact space on Yonge Street itself, both at Shuter and at Dundas, as well as points east. Neither of these stations needed to be shut solely on the basis of street-level crowding.

Osgoode is a different story, though Queen west of Simcoe had space, if you could get the crowd up to street level close to that point.

The current exits are all right at the corner of University and Queen which stifles any room to maneuver as it were.

If Osgoode had exits further west, as well off the extreme north and south of the platform, it would have helped a bit.

Also helpful would be more pedestrian/public space in downtown in general and in this precinct in particular.

That said, none of this would have made yesterday easy, just a bit less challenging.
 
rbt said:
Ontario Line would have done absolutely nothing to prevent overcrowding on the streets, which is what lead to the stations being closed. Lines backed up from the stage down the street to the station and onto the train. There is no Line 1 platform or another redesign which could help people leave the station when there is no space on the surface streets. Ontario Line stations in that area would also have been closed.
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Much of Monday's problems were that a huge portion of the parade was not strung along the subway lines (as Pride and Santa Claus have learned years ago). Therefore, too many people drove or were stuck using a few mostly Line 1 (University leg) stations. An open Ontario Line would have strung the parade over more of the subway system lessening some gridlock. It would have helped, at least a bit.
 
We were in Bordeaux recently (great city!) and used their public transit system, of course. Their fare machines are MUCH better designed than PRESTO ones as it is very clear that you "TAP ON THE TARGET". Here you VERY often see people trying to tap all over the machines (esp. on surface transit vehicles).
Bordeaux.jpg
 
DSC said:
We were in Bordeaux recently (great city!) and used their public transit system, of course. Their fare machines are MUCH better designed than PRESTO ones as it is very clear that you "TAP ON THE TARGET". Here you VERY often see people trying to tap all over the machines (esp. on surface transit vehicles).
View attachment 191003
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Interestingly, are they using the same Thales card readers as first gen Presto?
 
I wouldn't be surprised if Presto would want to replace all their TTC readers with newer hardware but couldn't afford the bill. It's been 4 years and they have yet resolved the reliability issues. In the next generation readers, they could design something better.
 
Steve X said:
I wouldn't be surprised if Presto would want to replace all their TTC readers with newer hardware but couldn't afford the bill. It's been 4 years and they have yet resolved the reliability issues. In the next generation readers, they could design something better.
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In the next generation readers, can we find some other firm to implement it?

AoD
 
Was it really necessary to put a door open sign that lights up when the T1 doors open, it’s not like you don’t notice that the door is open.
 
Noticed this tender call on Merx. This either means that the TTC will continue to use paper transfers for another year or that the 'silos' are not communicating.

"The TTC has an on-going requirement for a company to supply and deliver subway transfer paper, and printed surface transfers which include: Surface Vehicle Transfer, Special Event Transfer, Subway Emergency Transfer and Wheel-Trans Transfer in accordance with detailed requirements as set out in the Terms of Reference. The Company must have a minimum of three (3) years of experience in supplying the similar materials within the past five (5) years.
REQUEST FOR BIDS FOR THE SUPPLY OF SURFACE TRANSFERS AND SUBWAY TRANSFER PAPER FOR UP TO A 1 YEAR TERM BID NO. T03CB19102 "
 
DSC said:
Noticed this tender call on Merx. This either means that the TTC will continue to use paper transfers for another year or that the 'silos' are not communicating.
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Presto isn't ready for everything. This is pretty cheap insurance for if Presto fails to deliver on the current (already delayed) timeline.
 
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