TTC Ridership Growth Strategy 2

[Northern Light]

TTC has just posted the January 25, 2018 agenda.

The agenda is 2 items, the 2018-2022 Corporate Plan and
The Ridership Growth Strategy 2 (2018-2022)

http://www.ttc.ca/About_the_TTC/Com...rts/2_Ridership_Growth_Strategy_2018-2022.pdf

 

[Northern Light]

A few things of note from RGS 2:

- Service improvements this September, but only on route/in periods of 30% or greater overcrowding.

-Details on service improvements beyond 2018 are scant, beyond a commitment to better weekend service, and greater frequency on overnight services.

- There is a commitment to new express services (buses) beginning in 2021.

- New points of digital interaction, including a pilot for digital info screens inside buses in late 2018, intent for new screens on all vehicles, at all stops, and all subway entrance/exit points.

- Suggestion that new University pass is likely in the offing.

- ongoing build-outs of second exits and elevators.

- more customer-friendly, customer-focused staffing.

 

[TheTigerMaster]

I am very pleased to see this. The TTC will be working with the City to have more transit priority pilot projects around the city. I'm a big advocate of installing BRT on all of the major suburban bus routes, and this will be the first step to achieving this. Just hope that Ford isn't mayor!

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[Neutrino]

@TheTigerMaster That would be fantastic. Tangible and affordable improvements, reasonably quick and easy to build (relative to deep bore subways) and would likely create a big boost in ridership.

 

[steveintoronto]

The King Street Pilot would be a very opportune place to try it first, but all we hear is...
{...sound of crickets chirping...}

 

[Neutrino]

Now let's raise the stakes a bit: imagine high frequency, high speed, high capacity BRT routes connecting seamlessly with frequent AD2W GO stations and a high level of fare integration. Wouldn't that be something?! And Steve, that's before we even get to tunnel running RER

 

[EastYorkTTCFan]

Does anyone find it odd to be talking about growing ridership well we currently have problems dealing with the current capacity issues?

 

[TheTigerMaster]

Does anyone find it odd to be talking about growing ridership well we currently have problems dealing with the current capacity issues?

Nope. The TTC has a lot of non-peak capacity to spare, and most trips are during the non-peak periods. Furthermore the addition of the LFLRVs and the 2019 completion of ATO should allow for extra capacity during peak periods.

 

[TheKingEast]

Nope. The TTC has a lot of non-peak capacity to spare, and most trips are during the non-peak periods. Furthermore the addition of the LFLRVs and the 2019 completion of ATO should allow for extra capacity during peak periods.

I'll believe it when I see it. My expectations are pretty low.

 

[DSC]

Does anyone find it odd to be talking about growing ridership well we currently have problems dealing with the current capacity issues?

If you read the Report you would see that one thing they want to do is look at how to move some of the 'rush hour' traffic to off-peak periods. They certainly are currently constrained by lack of vehicles during rush-hours but in off-peak periods they have lots of spare capacity.

 

[Streety McCarface]

Nope. The TTC has a lot of non-peak capacity to spare, and most trips are during the non-peak periods. Furthermore the addition of the LFLRVs and the 2019 completion of ATO should allow for extra capacity during peak periods.

Remember, there are a lot of people that would willingly take the TTC tomorrow if they didn't have to wait for 2-3 trains to pass them. Once the capacity is made available, the TTC will fill up, and Quickly. CBTC and LFLRVs are a good place to start, but alternatives are needed. The streetcar network and the subway network need vast expanding. Buses are being taken care of with the introduction of LRTs on Eglinton, Sheppard, and Finch West. Hopefully, more will come with Jane, Dufferin (streetcar), Waterfront, York Mills, Steeles, and Kingston Road in the foreseeable future. However, when these lines are built, Standard Guage LRT lines will be meeting with Toronto Guage streetcars. The question then becomes what to do with future lines, or if we move the streetcars to Standard Guague.

 

[TheTigerMaster]

Remember, there are a lot of people that would willingly take the TTC tomorrow if they didn't have to wait for 2-3 trains to pass them. Once the capacity is made available, the TTC will fill up, and Quickly.

It'll be interesting to see what happens to subway crowding patterns, that's for sure. The official expectation used to be that, once ATO comes online next year, providing a peak capacity of 36,000 pphpd, Line 1 will have capacity to spare until around 2031, where it will again be roughly at capacity. We see this reflected in the Metrolinx Yonge Relief Network Study, where they expected the Yonge Line to have a volume/capacity ratio of 89% in 2031

However, in the City of Toronto's later SmartTrack Ridership Forecasts Report, it's expected that in 2031, the Yonge Line passenger demand will be significantly above the capacity of 36,000 pphpd (See Base case). That means that any extra capacity provided by ATO in 2019 will be almost immediately absorbed by induced passenger demand.

Personally, I'd bet that the modelling is significantly underestimating how much latent transit demand there is on the Yonge Line. The line will move more people in the future, but it will likely be just as crowded as today.

Finally, I'll add that this will likely have implications for the Yonge North subway extension. What happens when ATO comes online next year, and we discover that the Yonge Line didn't have as much capacity as we thought it would? How would that affect the YNSE timeline?

 

[ssiguy2]

Although a fairly mild document some of the measures make sense and just as importantly are relatively cheap and easy to implement.

I think what is most glaring is what is NOT included. GO commuter, GO RER, Smart Tracks, and fare integration are given just passing references. I know that this report is only for 2018 to 2022 but ST {in some form or another} could easily be up and running by then and GO service will continue to increase, and even the beginnings of GO RER with electrification. Certainly the Pearson/Union/Unionville portion will be electrified by then. If ST is a TTC fare that will greatly increase ridership but will also greatly effect bus ridership to connect with the stations.

I realize this is not just TTC and Metrolinx is running the GO-commuter and GO-RER portions but that is the TTC's responsibility to take that into account. I also didn't see the impact of the Spadina ext mentioned which will undoubtedly increase ridership especially in a couple of years when those huge condo developments at VCC start to fill up with people.

The biggest transit expansion in Toronto is GO/RER {including ST} and yet this report only gives passing reference to it and the same with fare integration. In doing so this report gives me the impression that the TTC is trying to improve thing a little by 2022 because they don't have a clue what's going to happen after that and that is their job to both know and demand answers so the plans they make and implement are long-term advantages and not just one's for self gratification.

 

[EastYorkTTCFan]

If you read the Report you would see that one thing they want to do is look at how to move some of the 'rush hour' traffic to off-peak periods. They certainly are currently constrained by lack of vehicles during rush-hours but in off-peak periods they have lots of spare capacity.

The problem is it's easier said than done as not everyone can change their schedule based on time of day.

 

[TheTigerMaster]

Transit priority plan could replicate King St. pilot on other TTC routes