TTC suspects province is plotting a takeover

[RedRocket191]

Politicians in the 905 don't have direct control of their transit system like politicians in Toronto. Hearing reports about transit doesn't necessarily mean you are actually involved in the decision-making and planning of the system. Besides, the 905 doesn't have any politicians as bad as Rob Ford, so if anything it is the 905 that should be worried.

Doady

You're missing the point.

This is how it works in Toronto:

TTC Staff ---> TTC Chief General Manager ---> TTC Board ---> City Council and Mayor

And this is how it works in Brampton:

BT Staff ---> Works & Transportation Commissioner ---> Brampton Work & Transportation Committee ---> City Council and Mayor

In ALL cases, the transportation committee (which is made up of councillors) suggests ideas. The staff evaluates those ideas and sends recommendations to the committee. They make the final decision.

The two systems work EXACTLY the same way. Just because they have different names doesn't mean they work differently.

 

[DENTROBATE54]

um Mike Harris did win quite a few seats in Toronto...

Mike Harris screwed us all royally by cancelling the Eglinton Line. God he knows how far it would've been extended by now. Perhaps all the way to Pearson, with some stops skipped to be filled in later. Just think how much better transit overall would've been:

-no Blue 22, Weston NIMBY mess
-Spadina Line at capacity
-BD west alleviated
-similar condo boom along Eglinton West as what has occured along Sheppard East
-Mississauga's BRT dreams come to fruition

Ugh, what a pity .

 

[ShonTron]

In ALL cases, the transportation committee (which is made up of councillors) suggests ideas. The staff evaluates those ideas and sends recommendations to the committee. They make the final decision.

The two systems work EXACTLY the same way. Just because they have different names doesn't mean they work differently.

The only difference is that transit is a much bigger political issue in Toronto than in 905-land. Often the biggest issues regarding transit is a bunch of suburban "think of the children" NIMBYs complaining about a bus every 30 minutes on their residential streets. TTC service cuts (or improvements) or fare increases carry much more weight. When it comes to transit, most 905ers are most concerned about getting a parking spot at the GO train and getting in on time, if they care at all.

Even the province will allow a strike in Durham or even Hamilton to drag on, but will send the TTC workers back within a few days.

 

[doady]

^ Exactly, transit is a much bigger political issue in Toronto than the 905, and 905 politicans don't care much about transit, which is why it is very irrational for people to be worried about political interfence from the 905 in an amalgamated transit system.

People also underestimate the cheapness and obsession with efficiency of all transit systems. Places like Milton or Georgetown aren't going to suddenly get 79 second bus service just because all transit is amalgamated.

 

[scarberiankhatru]

I wouldn't mind Milton getting 79 second bus frequency if it also means the 416 sees some rapid transit like what York Region is getting.

 

[RedRocket191]

I wouldn't mind Milton getting 79 second bus frequency if it also means the 416 sees some rapid transit like what York Region is getting.

I think that we can all agree that there should be no service reductions in the 416 and that the 416 cannot be neglected.

Waiting for overcrowding to improve service means we'll be waiting forever. If it will take unreasonably high frequencies before milton residents will be willing to get out of their cars, then its something we must look at.

 

[Chuck]

I was living in York Region when YRT was created, and at that time, transit service in the majority of York typically consisted of 4 bus trips per route per rush hour, and hourly service in the middle of the day if you were lucky. The creation of a regional transit body resulted in the development of service standards that would apply to all buses routes from Steeles to Newmarket based on a specified minimum frequency, and maximum allowable average vehicle loading.

Despite massive expansion of less profitable bus routes throughout the region, not a single "urban" arterial bus route saw a reduction in service. If anything, the increased ridership on feeder routes led to even better service frequencies on the main grid.

I honestly don't see anything wrong with the province or GTTA (or whatever it's called now) merging the TTC with all other GTA transit systems. Harmonization can only be a good thing, and you can be sure that there will always be local input into route planning.

 

[Le Gique]

A-mangle-mation?

Ah, but what of the creation of DRT? To what causes can we ascribe the cutbacks occurring right now? Once they complete the next round of "adjustments" how will service then compare to the bad old days before the systems were fused?

 

[scarberiankhatru]

Durham is hopeless...if an earthquake severed the region and it fell into Lake Ontario, I don't think anyone else in Toronto would notice unless they tried to drive to Montreal.

 

[ShonTron]

This is the land of Roger Anderson, did you expect a big success with DRT? Apart from the GO fare agreement (an extension of a policy already in place with Whitby) and the OUIT-Pickering route, there has been little to make transit regionalized. Even Brampton and Mississauga do a better job creating a defacto Peel Region network (without transit-unfriendly Caledon's participation), as do Oakville and Burlington in the last two years.

The most transit friendly suburban 905 politicans these days are Bill Fisch and Susan Fennell.

 

[RedRocket191]

True Story:

At Metrolinx when I mentioned that I got my start pushing for better transit in Caledon someone (I won't say who) actually laughed.

 

[DENTROBATE54]

You guys should check out durhamregiontransit .com for the latest round of service cuts effective early march. People got up in arms while the TTC trotted out their hit list, but large parts of Durham's network seem to be slipping towards the axe without much protest. Anticiapte a spike in car-dependency and seas of parking lots around GO stations to become the norm if this keeps up.

 

[CDL.TO]

True Story:

At Metrolinx when I mentioned that I got my start pushing for better transit in Caledon someone (I won't say who) actually laughed.

Hey, as long as your name isn't "Darren Parberry", more power to you!

The subsidy that would be needed to extend BT 7 to Valleywood would be pocket change. Bolton might be a bit more substantial, but contracted out to BT that too shouldn't be too difficult.

Though I still consider Caledon better than Georgetown. Georgetown is now an actual town (Caledon is more like a township collection of villages) of over 40,000 with a GO station but still no local transit.

 

[RedRocket191]

Even if we got an extension of the 24, which runs from Brampton GO to Collingwood Ave (north of Mayfield) and Hwy 10 every 30 minutes until 7pm, I would be very happy, as my regular commute sees me back in Brampton no later than 6:30.

The problem is that under the current town council, no matter how small the subsidy needed, the town would not pay it, as they don't see the value of transit. Many people in this neighbourhood believe that the vandalism problems are caused by outsiders (when they really are, IMO, caused by bored kids who can't go anywhere), and the Hwy 410 fight has resulted in the NIMBYs organized and still generally pissed off - so there's another stumbling block.

As for Bolton, YRT would be the likely contractor (assuming you expand the meaning of the word "likely").

I've been walking from the Orangeville GO bus stop at Hwy 10 & Valleywood Blvd alot recently. Its a 20 minute walk, complete with no sidewalks due to snow piles and the mud of the 410 side.

I'm looking at a folding bike for the spring. Hopefully that will tie me over until hell freezes over.

Coincidentally, I'm doing a presentation about the Caledon bus licensing scam/by-law at Ryerson towards the end of March, if anyone is interested. Drop me a line if you're willing to risk getting weird looks from the chair of the TCHC.

 

[DENTROBATE54]

Who knows maybe Valleywood will be amalgamated into the City of Brampton someday given how cut-off it is from the rest of urban Caledon.

At any rate the total community doesn't even stretch over to Kennedy, so extending 24 Van Kirk along Valleywood, Royal Valley, Brookstone and Snelcrest and back would only add on an extra 10 mins to a round trip.