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YRT/Viva Construction Thread (Rapidways, Terminals)

doady said:
So someone who takes the bus in these snazzy, brand new busways in York Region don't need to think about the current ridership decline? If you say so.
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If you've been taking YRT for long enough, yeah, it makes lots of sense.

Trips have been getting longer. Fares have been going up. And yet, headways have been and are getting worse and worse. Frankly, it's amazing that ridership is as high as it is considering how bad service has gotten on a number of corridors and routes.

The busways will be a benefit sure, but really only to those who live or work right beside them. The service elsewhere is getting to the point where it simply isn't worth taking anymore.

Dan
Toronto, Ont.
 
smallspy said:
If you've been taking YRT for long enough, yeah, it makes lots of sense.

Trips have been getting longer. Fares have been going up. And yet, headways have been and are getting worse and worse. Frankly, it's amazing that ridership is as high as it is considering how bad service has gotten on a number of corridors and routes.

The busways will be a benefit sure, but really only to those who live or work right beside them. The service elsewhere is getting to the point where it simply isn't worth taking anymore.

Dan
Toronto, Ont.
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I guess this is more a question for the general YRT thread....the fare issue is obviously what it is but I wonder if the service issues are attributed to Rick Leary and his attempts to streamline service or whether this has been happening since his departure.

Viva's such a good idea, it'd be a shame if they undermined it before had a chance to take hold.
 
TJ O'Pootertoot said:
Viva's such a good idea, it'd be a shame if they undermined it before had a chance to take hold.
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Fundamentally, this is what worries me the most. A lot of people have had a hate-on for Viva since day one. Not so much because of the concept itself, but rather because of how much it has taken away from the resources of the 'normal' local YRT routes, which are now mostly just referred to as "feeders" despite many of them not touching a Viva line for the majority of their route.

They needed the local routes to retain their density and frequency (and for those to continue to increase) while adding in Viva as a rapid route. But instead (as we all know) they've been taking so much away from YRT in the process that Viva no longer works for anybody except those who live in walking distance from a stop. Myself included.
 
smallspy said:
If you've been taking YRT for long enough, yeah, it makes lots of sense.

Trips have been getting longer. Fares have been going up. And yet, headways have been and are getting worse and worse. Frankly, it's amazing that ridership is as high as it is considering how bad service has gotten on a number of corridors and routes.

The busways will be a benefit sure, but really only to those who live or work right beside them. The service elsewhere is getting to the point where it simply isn't worth taking anymore.

Dan
Toronto, Ont.
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I don't use YRT but I said all this in my post #431. Fares are way too high. Too much service taken from non-VIVA services. It's a downward spiral for a while now.

xtremesniper said:
Fundamentally, this is what worries me the most. A lot of people have had a hate-on for Viva since day one. Not so much because of the concept itself, but rather because of how much it has taken away from the resources of the 'normal' local YRT routes, which are now mostly just referred to as "feeders" despite many of them not touching a Viva line for the majority of their route.
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Other than Yonge and Highway 7, I don't remember any regular YRT routes getting cut immediately. It was only after VIVA continued to underperform, and it underperformed big time, that the cuts happened, and they happened to VIVA too. VIVA is a shell of its former self, which is no surprise considering it was a flawed plan.

VIVA is where all these fare increases and service cuts started. I think they are still too proud to admit VIVA was a mistake and so regular YRT service and the system as a whole continues to suffer. After all, they are still continuing to invest in VIVA with these busways. Busways are awesome but now is probably not the right timing.

YRT is in a precarious position. It sounds dramatic but it's true. Their ridership decline is a long-term trend. Ridership growth has slowed year after year and now it's negative. They need to stop the bleeding or these busways won't mean anything.
 
It probably doesn't help VIVA Orange's situation where its ridership has been eaten up by the Zum 501, especially during and after the strike.
 
DKsan said:
It probably doesn't help VIVA Orange's situation where its ridership has been eaten up by the Zum 501, especially during and after the strike.
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I think you're assuming that YRT and Brampton Transit are competing in the corridor.

They aren't. BT is running exactly as much Zum service as YRT has asked them to.

Dan
Toronto, Ont.
 
Zum 501 within York accepts YRT fares like normal, and YRT is paying for the service, so YRT counts those trips as part of VIVA Orange ridership.
 
innsertnamehere said:
Martow lost the election BTW, though it was close. 53%-47%.
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Pathetic. And he's 22 and has no municipal experience or, based on his own bio, any kind of leadership or political expertise at all; except his last name.

He got 47% against an incumbent who hasn't done anything substantial wrong and - this really kills me - had exactly ONE issue (the bus lanes) and it wasn't even in his jurisdiction! His loss allowed me to breathe a sigh of relief but now I also know fully half my neighbours are insane and it's going to be something different 4 years from now, the only consolation being the lanes will be open or close to it by then, and Martow will need a new issue.

Vaughan also lost its only real progressive councillor (certainly at the regional level) so, overall, it was a bit of a Pyrrhic victory.

[Actually, only 15% of my neighbours are insane. Voter turnout was only 30%. So, 15%=insane, 70%=too lazy or ill-informed to care.)
 
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TJ O'Pootertoot said:
Pathetic. And he's 22 and has no municipal experience or, based on his own bio, any kind of leadership or political expertise at all; except his last name.

He got 47% against an incumbent who hasn't done anything substantial wrong and - this really kills me - had exactly ONE issue (the bus lanes) and it wasn't even in his jurisdiction! His loss allowed me to breathe a sigh of relief but now I also know fully half my neighbours are insane and it's going to be something different 4 years from now, the only consolation being the lanes will be open or close to it by then, and Martow will need a new issue.
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Torontonians didn't do much better with their choices for council.
 
Wow... they really do fly by traffic. It's too bad the left turn signal still gets priority over transit though.
 
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