GO Transit

[UrbanWaterloo]

GO Transit
In Waterloo Region
www.gotransit.com

http://www.gotransit.com/publicroot/images/GO_ML_logo150x110.gif

Georgetown to Kitchener Rail Expansion - Environmental Study Report - GO Transit (July 13, 2009) (http://www.gotransit.com/PUBLIC/en/news/ea/georgetown-kitchener/Rail_Expansion_ESR.pdf)
GO Transit Strategic Plan - GO2020 (http://www.gotransit.com/public/en/publications/GOTransitStrategicPlanGO2020_lowres.pdf)

System Map - October 30, 2011 (http://gotransitnlb.gotransit.com/publicroot/en/schedules/sysmap.aspx)
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System Map - October 30, 2011
http://www.wonderfulwaterloo.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=690&d=1321481298

System Map: (http://www.gotransit.com/publicroot/en/schedule/sysmap.aspx) 2009Rev7
http://www.gotransit.com/publicroot/en/schedules/web_system_map.gif

[UrbanWaterloo]

What is GO? (http://www.gotransit.com/public/en/aboutgo/whatisgo.htm)

GO Transit is Canada's first, and Ontario's only, interregional public transit system, linking Toronto with the surrounding regions of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). We carry nearly 55 million passengers a year in an extensive network of train and bus services that is one of North America’s premier transportation systems. Since we began operating in May 1967, over one billion people have taken the GO Train or the GO Bus. Officially known as the Greater Toronto Transit Authority (GTTA), GO Transit provides safe, convenient, and efficient transportation to the communities of the Toronto area.

Background
GO Transit is Canada's first interregional transit system created and funded by a provincial government. On May 14, 2009, GO Transit officially merged with Metrolinx. This new, combined agency is known as Metrolinx.
A new Board of Directors has been appointed by the Province. The Minister of Transportation sets the strategy and policy framework for Metrolinx, and the Board provides business direction to staff.
Visit the Ministry of Transportation website for other information.
We recover most of our operating costs through revenue, consistently bringing in 80% to 90% of what we need to run our service from the farebox — one of the best financial performances for any transit system in the world. The Provincial government subsidizes any operating costs that are not recovered through revenue. It is also responsible for the base capital funding needed for rehabilitation and replacement, to keep our system in a state of good repair. For growth and expansion capital costs, the province provides one-third of GO’s capital funding needs, with the understanding that the federal and municipal governments will contribute the remaining two-thirds.

Our service area
GO Trains and GO Buses serve a population of seven million in a 10,000-square-kilometre area (approximately 4,000 square miles) extending from downtown Toronto to Kitchener-Waterloo in the west; Orangeville, Barrie, and Beaverton to the north; Stouffville, Uxbridge, and Peterborough in the northeast; and Oshawa and Newcastle in the east. We connect with every municipal transit system in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton areas, including the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC).
The Greater Toronto Area consists of the City of Toronto and the surrounding Regions of Halton, Peel, York, and Durham. GO Transit also serves the neighbouring City of Hamilton, and reaches into Simcoe, Dufferin, and Wellington Counties.
Our seven train lines are Lakeshore West, Milton, Georgetown, Barrie, Richmond Hill, Stouffville, and Lakeshore East. At peak rush-hour periods, train service is available at all stations.
In weekday off-peak hours, trains run only on the Lakeshore between Oshawa in the east and Aldershot in the west, and on the Georgetown line between Union Station in the east and Bramalea in the northwest. On weekends, trains run only between Oshawa in the east and Aldershot in the west. Bus connections extend our Lakeshore service to Newcastle in the east and Hamilton in the west.
Off-peak GO Buses between Union Station and other train stations (sometimes nicknamed train-buses) give passengers more choice when travelling to and from downtown Toronto before and after rush hour when the trains aren’t scheduled to run, even on weekends. More riders are choosing Union Station buses because they appreciate having the flexibility of travelling one way by train and the other by bus.

Ridership
GO runs 185 train trips and 2,177 bus trips daily, carrying about 217,000 passengers on a typical weekday — 180,000 on the trains* and 37,000 by bus. Our ridership growth has continually exceeded expectations: The original GO Train service carried 2.5 million passengers in 1967, the first year of operation; today the combined rail and bus system handles nearly 55 million riders annually.
At least 96% of our train ridership is to and from Union Station in downtown Toronto, while about 70% of all bus passengers travel to and from the City of Toronto.

* Train service consists of trains and their related bus services — buses that meet the trains at terminus stations, and buses that connect Union Station with other train stations.

GO by the numbers

Train service
Lines 7
Stations 59
Route kilometres 390
Weekday train trips 185
Fleet size (number of trainsets) 41
Locomotives 56
Bi-level passenger railcars 470

Bus service
Terminals * 17
Route kilometres 2,819
Weekday bus trips, total system 2,177
Weekday Union Station bus trips
(included in total above) 471
Buses 401
* Plus numerous stops & ticket agencies

[UrbanWaterloo]

Two cities vying for GO link
February 20, 2008
JEFF OUTHIT - RECORD STAFF - WATERLOO REGION
http://news.therecord.com/article/311459

Regional councillors agree more must be done to persuade GO Transit to extend commuter rail here.

But if Ontario extends intercity transit to Toronto, should it come to Cambridge or Kitchener?

Coun. Claudette Millar of Cambridge wants commuter rail connected to her city.

"My priority is pretty clear," she says.

Other regional councillors are refusing to pick a favourite. Yesterday, they voted to pursue both the Kitchener and Cambridge options in endorsing a new plan that:

Asks the federal and provincial governments to consider diesel trains between Kitchener and Georgetown, to connect with existing GO train service.

Commits the region to spending $75,000 of its own money on a feasibility study for passenger rail service into Cambridge.

Asks the province to fast-track GO buses between Milton and the region, as an interim step.

Asks senior governments to consider a high-speed rail station within this region, as part of the latest study on high-speed rail between Windsor and Quebec City.

The 2001 census found almost 10,000 local residents who commute daily to Mississauga, Toronto and Halton.

Most would drive on Highway 401.

"We need to get people out of their cars, off the 401 and into trains," said Coun. Sean Strickland of Waterloo.

There are separate rail lines going through Kitchener and Cambridge that could, with upgrades, support commuter rail to Toronto.

However, planning for commuter rail into Kitchener is more advanced than plans for rail going into Cambridge, according to regional staff.

In 2006, Ontario pledged to look at the Kitchener route in considering improved commuter rail service.

The Kitchener route already has a business plan. It estimates startup costs for commuter rail at $78 million and operating costs at almost $4 million a year in 2004 dollars.

Meanwhile, GO Transit has launched a study into extending passenger service into Kitchener.

Despite this, Cambridge Mayor Doug Craig says there's no reason why commuter rail should not come to his city. All it takes is stronger lobbying by local politicians. "It's all about politics. That's all it comes down to."

He said mayors from the Greater Toronto Area are the biggest barriers because they want GO Transit improved where it operates before it expands here.

Yesterday, he suggested GO Transit look at yet another option: Extending passenger service to a station that's closer to this region but not inside it.


Students would embrace GO train service
February 28, 2008
Stephen Krysak
http://news.therecord.com/article/315547

Being a student at the University of Waterloo and, therefore, lacking the funds to buy a car -- or any luxury item for that matter -- daily GO train service would be much more cost effective then the current Greyhound bus or Via Rail system.

I often go to Toronto to see shows or friends and I know many students who do the same and would greatly benefit from this service, as well as the working commuters mentioned in the Feb. 20 article, Two Cities Vying For GO Link.

GO train service would also take hundreds if not thousands of cars off the road and would further promote the sustainability of the region.

As for where it should leave from, given that Grand River Transit services Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge, I think the only deciding factor should be along the lines of space for commuter parking and the capacity for the trains. It's easy enough to get to and from anywhere using the GRT.

If the GO service does come to Waterloo Region, the students and residents of Kitchener, Cambridge and Waterloo will embrace it.

Stephen Krysak
Waterloo


Craig takes action for city GO train service
Mayor doesn't want train service to end in Kitchener
Ray Martin Feb 21, 2008 - 12:00 AM
http://www.cambridgetimes.ca/news/local/article/86417--craig-takes-action-for-city-go-train-service

It's said where there is a will there is a way. And Mayor Doug Craig is now convinced that there is now the political will to bring GO train service to Waterloo Region. He is determined to find a way to bring it to Cambridge.

On Tuesday, regional councillors agreed that there is a need for GO train service here, but they're not sure whether it should come here or go to Kitchener.

"Up until now there has never really been much support for GO train at the region," Craig said yesterday.

"That's now changed."

Regional council has endorsed a plan that will look at both cities.

That plan: asks the federal and provincial governments to consider running diesel trains between Kitchener and Georgetown to connect into the existing GO train service; pumps $75,000 into a feasibility study for passenger rail service for Cambridge; asks the province to fast-track GO bus service to the region from Milton and asks the upper level governments to incorporate a stop in Waterloo Region into their high-speed rail plans for the Windsor-Quebec corridor.

Council's decision has catapulted Craig into action.

"I have ministry staff coming down here. I'm also forming a task force made up of local citizens to really work hard on this and I also want to get the chamber of commerce and prosperity council working on this," he said.

Meanwhile, the city's economic development advisory committee (EDAC) has set bringing the GO train to Cambridge as one of its 2008 priorities.

Craig Bailey, one of the members of a newly created EDAC subcommittee dealing with the issue, believes that if Cambridge wins a GO train connection it would tie in neatly with Waterloo Region's light rail transit plans and could cause Waterloo Region to rethink its priorities.

"We've got to get ourselves mobilized. This is something that would really help Cambridge."

Meanwhile, Cambridge residents will have their next chance to continue shaping the future of transportation in the region at the next public transportation master plan workshop.

The next public transportation master plan workshop will take place at the United Kingdom Club, 35 International Village Dr., on Feb. 28 from 6 to 9 p.m.


This is no way to run a railroad
March 01, 2008
THE RECORD
http://news.therecord.com/Opinions/article/316793

The federal government's decision to fund a new train service from Toronto to Peterborough while ignoring far more urgent transit needs in Waterloo Region stinks.

For years, this region has built and argued a convincing case for federal help for better passenger and commuter trains to Toronto, as well as for light rail transit to connect its cities -- all to no avail. There was nothing, nada, not a flipping red cent for any of these essential projects in this week's federal budget.

But then, out of nowhere, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty pledged to put a rail service through to Peterborough that will just happen to pass through his own federal riding of Whitby-Oshawa.

What gives? Flaherty denies that politics played any role in the project, which benefits not only his constituents but those in three other Conservative ridings as well as those in the Conservative provincial riding held by his wife, Christine Elliott. Flaherty may be right. But if he is, how else can his justify his bizarre decision?

It can't be sheer need. While Waterloo Region's population has topped half a million, Peterborough's is only 80,000. The federal census of seven years ago estimated that 10,000 commuters leave Waterloo Region each day -- most of them heading down the increasingly clogged 401. Surely at least some of those people would leap at the chance to go by rail. In comparison, the estimate -- and it is not necessarily a reliable estimate -- of the number of passengers who would use the Peterborough line daily is 900.

Flaherty can't have based his call on a business case either, because there really isn't one for the Peterborough line outside of a document cobbled together by Peterborough's Conservative MP Dean Del Mastro. In fact, a study by GO Transit, the provincial agency that serves Toronto-area regional commuters, declared two years ago it wasn't even worthwhile to extend a GO bus service to Peterborough. There just weren't enough riders and 70 per cent of the route's costs would have to be subsidized. Moreover, the area isn't growing that fast. So why is Flaherty willing to pay for rail upgrades, which Del Mastro estimated could cost $150 million?

So weak is the case for the Peterborough line that Flaherty's own department this week was unable to say how many passesngers would use it, what it would cost, or even who would run it.

In contrast, there is a documented business case for better passenger service on the north mainline that passes through Waterloo Region on the way to Toronto. Likewise, the case for some kind of rapid transit system within the region is so strong that the Ontario government has committed to covering two-thirds of its cost. And a GO commuter service to Waterloo Region would be far more feasible with federal help. But this need, too, is ignored.

As oil prices and environmental concerns rise, Canada needs better rail service. In theory, restoring the train links that Peterborough lost in 1990 is a good thing. However, governments need to set priorities and those priorities should be based on the needs of the people, not the politicians. Not long ago, Cambridge Mayor Doug Craig observed that transit funding went to the places that lobbied hardest for it because, "It's all about politics.'' Sadly, Craig may be right. But it is no way to run a railroad.

[UrbanWaterloo]

One voice stronger than seven
DOUG HUTTON, Guest Column - Mar 11, 2008 - 12:00 AM
http://www.cambridgetimes.ca/opinion/columns/article/86036--one-voice-stronger-than-seven

Well here we go again; the train passes us by and goes to Peterborough while our politicians bicker internally within Waterloo Region about whether it should go to Cambridge or K-W, when both need it.

In the Feb. 20 edition of The Record, Claudette Millar is reported as pushing for a Cambridge rail link with Toronto, while Waterloo Region has a well advanced study to bring a similar service to Kitchener. We need to give our heads a collective shake.

Shouldn't our political leaders be working together to develop a transportation concept that would service all major population centres within the region rather than competing to get the benefit for "their town"?

Regional councillors have a responsibility to approve and implement projects that benefit the total region. Millar thinks her sole role is to vote for projects that benefit Cambridge only, rather than other municipalities in the region. Certainly a regional councillor should be vigilant to ensure his or her constituents are treated equitably but that is only part of the job. Regional councillors have a responsibility to look at the big picture and that big picture is Waterloo Region.

While we in Waterloo Region pursue local and sometimes conflicting agendas, Jim Flaherty makes a blatant pork barrel commitment to put a rail service through Peterborough and his home riding of Whitby-Oshawa.

The Record editorial of March 1 reported that the economics of this rail link are poor in comparison to a link from Waterloo Region to the Metro Toronto area. The Record is correct. The public transit needs of Waterloo Region (population 500,000) and Peterborough, (population 80,000) are vastly different.

Why this conundrum? Millar's comment, "My priority is pretty clear", on Feb. 20 regarding which city should get the rail connection to Toronto, typifies our problem in Waterloo Region. By pursuing parochial interests we miss a huge opportunity to gain not only provincial support but also federal support for important infrastructure projects that benefit all citizens of Waterloo Region. Both senior levels of government seem quite happy to ignore "seven small municipalities" in Waterloo Region that invariably shoot themselves in the proverbial foot through their self-serving antics. The losers are the citizens of Waterloo Region.

Some local politicians just won't admit that great things are accomplished for the citizens of Waterloo Region when they join together to pursue common goals that benefit all municipalities in the region. The recent hospital crisis provides an example.

This region has received less than its fair share of support for infrastructure, arts, culture and health care. The individual voices of our seven separate municipalities are simply not taken seriously by Queen's Park and Ottawa.

Yet, Waterloo Region has changed from a group of small towns to a significant mid-sized city and widely recognized economic powerhouse. We need to present our community in a manner that gains the respect and support we deserve from higher levels of government. It is not sufficient to send messages or requests to Queen's Park or Ottawa from single municipalities within the region. Instead we need a continuous united lobbying effort to keep important local issues on the provincial and federal agendas.

Citizens for Better Government promotes greater co-operation among the municipalities of Waterloo Region and exists with the sole purpose of "finding a better way" to structure local government.

Doug Hutton is the Citizens for Better Government vice-chair


Jim's chuffed with his train
Mar 15, 2008 04:30 AM
Bill Taylor, Toronto Star

In the hurly-burly of the political arena, so much gets done in the heat of the moment that it's always good to see cooler heads prevail.

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, who, in his recent budget, baffled many people by announcing a high-speed rail line between Toronto and Peterborough, has had time to reflect on what might otherwise be quite wrongly regarded as pork-barrelling at its most egregious; a Conservative crowd-pleasing anachronism.

Flaherty, having looked up "anachronism" and its meaning and committed it to memory (and written it on his hand in case he forgets), is now vowing, "This will be the biggest and best anachronism Canada has ever seen, a monument to our far-reaching policies."

The civil servants tasked with making these words flesh are being given unprecedented access to Prime Minister Stephen Harper's personal library and his priceless collection of Thomas the Tank Engine original manuscripts.

(Tory insiders are cackling that this is one in the eye for the Liberals, given that deputy leader Michael Ignatieff's Gutenberg first-edition of Walter the Farting Dog is a literary wonder but seems unlikely ever to be of practical use to his party. NDP Leader Jack Layton, meanwhile, is repining a recent fire in his party's library that destroyed both books, one of which members hadn't finished colouring.)

A spokesperson for Flaherty, who pleaded not to be identified, told this column: "The minister has thought long, hard and deeply – well, maybe not deeply – about this and, in retrospect, believes that instead of having his shoes resoled for the budget, the money would have been better spent on one of those cool striped engine-driver's caps. But he believes now he's on the right track, ha-ha."

Flaherty's new trains will actually be old trains, powered by steam locomotives refurbished with no expense spared to the public purse. Though, says the spokesperson, the Tories "hope to kick in a few bucks by filing libel suits against mouthy opposition MPs. And having bake sales."

The engines will be named in honour of Thomas and his colleagues: Henry, Gordon, James, etc. There will only be two passenger cars per train – traffic on the line is not expected to be heavy – and each pair will be dubbed Annie and Clarabelle after the duo that are Thomas's customary followers.

Asked how this could be considered a high-speed line, the spokesperson, after fidgeting for a while, replied: "Compared to how fast a stagecoach could get you from Toronto to Peterborough, it'll be pretty darned quick."

The anticipated $150 million cost of restoring the track includes replacing welded rails with old-style short segments to give the train an authentic jolting ride and "biddly-bong, biddly-bong" sound to complement the "chuff, chuff, chuff." Station staff will be provided with pocket watches and steel-rimmed spectacles which, for employees with 20-20 vision, will have plain glass in them.

Anyone taking the train will be expected to enter into the spirit of the venture and wear period costume.

"This should bring at least two additional industries, corsetry and crinolines, to Durham Region," said Flaherty's flack. "There's likely, too, to be considerable resurgence in the sale of derby hats and button boots. An economic boom; everybody wins."

Also in keeping with the good old days, passengers will be required to smoke during their journey. This could be seen as potentially derailing the new line but, as the spokesperson pointed out, "We have to keep ridership down somehow. The trains will only have two cars, remember, and the Prime Minister is most insistent that he doesn't want poor Annie and Clarabelle overburdened."


GO studies Guelph-Toronto rail service
Trains could run as often as every 20 minutes during rush hour, GO Transit says
May 13, 2008 09:04 AM
Magda Konieczna, Guelph Mercury

GUELPH-GO rail service could be coming to Guelph.

GO Transit decided last week to start a study of what it would take and how big the customer base would be.

There could eventually be a train every 20 minutes during rush hour - heading to Toronto in the morning and back to Guelph and beyond in the evening - and every hour outside of rush times.

But it would take years to get to that point. For now, GO Transit has hired engineering consultant R.J. Burnside to do an environmental assessment, which could take until early 2009.

GO Transit could initially add two trains from Guelph to Georgetown, where passengers could transfer into the existing GO service, said Greg Ashbee, GO Transit's manager of rail expansion programs.

"It would be very significant" if Guelph got GO service, said Rajan Philips, a transportation planner with the city.

When GO Transit launched rail service to Barrie in December, the service was packed almost right away.

But Guelph is a bit different, Philips said, because we don't have the same proportion of people leaving for work. The bigger trend here is the double-income family with one person working outside Guelph, often heading down Highway 401 to get there, he said.

GO Transit offered rail service to Guelph from 1990 to 1993. It didn't do too well because it didn't offer commuters the option of staying at work later if they needed to, Ashbee said.

"When there were cutbacks, you lop off the ends of the lines, especially in corridors that don't have significant ridership."

It's unclear whether the city would have to pitch in for the service. None of the municipalities serviced by GO Transit pay operating costs, but they help pay for expansions to service. When GO came to Barrie, the city paid a third of the cost for the new station and for track improvements, Ashbee said.

In the meantime, all stripes of politicians seem supportive of the potential for new service.

"There's a huge pent-up demand for commuter rail service to Toronto," said Mayor Karen Farbridge.

"We're playing catch-up on work that didn't happen when it should have," Guelph MPP Liz Sandals said.

"It's something the provincial government should give serious consideration to given our population growth and the increasing number of people making the commute to Toronto," said Wellington-Halton Hills MPP Ted Arnott, who said it can take up to three hours for him to get to the legislature from his home in Fergus.


Notice of Study Commencement - Rail Service Expansion from Georgetown to Kitchener
Guelph Mercury May 28, 2008 Page A8
posted by waterloowarrior
http://wwuploads.googlepages.com/gotransittokdub.jpg

[UrbanWaterloo]

Committee wants to GO with Palvetzian's expertise
Ray Martin Jun 13, 2008 - 12:00 AM
http://www.cambridgetimes.ca/news/local/article/91546--committee-wants-to-go-with-palvetzian-s-expertise

Officials from the City of Cambridge will be assisting Waterloo Region's transportation planners put together a case for bringing GO bus and train service to the region.

At Wednesday's economic development advisory committee (EDAC) meeting, planning commissioner Janet Babcock told the meeting that three senior members of city staff will be joining a regional steering committee tackling the issue. Babcock said director of engineering Cathy Robertson, director of policy planning Dan Currie and director of planning operations Jim Kirchin would all be involved.

Craig Bailey, a member of EDAC's Go train subcommittee suggested the region also invite Lee Palvetzian to join the working group.

"I think he would be a real asset," Bailey said. "He has all the information they're looking for."

Babcock said the region is looking for city staff involvement and that opening the committee up with additional representatives might make it "unwieldy".

Committee member David Smart agreed with Bailey.

"He could be a real resource," Smart said. "It would be a benefit to the process to have Lee involved. He is uniquely qualified as he has been fighting for rail service here for more than 20 years."

The committee agreed and are now asking the city to request Palvetzian be included on the committee.


City of Waterloo COUNCIL MEETING AGENDA
Monday, July 14, 2008 2:00 p.m
Page 434 - http://www.city.waterloo.on.ca/Portals/57ad7180-c5e7-49f5-b282-c6475cdb7ee7/CS_CLERKS_Minutes_2008/20080714_Packet_Council_Meeting.pdf

as posted by waterloowarrior:
- GO Transit proposing extension to Kitchener with stops in Guelph and Kitchener... consider various spots for stations including existing VIA Stations.
- Long-term Goal is 20 min peak period service, 1 hour off peak including weekends
- Completion goal for EA and preliminary design report is March 09


GO will need provincial thumbs-up
Ray Martin Sep 12, 2008 - 12:00 AM
http://www.cambridgetimes.ca/news/local/article/89806--go-will-need-provincial-thumbs-up

Getting the GO train to Cambridge is going to take a lot more than goodwill and a sound business plan before the proposition will even be considered.

A top Waterloo Region official says it will take an act of parliament and a big chunk of change from local government.

Graham Vincent, the region's director of transportation planning, told members of Cambridge's economic development advisory committee (EDAC) Wednesday that GO Transit can't come here without first getting permission from the provincial legislature to expand beyond the GTA. And then it will be up to Waterloo Region and Cambridge to cover as much as a third of the capital cost to get the service started.

Vincent told the advisory committee that's exactly what the City of Barrie is doing to have GO Transit extended there.

"It only makes sense that they'd do the same thing here," he said.

Before any expansion of the GO train system takes place, GO Transit has to address problems it has accommodating riders within the GTA. He noted that a track upgrade is needed from Union Station to Milton so that more trains can be added. Currently, the Milton trains are operating at 140 per cent of capacity and no more trains can be added.

Meanwhile, Waterloo Region officials are looking at two alternatives to bringing GO trains into Waterloo Region. The first option is to use the VIA Rail connection through Guelph and Georgetown to Milton, while the second option is to use the CNR line connecting Milton to Cambridge.

Vincent admitted the VIA Rail connection would do little to serve people in Cambridge.

As for GO bus service, Vincent said the region has been told that service could be implemented within the next year.

Craig Bailey, a member of EDAC's GO Transit subcommittee believes immediate action is needed.

"The city should be setting aside money now for a GO station and talk with GO, that way we'll be ahead of the competition," he said.

Vincent believes that GO bus service to the region will meet with only limited success because of growing traffic volumes on Highway 401. Without dedicated lanes the GO buses would face the same traffic delays as all other traffic heading to Toronto.

Dedicated bus lanes will be a big part of Waterloo Region's proposed rapid transit plans, Vincent explained. The region will soon make a decision on whether it will be going with a rail or bus system for its new rapid transit system. While that decision will be made before the end of the year, the region is also looking at its long-range transit needs and is developing a master plan to meet those needs to the year 2031.

After further discussion, members of EDAC have decided to investigate what it would take to have dedicated high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes instituted on Highway 401 in Waterloo Region. HOV lanes in the United States and cities like Toronto and Ottawa have helped reduce commuter traffic by making bus travel a faster, more reliable alternative.

[UrbanWaterloo]

GO wants trains to Kitchener by 2011
September 25, 2008
Kevin Swayze, RECORD STAFF - WATERLOO REGION
http://news.therecord.com/article/419977

http://media.therecord.topscms.com/images/b0/8a/e45641554b00b4aec046f3145501.jpeg
A GO Train crosses the Don Valley Parkway in Richmond Hill in this file photo from last January.

GO Transit wants to bring four passenger trains a day to Kitchener by 2011.

GO officials expect a study now underway will bolster the case for the commuter-rail link with Toronto. The recommendations should be ready by March, Bruce Sevier, GO's senior projects officer, said yesterday.

Design of a preferred route could start later in 2009 and, if financing comes through, construction of stations would start in 2010, he said. Trains could be running the next year.

It depends on money, however. Sevier estimated the expansion would cost $40 million to $50 million, since GO would have to upgrade tracks and buy trains.

"We don't know where the pot of gold might come from," he said in an interview, adding that this question hasn't been asked yet. But when GO extended rail service to Barrie last year, the capital cost was evenly shared by Queen's Park, the federal government and the City of Barrie. This could be the way financing is arranged for the Kitchener expansion, he said.

An environmental assessment now underway is looking at a route west from Georgetown along the former Canadian National tracks.

The GO train proposal for Kitchener is up for public comment tonight during an information session at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church, 54 Queen St. N. Doors will be open from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Ken Seiling, the Waterloo Region chair, cautioned yesterday that local residents shouldn't get excited about boarding GO trains anytime soon.

"It's not a given that it's going to happen," said Seiling, who has been lukewarm to the idea of expansion. "What GO is saying is they would like it to happen. It's in the very early stages."

In the past, Seiling has expressed concerns that GO train service would turn Waterloo Region into a bedroom community of the Toronto area.

The 2006 census found 10,665 people commute daily between Waterloo Region and the Toronto area. Another 12,480 region residents head to Wellington County to work, and 9,465 Wellington County residents head to the region to work daily.

Go officials are talking about adding bus service to Waterloo Region as early as next year.

The area under study for GO trains follows the Goderich and Exeter railway -- formerly Canadian National -- as far west as Baden. There is no suggestion passengers could board trains in Baden, however. Downtown Kitchener would be the station farthest west. The tracks to the west of the city are included because they might be needed for parking trains overnight, Sevier said.

GO service to downtown Kitchener would also link to the rapid transit system proposed for Waterloo Region. The Kitchener station is one of the likely stops on the rapid transit route, Sevier said.

Today, Via Rail offers the only passenger train service to the region -- three trains a day into Kitchener. Via is studying upgrading the tracks it uses between Kitchener and Georgetown, along with modernizing the "archaic" signal system, Sevier said. It is also looking at boosting the number of trains it runs through Kitchener, he said.

GO is talking to Via about the upgrades, which would allow more trains to travel faster, he said. Some stretches of track have speed limits of 16 kilometres an hour. By comparison, trains using GO's Lakeshore and Barrie tracks top 100 km/h.

While Kitchener's GO train expansion appears on the fast track, a long-proposed westward extension from Milton to Cambridge is less certain, Seiling said. Regional council has approved a business case study of using the Canadian Pacific Railway tracks to run passenger trains into south Cambridge. The cost and ridership study is expected to be done next year.

Today, there's a bottleneck to expanding GO service west from Milton, Seiling said. The tracks between Milton and Toronto need to be upgraded to deal with today's demands. GO says Milton trains are running at 140 per cent capacity now; there's no way to handle more passengers without a huge capital investment.

The region's Cambridge-Milton study would lay the groundwork for such an expansion whenever the Milton crunch is resolved, Seiling said.


Looking at GO Transit
Updated Fri. Sep. 26 2008 12:21 AM ET
CTV SWO - http://www.swo.ctv.ca/news.php?id=2786

Residents have been asked to provide input on transportation in the region.

GO Transit is proposing to bring its trains to Kitchener, beginning in 2011.

The plan is to start with four daily trains running from here to Georgetown, with the addition of hourly trains to Guelph at a future date.

An environmental assessment is underway and should be completed by March.

If the project gets the green light, construction on GO stations would start in 2010.


GO expansion would put 3 stations in the region
September 26, 2008
Greg Mercer, RECORD STAFF - WATERLOO REGION
http://news.therecord.com/article/420360

http://media.therecord.topscms.com/images/b8/68/ec0254574376a0b7a2a3e7dd2576.jpeg

GO Transit would build three train stations in the region -- at Breslau, downtown Kitchener, and the city's western edge -- under a proposed model revealed to the public last night.

It's part of an expansion plan that would eventually include commuter trains running from the region to Toronto seven days a week -- leaving every 20 minutes at peak times and hourly during slow periods.

The proposed plans would also make Petersburg GO's most westerly point, although it would be a maintenance and refuelling terminal not intended for passenger use.

GO Transit, which could be running trains here as early as 2011, has already mapped out prospective station properties it would want to buy if the western expansion goes ahead.

That includes a strip of land near Highway 7 in Breslau, which would become a park-and-ride station. The property, between Fountain Street and East Woolwich Road, is the site of the former Breslau Hotel.

The commuter line also proposes a downtown station running parallel to Victoria Street for about three city blocks, near the Via Rail station. This would be an urban station, with little parking space and intended for cyclists, pedestrians and people connecting from other public transit.

The downtown station plans could be changed, GO officials said, to create an all-in-one terminal linking up with the region's proposed rapid transit line connecting Cambridge, Kitchener and Waterloo. "That's definitely part of the plan," said Greg Ashbee, GO's manager of environmental assessment and planning infrastructure. "You don't want people walking for blocks to get from one to the other."

Under the GO proposal, the most western commuter station would be north of the existing tracks near Ira Needles Boulevard, along Glasgow Street. This would also be a car-friendly park-and-ride station like the one in Breslau.

Regional Chair Ken Seiling said council is fully behind the GO plans. An efficient intercity commuter service could be a boost for the local economy, he said.

Some local employers, particularly in the hi-tech sector, are struggling to find staff because there's no easy commute into the region.

"An improved rail service really helps employment opportunities within the region," Seiling said.

And the region's economy has grown enough that there are nearly as many people commuting into the region for work as those heading out, he said.

"We don't think we're as much at risk of being a bedroom community as we were 10 years ago."

GO's own passenger projections seem to support this. Based on population levels and job-related commuting statistics, the projections suggest that in 2011 there could be as many as 2,450 riders coming into the region on GO trains every day and about 2,600 going out.

By 2031 there could as many as 7,800 commuters taking GO into Waterloo Region and about 7,900 riders taking the trains east, according to projections.

The proposed expansion plans were welcomed by a mostly enthusiastic crowd at a downtown church hall in Kitchener last night.

"I think it just makes sense," said Kitchener's Scott Ritchie. "We're not a small city anymore. We need this."

GO plans to have a preferred design for the Kitchener expansion sorted out by the end of January.

By April, it wants to have an environmental assessment report submitted to the government, and start a 45-day period for public input.


Support GO link, then build on it
September 26, 2008
THE RECORD
http://news.therecord.com/article/420230

The news that GO Transit intends to give Kitchener a commuter-train link to Toronto by 2011 is fantastic.

Everyone who's ever been wedged between two transports travelling at 120 km/h on that asphalt pressure cooker known as the 401 east of here will have cause to celebrate. Every one of the 23,000 commuters who drive from Waterloo Region to Wellington County and the Greater Toronto Area each day can shout "Hooray.''

As for us, we say, good for GO. It's about time. And it should only be the beginning. GO trains to Kitchener will meet only part of this region's transit needs -- there's Cambridge and the south to think about as well as a rapid transit system within the region itself.

But let's start by accentuating the positive. This growing, dynamic community has needed better transit links to Toronto for years. Each day, 10,700 regional residents travel from Waterloo Region to Toronto, Halton and Peel regions to work. In addition, each day 12,480 people travel from Waterloo Region to Wellington County to do their jobs.

All that travel puts a huge burden on Ontario's already overstressed road system. It burns enormous amounts of gasoline. It pumps more greenhouse, climate-altering gases into the atmosphere. It exacts a toll, too, on the nerves of all those commuters.

It's true there are alternatives to automobiles: Greyhound runs 23 buses out of Kitchener to Toronto daily. Via rail offers three trains a day to Kitchener. But those buses spend too much time stuck in traffic on the 401 with all the other cars. And those Via trains simply don't cut it as viable commuter connections. Given all this, its hardly surprising that the latest studies seem to confirm the need for a commuter train to Kitchener.

At one time, the regional government's official policy opposed a GO link because it was feared it could turn Waterloo Region into a bedroom community for Toronto. The region has wisely abandoned that policy and currently supports a GO connection. That's good because the region will almost certainly have to back up its commitment with money.

And this, in fact, is the rub. The trains aren't running yet -- and will only start running in 2011 if and when various government treasuries agree to spend up to $50 million on the project. There should be no doubt, no hesitation, no equivocation that GO trains are the kind of safe, fast, reliable, economical and environmentally-positive way to move people that this region, this province and this country need to embrace.

It is imperative that people in this region speak with one voice in their firm support for this GO train. They should be able to look to the regional government to make a strong financial commitment to a GO project. They should look to their elected representatives in the federal and provincial governments to press for the money needed to make a commuting dream into a reality.

At the same time, no one should forget the even greater need for a rapid transit system connecting the region's three cities that would offer a better alternative to the car for the 190,000 people who live in the region and work in it each day. Nor can the needs of Cambridge be overlooked. That growing city, which has long harboured dreams of a GO train for itself, also has thousands of commuters travelling on the 401 daily. If those Cambridge residents and taxpayers are to be expected to financially support a GO train to Kitchener, they should in turn be able to count on continued regionwide support for a GO link to Cambridge. In addition, if the Kitchener link does come first, ways should be found to make it as convenient as possible for Cambridge residents to use.

The news this week is wonderful. There is still a huge amount of work to be done -- and miles to travel before that first rail commute.

[UrbanWaterloo]

GO Georgetown to KW EA PIC #1 Document: http://steve.hostovsky.com/14877_Kitchener_Guelph_Rail%20Expansion_PIC_1.pdf


GO Transit may get going via VIA Rail
December 02, 2008
Nicole O'Reilly, Mercury staff - GUELPH
http://news.guelphmercury.com/News/article/411049

Of the three proposed GO Transit sites in Guelph, city staff are recommending council endorse the downtown Via Rail station.

But parking concerns may turn out to be the thorn in its side.

The Via site was among the proposed locations brought forward at a public meeting held by GO Transit in September. The former Lafarge property off the Hanlon Expressway and at Watson Road in the east end are also on the table.

If all goes according to plan, trains could start stopping on the Kitchener to Toronto route in 2011.

But the ultimate decision where Guelph's stop or stops end up comes down to GO Transit, city engineer Richard Henry said.

"Places to Grow identified the downtown as one of the growth nodes," he said, adding the city is also looking at moving its downtown bus hub to the Via location from St. George's Square.

Because the station is already built, Henry said, the Via location has the least environmental impact and is the most cost-effective.

The GO Transit team is conducting an environmental assessment, with plans to hold a second public meeting to determine the preferred site in January or February. Although GO is considering two Guelph locations, Henry said the city has indicated that there will be one station for initial service.

Most fully functioning GO Transit stations have 800 to 1,000 parking spaces, Leonard Rach, the project manager from R.J. Burnside and Associates Ltd. said during the September public meeting.

But starting with only four trains each morning and evening, Guelph is projected to need 210 parking spaces for the initial phase of service. While it is too early for details, Henry said the city is certainly aware that parking needs to be fully examined.

With the proposed Wilson Street garage set to be open before train service starts, the idea is that its public availability would open other downtown spaces for GO riders.

Whether this means riders will park on the street or use an existing lot, if it will be free for riders and even if the spots will be reserved is all yet to be determined with GO Transit, Henry said.

One of the resolutions would be to open a second station if downtown parking reaches beyond capacity.

But David Graham, a longtime advocate for improved rail transit, said it may be too late.

"The downtown is a wonderful spot, but it's not enough," he said, adding GO Transit should have used the Via location and former Lafarge property from the outset.

Graham pointed to the Barrie GO train service that restarted last December as an example of what will likely go wrong in Guelph.

"They expected 150 people, but on the first day 280 showed up . . . within three months the lot was full," he said, adding it is already planning expansion.

Graham thinks the Lafarge property should be snapped up now, before Silvercreek Guelph Developments sees the now vacant property developed into commercial outlets. "The boat on Lafarge is close to leaving," he said.


City on GO Transit’s radar
Ray Martin, Times Staff Jan 20, 2009 - 12:00 AM
http://www.cambridgetimes.ca/news/local/article/108664--city-on-go-transit-s-radar

Cambridge is a small step closer to getting GO Transit. During a meeting of EDAC (Economic Development Advisory Committee), member Craig Bailey said GO Transit is looking at creating a bus link to Cambridge using the commuter parking lot on the east side of Townline Road as a bus stop.
In talking with a GO Transit official, Bailey said a bus loop could be created from Guelph to Kitchener and then swing down Highway 8 to Highway 401 through Cambridge. It will then head back to Milton and connect with the existing GO Train service into that city.

Bailey said Waterloo Region officials have pushed for GO Transit, but not specifically for Cambridge.

“The only reason we are on the list is because the mayor and our committee have kept pushing for it,” he said. “And we will continue pushing.”

In mid-December, the provincial transit system unveiled GO 2020, a new strategic plan which includes the extension of bus or rail services to St. Catharines, Niagara Falls, Brantford, Kitchener, Waterloo, Cambridge, Guelph and Peterborough. Trip frequencies to these urban growth centres will be driven by demand.

Vanessa Thomas, media relations and issue specialist for GO Transit, said her board of directors has endorsed the “vision” as funding becomes available.

“This lays out what GO wants to do to 2020,” Thomas said. “This is the direction the board wants to go and the projects it wants to undertake. As for when it will happen and how much it will cost has yet to be determined.”


Progressive Railroading - The Rail Professionals' Information Source
MOW 1/20/2009
GO Transit begins grade-separation project
GO Transit recently launched construction on the West Toronto Diamond grade separation project, which calls for constructing an underpass to separate commuter-rail and Canadian Pacific Railway traffic.

Under the $277 million project, GO Transit will lower Canadian National Railway Co. tracks along the Georgetown line to run below CPR's North Toronto line rather than across it. The underpass will eliminate scheduling conflicts between CPR and GO trains, and enable GO Transit to increase service frequency on its Georgetown line, according to the commuter railroad.

Third-party utilities, the Dupont Street bridge, train signals and a major water main have been relocated in preparation for construction. The project is scheduled to be complete by spring 2011.

A portion of the project is being funded through the GO Transit Rail Improvement Program, which is governed by the Government of Canada, Province of Ontario and Toronto-area municipal governments via the Canada Strategic Infrastructure Fund.

[UrbanWaterloo]

PUBLIC INFORMATION CENTRE #2
Georgetown to Kitchener Rail Expansion

The Study:
GO Transit, the Province of Ontario’s inter-regional public transit service for the Greater Toronto and Hamilton areas, is undertaking a Preliminary Design Study and Class Environmental Assessment to epand rail services from Georgetown to Kitchener. The Study will identify passenger demand for the extended service, track improvements, stations and storage facilities, park and ride facilities and integration with local transit. The study area is from the Mount Pleasant GO station in west Brampton to the Kitchener/Waterloo Region, as shown in the map below

The Process:
The project will follow the planning process for a Group “B” project under GO Transit’s Class Environmental Assessment Document (2005). A key component of the study is consultation with interested stakeholders (public and regulatory agencies) at Public Information Centres (PICs). PICs were held in late September and early October 2008 to present the proposed rail expansion project and alternative station and layover sides being considered. Baseline environmental studies were conducted and preliminary preferred alternative stations and layover sites have been identified.

A second set of PICs will be held to review the baseline study results, preliminary preferred alternative stations and layover sites and to receive public comments. Following the PICs, the preferred stations and layover sites will be finalized taking into consideration the comments received. Upon completion of the study, an Environmental Study Report will be prepared for public review and comment.

Thursday, February 5, 2009
6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church
54 Queen Street North
Kitchener, ON

Thursday, February 12, 2009
6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Evergreen Seniors Centre
683 Woolwich Street, Room 4
Guelph, ON

Tuesday, February 17, 2009
6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Halton Hills Cultural Centre
9 Church Street
Georgetown, ON

All locations are wheelchair accessible.

For further information, or to be added to the mailing list, please contact:

Mr. Leonard Rach, P.Eng.
Project Mnaager
R.J. Burnside & Associates
15 Townline
Orangeville, ON L9W 3R4
Tel: 1-800-265-9662 ext 302
Fax: 519-941-8120
E-mail: leonard.rach@rjburnside.com

Mr. J.G. Ashbee, P.Eng
Manager, Infrastructure Expansion Planning
GO Transit
20 Bay Street, Suite 600
Toronto, ON M5J 2W3
Tel: 416-869-3600, ext 5211
Fax: 416-869-1563
E-mail: greg.ashbee@gotransit.com


Meeting tomorrow includes proposed GO station details
February 04, 2009
Record staff, WATERLOO REGION
http://news.therecord.com/article/481937

GO Transit is poised to unveil proposed train stations in Kitchener under a plan to extend commuter trains from Georgetown. The meeting is from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. tomorrow at St. Andrews Presbyterian Church, 54 Queen St. N. in Kitchener. Display boards will include preferred station sites and infrastructure improvements.


GO Georgetown to KW EA PIC #2 Document: http://wwuploads.googlepages.com/14877_RailExpansionPIC2Boards-final-.pdf


GO proposal calls for two train stations
February 06, 2009
Jeff Outhit, RECORD STAFF - KITCHENER
http://news.therecord.com/article/483214

GO Transit would have two local train stations, not three, in a revised proposal made public last night.

The latest plan to extend commuter rail to Kitchener from Georgetown calls for:

A park-and-ride station east of Breslau, on Greenhouse Road near Highway 7.

A station in downtown Kitchener, where parking is constrained. GO would at first use the Via Rail station, then relocate to King Street to join with local rail transit.

Commuter rail to and from Toronto could arrive by 2011, but only if the provincial government agrees to fund the proposal. No cost estimate has been released.

"It can't come soon enough for me," said Teresa Maziarz, frustrated by her daily commute to Toronto on Greyhound.

"I like the fact that we're so close to getting the GO train," Maziarz said.

Kitchener Centre MPP John Milloy said he will press to get GO Transit here. But he cautioned that his government would have to weigh the cost against other priorities. "The timing is tied to dollars," said Milloy. "You could see buses as an interim step."

GO has dismissed buses in its proposal, calling them less attractive than trains and inefficient without dedicated transit lanes.

The latest plans were released at a Kitchener information centre.

GO proposes four trains in the morning rush and four trains in the afternoon rush. Getting to Toronto would take 90 minutes. Fares are undetermined. Buses would run in the middle hours at first. Eventually, trains would run every 20 minutes in peak times and less frequently in-between.

The latest plan differs from a preliminary proposal last year. GO has incorporated feedback and studied environmental and property impacts. Among the changes:

The agency no longer favours a park-and-ride station in Breslau, due partly to traffic concerns.

The agency no longer favours a park-and-ride station on Ira Needles Boulevard in Kitchener. Instead, it proposes to park trains overnight at the Ira Needles site.

This favoured option depends on approval from the adjacent Hydro One transformer station. Plan B would be to park trains at Baden, near Sandhills Road.

Plan C could see trains parked overnight at Petersburg. It's no longer seen as the best site, due to concerns about bothering rural neighbours and use of farmland.

This was welcomed by Petersburg resident Ron Weber, alarmed by the prospect of trains parked near his home.

GO estimates that in 2011, 950 people would ride trains from Kitchener in the morning while 700 would ride into Kitchener.

By 2031, it's estimated 3,110 people would ride trains out of Kitchener in the morning while 1,980 would ride into Kitchener.

[UrbanWaterloo]

GO trains may be long time coming
February 14, 2009
Jeff Outhit
http://news.therecord.com/article/487788

A proposal to launch commuter trains by 2011 sounds promising but may not happen that soon.

Kitchener Centre MPP John Milloy certainly seems to be ramping down expectations.

Milloy says he wants GO Transit service extended to Kitchener. But he also warns that the Liberal government, which has the final say, will have to weigh the undisclosed cost against other priorities.

Milloy does not decide transit spending. He is minister for colleges and universities. But when cabinet ministers talk about spending choices, it's wise to listen.

"The idea usually is to begin with buses and then build up the capacity," Milloy told me at a public meeting on GO service.

"So that would be the next logical step."

He then said: "The usual route would be to go with the bus service as an interim step."

This was followed by: "A potential interim step would be buses."

Finally, he said: "Between now and trains, you could see buses as an interim step."

Let me speculate. Perhaps the province will send buses rather than trains. Perhaps this will be billed as an interim step.

GO has done this elsewhere. It's also a way for governments to let people down easily. We can't afford trains, but here's some buses to show we still care.

Problem is, it's pointless.

The GO study that's looking at Kitchener does not recommend buses as a logical interim step. It recommends against them.

Increased bus service is part of solution, but less efficient and attractive than rail service for specific downtown Toronto-oriented commuter market. Will not be efficient without dedicated transit lanes. Not recommended.

We already have commuter buses to Toronto. They're called Greyhound. They run all the time from downtown Kitchener and from a park-and-ride station near Highway 401.

Disgruntled Greyhound passengers may want the competition. Perhaps GO buses would offer cheaper fares, subsidized by taxpayers.

But it's hard to see how GO buses would be a big step forward. Do we really want to spend public funds to compete with a viable private service?

GO trains are more promising. The proposed schedule (four morning trains and four evening trains) is far more commuter-friendly than Via Rail, which has a poor schedule.

GO buses would do little for commuters. My advice to the province is, extend rail service to Kitchener or do nothing. GO trains or go home.


Harper, McGuinty announce $500M boost for GO
Last Updated: Tuesday, February 17, 2009 | 12:44 PM ET
CBC News (With files from the Canadian Press) - http://www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/story/2009/02/17/transit.html

GO Transit is getting a $500 million boost as part of Prime Minister Stephen Harper's economic action plan.

Harper told reporters about the funding at a press conference held with Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty in Toronto Tuesday.

The money appears to be a reannouncement of funding previously committed in 2008 under the Building Canada Fund, which critics say the government has been slow to spend.

Ontario has been hit hard by the economic downturn and such investments will create jobs and prepare the province to maintain its place as the "bastion" of the national economy, Harper said on Tuesday.

The money will cover more than a dozen projects across the region and help the GO Transit system "handle the huge increases in ridership that are projected throughout the Golden Horseshoe during the next decade," Harper said.

Some of the money will go toward improving parking at 12 GO stations, from Mississauga to Markham and to Pickering, said McGuinty.

The Hamilton GO junction, which has been a major site of congestion, will get a $75 million upgrade, he added.

Improved transit means less gridlock, and less gridlock means a stronger economy in the long run, said McGuinty.

"With better service, people can pursue new job opportunities or training opportunities because they have a transit connection that gets them there," he said.

"When transit is more convenient, more people leave their car at home, and that means cleaner air and a healthier environment for all of us."

About 200,000 people in the Toronto area use GO Transit's network of buses and trains daily.


GO Transit layover station on the move again
By Doug Coxson, Independent Staff - Mar 18, 2009
http://www.newhamburgindependent.ca/news/article/167298

GO Transit will wrap up its year-long study to expand service between Georgetown and Kitchener next month, but not before going back to the public with a new location for a train layover station.
The commuter rail service is now proposing a layover facility just north of the Wilmot Recreation Complex on Nafziger Road.

A public information centre has been scheduled at the WRC on Tuesday, March 24 from 6 p. m. to 9 p. m. for residents to drop in, see plans and voice an opinion.

Previous layover station sites were proposed in Petersburg and on Sandhills Road in Baden, but both those ideas are now off the table, said GO Transit’s manager of infrastructure expansion planning Greg Ashbee.

Ashbee said GO Transit became convinced the new site fits in better with their plans because of it lies within the township’s designated industrial area, the site is easily accessed from Nafziger Road and there are no immediate neighbours of the facility.

Alpine Plant Foods Corp is directly across Nafziger. A home and barn is about 300 metres to the north of the tracks.

“It fits in with with overall plans of the township and the region,” he said.

Layover stations provide a compound and shelter where trains are parked and fueled overnight, and on weekends. The compounds typically feature an above-ground fuel tank and pumps, electrical hook ups for the trains, as well as floodlights, several cameras and alarms to deter vandalism.

Trains are set to idle about an hour before the train goes into service in order to bring it up to operational speed.

In light of the possibility of adding a future boarding station on the west side of Kitchener, Ashbee said GO Transit would likely want to reserve the right to expand the layover facility to build service bays and a below-ground walkway, allowing workers to move underneath the trains to perform regular maintenance and repairs.

Ashbee said potential issues for neighbours of the facility are the noise impact from idling trains in the morning and light pollution from the yard at night.

Despite hearing concerns throughout the EA process, positive response to the expansion plan has come from various members of the community.

Wilmot Township’s director of development services Harold O’Krafka was one of the first to endorse GO Transit’s initiative last June, urging the transit service provider to consider building a station in Wilmot to serve the growing community while catering to residents living on the west side of the cities.

“A Go Transit station in the vicinity of Nafziger Road would provide significant opportunity to reduce vehicle traffic on both Highway 7 and 8 and also the 401 corridor by improving access to public transit without having to drive to downtown Kitchener or Stratford to access those stations,” O’Krafka wrote in his report to council.

Although he’s still concerned that GO’s plans not to build a station on the west side of Kitchener will prevent local commuters from using the service, he’s hopeful the new location of the layover facility will increase the potential for a west-side station in the future.

It could also mean a future passenger boarding station in Wilmot.

“It has the potential to be a really important thing for the community,” he said.

For the most part, Ashbee agrees.

“If Kitchener develops the way I think it will, a few years from now we’ll probably be adding another station on the west side of Ki t c h e n e r,” Ashbee said. “But the way I like to think of it is — it’s a big leap for us to get to Kitchener, let’s get there first.”

The possibility of one day converting the layover station into a passenger boarding station is not in the forecast, but Ashbee doesn’t want to rule the idea out.

GO Transit does have layover yards next to stations but it requires much more space and track infrastructure. He said it’s also preferable to provide layover facilities beyond the last passenger station because of potential impacts to train schedules in relation to the time it takes to switch controls as train directions change.

The Baden layover station does provide potential for other stations to come online between Wilmot Township and downtown Kitchener, Ashbee said.

The current service model for GO Transit has the majority of riders from outlying cities traveling to Toronto and back with very few getting off at stops in between.

But previous public information centres throughout the EA study made it clear to GO Transit officials that local riders will be making more trips between Kitchener and Guelph than anticipated.

“For GO that’s a new market,” said Ashbee. “A local commuter market is something we haven’t really satisfied before.

I think it’s going to be a real success story but time will tell.”

Ashbee said the proposed expansion is still dependent on Ministry of Transportation approval and provincial funding.

The optimistic timeline for that to fall into place is 2011.


GO Transit mulls overnight layover site outside of city
March 23, 2009
Jeff Outhit, RECORD STAFF - NEW HAMBURG
http://news.therecord.com/article/508009

There's a new development in a study to extend GO Transit commuter trains to Kitchener by 2011. Planners now favour parking trains overnight at Nafziger Road, west of Kitchener. It's the fourth layover site they have considered.

"It's a great spot . . . (with) very limited impact on any residential neighbours," said Harold O'Krafka, director of development for Wilmot Township. The site is industrial, far from residences but close to New Hamburg's new recreation complex.

GO Transit has also looked at parking trains in Petersburg or Baden, but some neighbours were concerned. Ira Needles Boulevard in Kitchener has been ruled out due to lack of space.

The transit service is considering two stations in Kitchener -- one downtown, the other near Breslau. The plans require provincial approval and funding.

GO Transit is not planning a station at Nafziger Road, spokesperson Ed Shea said. "It would be a great place for a station," O'Krafka said. But he accepts that stations in Kitchener are a higher priority.

GO Transit wants feedback March 24 on the layover site. A public information centre runs from 6 to 9 p.m. at the recreation complex at 1291 Nafziger Rd.

[UrbanWaterloo]

Feds and Ontario detail $213 million in improvements to GO Transit
April 03, 2009
THE CANADIAN PRESS
http://news.therecord.com/article/514965

TORONTO - The federal and Ontario governments have announced details of another $213 million in improvements to GO Transit.

The latest projects include a new GO rail station in downtown Barrie, which is expected to be completed by 2011.

GO Transit will buy 20 new bi-level train cars over the next two years to accommodate more riders, and will refurbish 45 locomotives while waiting for delivery of new ones.

The money will help pay for five years of track maintenance and improvements throughout the GO rail network.

There will be improvements and upgrades throughout the GO system, including new and expanded bus storage facilities, new pedestrian tunnels and bridges, wider platforms and snow-melt systems.

GO will also install another 56 bicycle shelters at its train stations, adding to the 46 already in use.

The work is part of a $500-million package of transit projects unveiled last month by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Premier Dalton McGuinty, with details of another $38 million in spending yet to come.

The first announcement of $249 million was mainly for expansion of GO parking lots and for GO's Hamilton Junction grade separation project.


City of Waterloo - COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE MEETING AGENDA
Monday, April 6, 2009 - 6:30 p.m.
Page 232
http://www.city.waterloo.on.ca/Portals/57ad7180-c5e7-49f5-b282-c6475cdb7ee7/CS_CLERKS_Minutes_2009/20090406_Packet_Committee_of_the_Whole.pdf



http://www.newswire.ca/images/companies/gologo.jpg___http://www.newswire.ca/images/companies/logo_38580.gif
GO Transit acquires important CN rail line for expanded commuter rail service in the Greater Toronto Area
http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/April2009/08/c7954.html

TORONTO, April 8, 2009 /CNW/ - GO Transit and CN announced today that the Toronto area commuter rail agency will acquire CN's Weston Subdivision for expanded GO service between Union Station and regions northwest of the city.

This strategically important rail line runs from a point near Strachan Avenue and Wellington Street West in downtown Toronto, northwest through the city to CN's main east-west freight line near the intersection of Steeles Avenue and Bramalea Road. The purchase is valued at C$160 million.

GO currently runs its Georgetown commuter rail service over the line, which also accommodates VIA Rail trains running between Toronto, Kitchener, and other points in southwestern Ontario. In total, the two passenger carriers operate 46 trains per day over the line, while CN operates three daily local freight trains along this corridor.

Under its agreement with GO Transit, CN will continue to serve its freight customers on the Weston Subdivision. VIA will also continue to operate trains on the line.

By owning the Georgetown rail corridor, GO is better positioned to add more service, build new infrastructure, and expand its operations along that line. This acquisition aligns with GO Transit's Strategic Plan, GO 2020.

"This is a major step forward for future growth and expansion along this already busy corridor," said GO Transit Chairman Peter Smith. "This purchase sets the framework for future GO rail corridor purchases, and we look forward to continuing our strong, long-standing partnership with CN."

Claude Mongeau, CN executive vice-president and chief financial officer, said: "CN is pleased to have reached this line-sale agreement with GO Transit. GO is a valuable CN customer - the vast majority of its services in the Greater Toronto Area operate over CN's rail network - and we believe this transaction and our continuing partnership with GO will help to advance commuter rail and its clear environmental benefits to the Toronto region. At the same time, our line sale - reflecting CN's tight focus on asset management - will also generate value for the company."


GO Transit plan hits snag with planned parking site
April 17, 2009
Jeff Outhit, RECORD STAFF - NEW HAMBURG
http://news.therecord.com/article/521802

GO Transit wants to bring commuter trains to Kitchener by 2011, but is struggling to find a place to park them overnight.

Three locations have been rejected. Now, a fourth site is drawing fire from Baden residents who fear the trains will be noisy and smelly.

The latest plan is for trains to park, refuel and warm up at Nafziger Road, between Baden and New Hamburg. There would be no passenger station.

"I'm concerned and a little upset," said Marc Duggan, who lives two kilometres away. "It seems awfully close to residential communities to me."

Duggan supports commuter trains but figures trains to serve Kitchener should park in Kitchener.

"There would be no advantage to Wilmot Township," said Tracy Jackman, whose home is about 800 metres away.

Project manager Leonard Rach, a consultant for GO, has told residents the Nafziger site is being refined. In emails to concerned residents, Rach has said:

The fuelling operation will be well away from Brenneman Drive-area homes.

Idling trains will be quieter than the government allows.

Efforts will be made to further dampen noise and limit the impacts of outdoor lighting.

Alternative layover sites at Stratford and elsewhere have been ruled out.

Nafziger Road the preferred location, GO spokesperson Vanessa Thomas said.

GO has proposed stations in downtown Kitchener and near Breslau. The plan is not finalized and is without provincial funding.

Wilmot Township supports parking trains at Nafziger Road and hopes the industrial site may eventually become a station. "If they're going to locate in Wilmot Township, we feel that's the ideal location," said Harold O'Krafka, Wilmot's director of development.

[UrbanWaterloo]

Existing Conditions - Natural and Social Environments (April 2009): http://www.gotransit.com/PUBLIC/en/news/ea/georgetown-kitchener/VolumeI_Figures/N-Figures.pdf


Mayor won't take 'no' on GO
Posted By DONAL O'CONNOR
Stratford Beacon Herald - April 2009
http://www.stratfordbeaconherald.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1533148

Stratford isn't in the defined study area for a GO Transit terminal, but Mayor Dan Mathieson plans to meet with Minister of Transportation Jim Bradley about parking GO trains here.

"It's in our best interest, our long-term connectivity of the region and of course on to Toronto, that we look at attaining the rail yard within our community," the mayor said.

He has already requested a meeting with Mr. Bradley, he said, and has made the city's intentions known to Perth-Wellington MPP John Wilkinson.

Mayor Mathieson was reacting to a letter from Andreas Grammonz, project leader for the study that is currently mapping out an expansion plan that will add Kitchener to GO Transit's route.

"It is important to note that GO must operate within the scope of the current environmental assessment, which is limited to the study area west from Georgetown to Kitchener, and precludes evaluation of any sites outside of the study area," said Mr. Grammonz in his letter.

The mayor said he understands Stratford will have to approach the transportation minister.

He declined comment on a news report that some Baden-area residents have been voicing opposition to the study's preferred Nafziger Road site for parking and warming up trains that will serve Kitchener.

Mayor Mathieson has been arguing the case for making use of Stratford's existing rail yard for parking and refuelling GO trains rather than investing in new rail infrastructure in the Baden-New Hamburg area.


City pushes to bring GO yard to Stratford
Tori Sutton, Staff Reporter - Stratford Gazette
April 2009
http://www.stratfordgazette.com/stratford/article/67246

Mayor Dan Mathieson said the push to bring a GO Transit train layover yard to Stratford is gaining steam.

In an interview earlier this week, Mathieson said his office has received plenty of positive feedback since last week’s public information session was held in Baden.

But it’s not just locals who are keen to see Stratford rail yards used as the layover site – those in the Baden area are also supporting the move.

“We’ve had a number of (Baden) residents contact our office saying they support it and they don’t want the rail yard in their community,” Mathieson told the Gazette. “They feel it’s appropriate to use existing yards that are already in place and they’ve offered their support where necessary.”

GO Transit is proposing a trail layover site be established on the south side of the main line track between New Hamburg and Baden, at Nafziger Road. The site is part of a plan to expand GO train service from Georgetown to Kitchener.

As well, the mayor said many people in the agricultural community – especially those who have been following the Highway 7/8 corridor study – are happy to see the city advocating other modes of transportation.

Though GO Transit has publicly stated Stratford was not included in its study area and therefore could not proceed with a layover site here, Mathieson disagrees.

“I would say while that sounds like a very good answer, it’s not true,” he said. “Baden was never included in the original study area either, and they expanded it when they ran into resistance in the City of Kitchener.

“They’ve shown a flexibility to revise their study area when necessary.”

The city has requested a meeting with GO Transit senior officials and Ministry of Transportation (MTO) strategic planning staff, though a date has not yet been set.

“At the end of the day, senior officials at the MTO are responsible for the decision and that’s why we’re taking a two-pronged approach,” he explained. “We’ll work with GO where necessary and we will definitely be pointing out to the officials at the MTO what we think is a flawed system.”


GO should consider Stratford
Letters - Apr 15, 2009
New Hamburg Independent
http://www.newhamburgindependent.ca/opinions/article/170660

This letter was sent to GO Transit officials last week:
Thank you for your ongoing efforts to provide effective transit service to communities in southwestern Ontario.

I would like to comment on the current question of where to park the GO Trains overnight when the Georgetown to Kitchener service begins.

I am aware of the current plan to park the trains just north of the Wilmot Recreation Complex between New Hamburg and Baden, and also of the residents’ concerns about this plan.

I realize that such concerns are not unusual in transit development, but I think that under the circumstances there are other options that GO planners might consider that would have short and long term benefits across an area from Baden west to Stratford.

I am referring of course to the Stratford Mayor’s invitation to GO Transit to park their trains overnight on an existing rail yard in Stratford. Given the existence of this facility and the fact that it needs only modest upgrades, the cost saving against a site in New Hamburg with no pre-existing facilities would appear to be substantial.

Of course, if there is no clear evidence of likely ridership in the Stratford-KW-Toronto corridor, then parking overnight in Stratford would make little economic or planning sense.

However, as you are aware, highway-use data on the 7 and 8 corridor

between New Hamburg and Stratford is being presented as sufficiently high to warrant a major expansion of that highway. It is hard to conclude that at least some of that traffic could not be diverted to a public transit option if it was affordable, frequent and convenient.

For the above reasons, I am encouraging you to consider the Stratford overnight option with the possibility of offering actual GO passenger service in Stratford, Shakespeare and

Baden/New Hamburg in the near future. I think the support from the local communities for such a venture might prove to be surprisingly strong.

Thank you for your consideration of these ideas.

Rick Cober Bauman, Shakespeare

[UrbanWaterloo]

Go service and rapid transit plan to come today
May 08, 2009
Record staff - Web edition
http://news.therecord.com/article/533877

WATERLOO REGION -- It’s a big day for public transit in Waterloo Region.

At noon, federal and provincial politicians will make an announcement about expanding GO Transit service to the region.

Later today, Waterloo regional government will release its long-awaited proposal to build a rapid transit system.

GO Transit is studying the extension of commuter trains to Kitchener by 2011. GO buses might be extended here before trains, Kitchener Centre MPP John Milloy has said.

The rapid transit proposal, years in the making, is being released for public review before regional council votes to endorse it, possibly next month.

It’s expected to consist of electric trains or rapid buses running along the urban spine of Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge, displacing traffic on a dedicated route.


GO Transit buses roll into Region this fall
May 08, 2009
By Jeff Outhit - Record staff
http://news.therecord.com/article/533957

http://media.therecord.topscms.com/images/65/7a/e7c499a7472996e8b46580223d02.jpeg
MPP John Malloy gets off a GO transit bus parked in front of the regional council building on Frederick Streek in Kitchener, Friday.

WATERLOO REGION — GO Transit buses are coming to the region this fall to serve Highway 401 commuters.

The buses will ferry local passengers to GO commuter trains in Milton and to a transit hub at Mississauga City Centre. The buses will not go directly to downtown Toronto.

They will depart from park-and-ride sites that are not yet selected but are anticipated to be in Kitchener and in Cambridge.

Happy politicians announced the buses today. They are a “crucial first step towards full rail service,” said John Milloy, the provincial government MPP for Kitchener Centre.

A study is under way to extend GO rail service to Kitchener by 2011.

Rates, routes and schedules for the buses have not been finalized.

A GO spokesman said up to a dozen buses will operate daily along Highway 401, carrying 800 to 1,200 passengers a day within two years.

The federal and provincial governments are spending $2.5 million to build four park-and-ride sites in and near this region.

“We support public transit, and we encourage more people to use the GO Transit system,” said Peter Braid, the federal government MP for Kitchener-Waterloo.

Municipal politicians said they are happy to get GO buses and are still keen to get GO trains.


Ready, set, GO!
GTA Bus Transit service set to extend routes to KW this fall, train service could follow
Jacqueline McKoy, Imprint - 2009-05-15
http://www.imprint.uwaterloo.ca/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3801&Itemid=55&issuedate=2009-05-15

http://imprint.uwaterloo.ca/mambo/mambots/content/myThumbs/thumbs/091505news01_600x400.JPG

Commuters between the Region of Waterloo and Toronto will soon have another way to travel since the announcement was made Friday, May 9, that the GO Transit bus service will be extended to the KW region this fall. A new bus service will connect Kitchener/Waterloo with current stops along GO Transit’s existing stations along the Milton line and Mississauga’s City Centre Transit Terminal at Square One.

Initial funding announced last Friday includes $2.5 million for the construction of four “park ‘n’ ride” bus stops along the Highway 401/8 corridor to accommodate the new bus service. The location of the first stop will be in Milton at the junction of Highways 401 and 25; the locations of the remaining three stops are to be determined.

Notably absent from Friday’s announcement is the location of stops in the City of Waterloo, particularly those near UW itself. However, Vanessa Thomas, GO Transit’s media relations and issues specialist, said that “other [dropoff] locations [...] along the service to major educational and business locations are to be determined” later this summer.

Railway future still uncertain
Ideally, the GO Bus service will build ridership such that a rail connection to Toronto will have significant demand. Said Thomas, “Typically, GO Bus service helps to build ridership in corridors that could merit future GO rail service. For commuter areas generally, as passenger demand increases on our buses, and track capacity and funding allow, there is the potential that trains could replace those buses.”

Inquiry into GO Transit’s expansion into the Waterloo region began in 2000, and it is a major goal of GO 2020, GO Transit’s 15-year strategic plan. A series of Public Information Centres (PICs) were held during February in Kitchener, Cambridge and Georgetown to consult with the public about the environmental impact of expanding service into the region, as well as to assess ridership interest.

The final results of the environmental assessment study are to be released at the end of May, and available for public review for 45 days thereafter. Based on additional public consultation, available funding, and the study itself, the provincial government is expected to make a final decision on expanding rail service later this year.
The four preferred rail stations presented to the public will be located, from east to west, in Acton near the Old Hide House, Guelph, Breslau, and at downtown Kitchener’s VIA Rail station. These stations will connect to GO’s existing Georgetown line with stops throughout Milton, Brampton, and Toronto.

However, optimal GO Train service in the future is largely based on the government of Ontario’s ability to pay access fees to ensure all-day rail service. Presently, rail lines used by GO Transit are owned by the provincial government, Canadian Pacific, and CN Rail. The provincial government pays access fees for use of the portions of the line they do not own, and runs bus service along rail corridors when rail routes are being used by other parties. Currently, rail service along the Georgetown line only runs during the weekday rush hour periods, but a goal of GO 2020, along with the expansion to KW, is to provide all-day, two-way rail service along the line rather than resorting to slower bus routes.

Benefit to students to be proved
GO Transit service might be of greatest benefit to members of the UW community travelling to the most westerly portions of the Greater Toronto Area.

Currently, the Fed Bus service is the only mass transportation option that offers a direct route between KW and Mississauga, Brampton, or Etobicoke; unlike the proposed GO service, however, it only operates on weekends. Except for stops in Guelph, both Greyhound and VIA Rail limit passengers to drop-off points in Guelph and at Toronto’s Union Station, both of which lead to circuitous transit connections to the Peel Region and Hamilton area.

An important aspect of the usability of GO Transit service in KW is its connection with Grand River Transit routes. According to Region of Waterloo Manager of Transit Development John Cicuttin, a “meeting next Friday [GRT] is going to start looking at routing and integration,” in hopes that GRT will be able to provide connecting service between GO stops and existing KW transit hubs as soon as GO service is introduced.

Thomas says that the fare structure is still to be determined, but that GO Transit fares are typically based on distance of travel. As a reference point, a single bus fare from Union Station to the University of Guelph, GO Transit’s western terminus at present, is $11.45. GO Transit provides a 10 per cent discount on 10 single-ride tickets, as well as an additional 10 per cent discount for student fares to students from eligible schools.

There is no current information on whether GO Transit is participating with UW, WLU, or Conestoga College to provide discounts to their students. As of press time, there was no information from either GO Transit or UW administration indicating any plans to participate in a student discount program.

However, a 20 per cent discount could make GO’s service provide a per-ride savings over VIA’s student 6PAK ticket ($14.00/ride), Greyhound’s 10-ride ticket ($13.50/ride) or potentially even the current bargain of a round-trip Fed Bus purchased with a Feds Card ($9.50/ride).

Despite this potential, Thomas said that it is important to note that “GO Transit’s services are meant to complement, rather than compete with” Greyhound, VIA Rail, and Fed Bus offerings.


Public transit to Toronto could improve a lot soon
June 27, 2009
Jeff Outhit, Record staff - Analysis/Opinion
http://news.therecord.com/News/Local/article/560344

Public transit links to Toronto have long been feeble, but suddenly there's a lot going on.

GO Transit has already announced bus service to its train station in Milton, and to a transit hub at Mississauga City Centre. Launch is scheduled in October.

GO buses will collect passengers in Cambridge and Kitchener, along Highway 401. Collection sites are not yet announced.

As well, the provincial transit service is studying direct train service from Kitchener to Union Station in downtown Toronto, by 2011. If the province funds this, passengers would have two local stations, in downtown Kitchener and at a park-and-ride near Breslau.

Meanwhile, regional council is preparing a pitch for GO trains from Cambridge to Union Station, to complement GO trains from Kitchener.

A consultant has forecast that trains leaving Cambridge could attract 402 to 738 passengers in mornings, passing through Milton and taking 91 minutes to reach Union Station.

These trains would presumably replace Cambridge-based GO buses that are to launch this fall.

The study has considered trains to ferry Cambridge passengers to Guelph, where they would transfer to GO trains from Kitchener. But this option would add 22 minutes, slashing estimated ridership by half. So it's been ruled out.

There's still lots to consider. Local taxpayers may have to help pay for GO service, for example to provide stations. These costs are undetermined. But the activity around intercity transit is promising for 10,700 residents who travel to jobs in Peel, Toronto, Halton and York.

Long-term, GO Transit has pledged bus or train service to Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge.

Buses are being introduced as a first step to build ridership. There are no immediate plans for trains to Cambridge. But if passenger demand is there, trains are better because they bypass congestion and limit time-adding transfers.

Passengers heading to downtown Toronto on GO buses starting this fall must transfer to trains at Milton. This complicates the trip.

Generally, every 10 minutes shaved from travel time boosts ridership 30 per cent, councillors have been told.

Local taxpayers are spending $95,000 to study GO trains to Cambridge. Next up, the consultant will review station sites, track upgrades, and prepare forecasts on cost, ridership and operations.

Local politicians may hear these results this fall. Ultimately, a business case would go to GO Transit for consideration. So far it looks like money well-spent.

[UrbanWaterloo]

Georgetown to Kitchener Rail Expansion - Environmental Study Report - GO Transit (July 13, 2009): http://www.gotransit.com/PUBLIC/en/news/ea/georgetown-kitchener/Rail_Expansion_ESR.pdf


GO Transit expansion plans to Guelph are good news all around
Guelph Mercury - August 11, 2009
http://news.guelphmercury.com/Opinions/EditorialOpinion/article/519472

GO Transit released its environmental assessment for Guelph July 23, and while this city was not even mentioned in GO’s 10-year plan just three years ago this newest study recommends four trains per day running from Kitchener to Toronto and back. And the surprises don’t stop there.
According to Appendix B of the 1,452 page document found on GO’s website, VIA Rail has advised GO that it intends to double service to Guelph, running 12 VIA trains and 8 GO trains to the Royal City, putting us well on our way back to levels not seen since the early 20century.
If GO’s board approves this environmental assessment, the project will become “shovel-ready,” magic words for infrastructure projects in today’s economy. GO trains could be running to Guelph by some time in 2011. The cost is projected to be $153,400,000, a little over one-third of the cost of the new Highway 7.
The new combined schedule for VIA and GO trains to Guelph will add four eastbound morning GO trains originating in Kitchener, and three additional afternoon VIA trains in each direction through Guelph between Toronto and London. The report notes, as anyone following Guelph’s transportation issues will already be aware, that the rate of commuter traffic from Kitchener to Guelph vastly outnumbers commuter traffic from Guelph to Kitchener. So, while several trains will service the Kitchener to Guelph commuter market, there are no westbound trains planned before noon and no eastbound trains at a commuting-appropriate time in the evening. Those will come later, according to the study, when 50 miles of additional track are built alongside the existing line that runs between Brampton’s Mount Pleasant station and Kitchener, giving us all-day service.
But if it all sounds too good to be true, there may be a fly in the ointment. While three station locations were proposed in the study for Guelph — the former LaFarge property, the existing VIA station, and a greenfield site at Watson Road — only one was selected. The study predicts that 65 per cent of GO-train using commuters in Guelph will drive to the station and park, with 35 per cent using other modes such as bicycles or transit - so parking capacity for 65 per cent of those train riders will be needed if that prediction is accurate for the service to succeed. GO trains ran to Guelph from 1990 to 1993 and the lack of parking is often cited as a major reason for its failure last time around.
According to the report, Guelph’s VIA station currently has only 45 parking spaces.
Even a cursory look at the station any day of the week will show that the parking lot is filled beyond capacity every working day for the existing lone VIA commuter train. That station lot is due to be converted into Guelph’s long-awaited transit hub. Moreover, the city has promised to build a new parking garage on the south side of the tracks at the top of Neeve Street in time for the opening of GO service in 2011.
If you’re keeping track, that means the city is now planning to build at least three parking garages downtown (on Wilson, Baker, and Neeve streets), forcing train-using commuters to compete with downtown businesses for parking.
While GO’s report anticipates 210 parking spaces will be needed for commuter service in Guelph on day one - and 210 will be provided in the Neeve Street lot - the study anticipates a demand for 670 spaces by 2031. GO had predicted 150 spaces would be needed in Barrie on day one, less than two years ago, and within a couple of months faced three times that demand. Barrie’s station now has 628 parking spaces.
The stations along the route will include Kitchener’s existing downtown VIA station – with a transit connection, but no new parking – the Breslau Greenhouse Road park-and-ride – with 700 parking spaces, and expandable to 1,050 - Guelph’s downtown VIA station, with a transit connection/park-and-ride, 210 parking spaces, and the Acton Hide House, with a park-and-ride and 200 parking spaces).
The Georgetown station will also be getting a makeover, adding 222 parking spaces for a total of 837. For reference, the next stations on the Kitchener/Guelph GO line are Mount Pleasant with 611 parking spaces, Brampton with 962, and Bramalea with 2,150. All these stations are regularly packed to capacity, with GO’s website urging commuters to car-pool or take transit to the train.
Guelph is well on its way to a reasonable level of passenger rail service, and barring a cataclysmic event, it is likely to be here within two years. I commend GO and VIA for working together to improve our passenger network and to give people alternatives to our clogged highways. Better transit service cannot get here soon enough. I hope that Guelph can rise to the challenge of moving people to and from this service.

David Graham, a member of the Mercury’s Community Editorial Board, can be reached through his website at www.davidgraham.ca.


GO trains will be slow trains
August 15, 2009
By Jeff Outhit, Record staff
http://news.therecord.com/article/585294

Some frustrated commuters will stop driving if there's a better way to get to Toronto than Highway 401.

But it's not clear that a proposal to bring GO trains here will provide a better way. Because the trains will be slower than slow.

GO Transit has proposed intercity rail service starting in 2011, if the province funds the plan.

A prototype schedule shows it would take two hours for most daily GO trains to reach Toronto's Union Station from downtown Kitchener.

An express train would get to Union Station in one hour, 49 minutes.

Union Station is 101 kilometres away by rail. So the average trip speed for three daily GO trains is 50 km/h. This includes 10 stops. One express train would average 56 km/h. It would stop just six times.

Afternoon returns would be a touch faster. The quickest trains from Toronto would reach downtown Kitchener in one hour, 48 minutes. The slowest would take one hour, 55 minutes.

This pace will not make many highway motorists giddy with anticipation.

Some drivers may not care how long it takes. They may see trains as safer and less stressful. Commuters between Kitchener and Guelph may not care. The two cities would be 28 minutes apart by train.

But for commuters heading towards greater Toronto, GO trains would be slower than driving in all but the worst traffic. They would be slower than Via Rail trains. They would be slower than scheduled Greyhound buses.They would be pretty much the slowest way you could get to Toronto.

All the stops slow things down. Between stops, GO trains are permitted to reach speeds of 113 km/h. But too often they do not, because the private tracks are meant for slower freight trains and are not in shape to speed commuters.

For example, trains must slow to 16 km/h east of Acton, where a junction switch is misaligned. A bottleneck slows trains over the Credit River. A curve through Acton limits speeds to 70 km/h. Freight and passengers must share single tracks through Guelph and Kitchener. This causes delays.

GO proposes only preliminary rail improvements, in extending commuter service here for $153 million. Major rail upgrades costing $318 million, to further eliminate delays and bottlenecks, would be put off until later.

This might not fly. Because trying to lure drivers from their cars by offering them really slow trains is not how to sell public transit as the better way.


GEORGETOWN TO KITCHENER GO TRANSIT RAIL EXPANSION AND INTERCITY TRANSIT BETWEEN THE GREATER TORONTO AREA AND WATERLOO REGION
September 15, 2009
http://www.region.waterloo.on.ca/web/region.nsf/8ef02c0fded0c82a85256e590071a3ce/29D2E68498BE5AE28525762E004A9750/$file/P-09-068.pdf?openelement

RECOMMENDATION:
THAT the Regional Municipality of Waterloo take the following action regarding the Georgetown to Kitchener GO Transit Rail Expansion and intercity transit between the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and Waterloo Region as outlined in P-09-068, dated September 15, 2009:


a) Endorse and support the Georgetown to Kitchener GO Transit Rail Expansion Class Environmental Assessment and Preliminary Design Study;
b) Coordinate a meeting with other benefiting communities to develop a coordinated approach to advancing the GO Transit Rail passenger service between Georgetown and Kitchener;
c) Forward this report with a letter from the Regional Chair to GO Transit, VIA Rail, Ministry of Transportation Ontario, Transport Canada, Metrolinx and all local Members of Parliament and Member of Provincial Parliament indicating support for the project, the importance to the community and benefits to provincial transportation corridors and request a meeting; and,
d) Complete the Cambridge to GTA Rail Passenger Feasibility Study and submit to GO Transit, Metrolinx and Ministry of Transportation.

SUMMARY:
GO Transit has recently filed the Environmental Assessment Study for the Expansion of Rail Passenger Service from Georgetown to Kitchener. The study recommends opening day service of four eastbound trains in the morning and four westbound trains in the evening. Stations would be located at the existing VIA station in Kitchener and Greenhouse Road in the Township of Woolwich. A layover facility is planned near Nafziger Road in the Township of Wilmot.

The service could begin in the corridor as early as 2011 depending on government priorities. Future ridership demand could support seven days per week, bidirectional service.

The cost of the first phase is projected to be $153.4 million. VIA Rail has indicated that it too may be making improvements to the rail line. It is anticipated that there will be an expectation of a cost contribution from the benefiting municipalities. The report recommends next steps including initiating discussion with adjacent municipalities and the Province regarding cost sharing. This
initiative is consistent with Regional Council’s Strategic Objective to advocate for improvements to inter-city transportation services. The report also provides an update of other intercity transit initiatives underway.

...
Ongoing Initiatives
ii) GO Transit Bus Service
On Friday, May 8, 2009, the Government of Canada and the Government of Ontario announced the expansion of GO Bus service to Waterloo Region. Weekday and limited weekend services are proposed for implementation on October 31, 2009. The announcement is consistent with the GO 2020 plan and the Metrolinx Regional Transportation Plan. The proposed service design is still under development, but will provide bi-directional service with up to 12 trips/direction (3 a.m. / p.m. peak trips) and limited weekend trips. Regional staff are providing support to GO Transit staff as they finalize their planning and scheduling.

[UrbanWaterloo]

Study supports $110M GO train plan from Milton to Cambridge
October 03, 2009
By Kevin Swayze, Record staff
http://news.therecord.com/News/Local/article/607811

http://media.therecord.topscms.com/images/92/6d/4af717434cf09096a719986c8a45.jpeg
Andrew Salmon of Milton at the Milton GO stop.

CAMBRIDGE — After three decades pushing for a return of passenger train service to Cambridge, Lee Palvetzian is optimistic a new study shows it could be reality in five years.

“This is the closest we’ve ever been, by far,” said the founder of Cambridge’s passenger rail committee in 1977.

The last passenger train pulled out of the Galt Canadian Pacific Railway station in 1971.

Palvetzian was part of a $100,000 Waterloo Region study looking at extending GO trains west from Milton. It’s an idea that’s been pitched for decades but went nowhere, as GO struggled with a bottleneck at Milton.

Now a Cambridge expansion is firmly on track, Palvetzian said, with firm cost estimates of $110 million to build it. The study projects ridership topping 900 a day if trains started in 2011. By 2021, the 1,600 daily passengers could cover 80 per cent of costs, the standard GO aims for. By 2031, 2,800 daily passengers would easily cover all Cambridge operating costs.

“We’ve got very strong support” in the study, Palvetzian said. “It’s actually even more than what I was expecting.”

The study goes public Monday at a Cambridge city council meeting, starting at 7 p.m. at City Hall. Regional councillors consider it Tuesday in a 9 a.m. meeting of the planning and works committee at 150 Frederick St. in Kitchener.

Politicians are being asked to endorse the passenger rail feasibility study, take it to a meeting with GO officials to talk about finding the money for it, and start lobbying provincial and federal governments to build it.

The report says GO transit is ready to undertake an environmental study of a Cambridge-Milton extension in 2012. That would finalize details so all that’s needed is money to make it happen.

GO is also expected to announce extension of bus service from Milton into Cambridge and Kitchener-Waterloo later this month. That’s long been touted as a precursor to train service.

GO has nearly finished an environmental assessment of extending trains west from Georgetown through Guelph to Kitchener. To start, that would cost $153 million. Later, as more tracks and overnight storage areas for trains are built west of Kitchener, the cost would reach $549 million.

A Cambridge extension is a bargain compared to that, Palvetzian said. The $110 million for Cambridge includes four stations: one near Galt Collegiate Institute on main bus routes; near Clyde and Franklin for a park-and-ride; at Highway 6 South; and at Guelph Line, west of Milton.

Overnight train parking is proposed in Cambridge, as is twinning single tracks between Milton and Cambridge so passenger and freight trains can safely mingle along Canadian Pacific Railway’s main Ontario corridor.

Cambridge Mayor Doug Craig hadn’t read the report late Friday. Like Palvetzian, he wants Cambridge-Toronto trains sooner than later, to convince people out of their cars on Highway 401. At last count, 10,400 people a day commute from the region to Toronto daily, and 5,000 drive from Toronto west to the region.

What’s needed now is pressure on provincial and federal politicians to make GO trains a reality, Craig said.

“They run GO trains to farther places than Cambridge, they run GO buses farther distances,” he said.

“We haven’t been politically aggressive enough in this region.”


CAMBRIDGE TO GREATER TORONTO AREA (GTA) GO TRANSIT RAIL PASSENGER FEASIBILITY STUDY
October 6, 2009
http://www.region.waterloo.on.ca/web/region.nsf/8ef02c0fded0c82a85256e590071a3ce/8752D43CB9FEC7388525764300676470/$file/P-09-077.pdf

RECOMMENDATION:
THAT the Regional Municipality of Waterloo take the following action regarding the Cambridge to GTA Rail Passenger Feasibility Study as outlined in P-09-077, dated October 6, 2009:

a) Endorse and support the Cambridge to GTA Rail Passenger Feasibility Study;
b) Coordinate a meeting with other benefiting communities to develop a coordinated approach to advancing the GO Transit Rail passenger service between Cambridge and the GTA; and,
c) Forward this report with a letter from the Regional Chair to GO Transit, Ministry of Transportation Ontario, Transport Canada, Metrolinx and all local Members of Parliament and Member of Provincial Parliament indicating support for the project, the importance to the community and benefits to provincial transportation corridors.

SUMMARY:
The Cambridge to Greater Toronto Area (GTA) Rail Passenger Feasibility Study has recently been completed. The study was initiated by the Region in January 2009 and the Project Team had representation from the City of Cambridge and GO Transit. The study provides an assessment of the opportunity to link the Regional Municipality of Waterloo and City of Cambridge with the GTA by means of a high quality commuter rail service. The study concluded that the extension of GO Rail service from Milton to Cambridge is technically feasible. The ridership and associated revenue is forecast to increase as the service matures and people adjust their travel behaviour. By 2021, the forecast indicates that the average GO system revenue cost ratio (currently 80%) is achievable and by 2031 the Cambridge service could achieve full cost recovery. This proposed transit service would also support federal, provincial and municipal objectives for sustainable growth, economic development and the reduction of environmental impacts from transportation by providing a public transit alternative in close proximity to the congested Highway 401.


http://news.ontario.ca/images/ontario_logo.gif
GO Bus Service Coming To Kitchener-Waterloo And Cambridge
October 8, 2009 2:37 PM
http://news.ontario.ca/mto/en/2009/10/go-bus-service-coming-to-kitchener-waterloo-and-cambridge.html

McGuinty Government Supporting More Green Transportation Options

Starting on October 31, residents and commuters will be able to catch the GO Bus between Kitchener-Waterloo and Mississauga with stops in Cambridge, Milton and Aberfoyle.

Buses will run on weekdays to and from Mississauga's Square One Mall with 11 eastbound trips and 12 westbound trips. Stops in Southwestern Ontario will include Wilfrid Laurier University, the University of Waterloo and downtown Kitchener.

In addition, two trips in each direction will stop at the Milton GO Station to connect with peak-period GO Train service to and from Union Station. There will also be limited weekend service.

In February, the governments of Canada and Ontario committed $2.5 million in funding to build four park and ride lots along the new bus service route. The first of these lots will be located at the Regional Road 25 and Highway 401 interchange in Milton and will be open on the first day of GO Bus service to Kitchener-Waterloo and Cambridge. GO Transit is currently determining the location of the remaining three locations along the Highway 401 and Highway 8 corridor in the Cambridge/Kitchener-Waterloo area. Funding for these facilities is part of the GO Transit Improvement Program.

QUICK FACTS

Construction of four park and ride lots along the new bus service route will create 25 jobs.
Since 2003, the McGuinty government has invested $2.5 billion in GO Transit to improve service and expand routes, including about $750 million to cover its capital and operating costs in fiscal year 2008-09.
Nearly 55 million riders a year travel on GO Transit buses and trains.



http://grt.ca/web/transit.nsf/top_logoleft.gif
GO Transit Bus Service to Waterloo Region
New GO Transit Bus Service to Waterloo Region
Effective October 31, 2009
Weekday and limited weekend services
http://grt.ca/web/transit.nsf/$All/BEBE556F652326F18525764A004FF0F1?OpenDocument

http://grt.ca/web/transit.nsf/8cc429bdafbb761e85256e5a005c53f5/bebe556f652326f18525764a004ff0f1/Body/0.1F0!OpenElement&FieldElemFormat=gif

Read the news release (http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/October2009/14/c6303.html)

Link to the GO Transit Site (http://www.gotransit.com/publicroot/en/schedule/lstserdt.aspx?table=25&station=&new=Y)

Local bus stops include:

University of Waterloo - Davis Centre, on the east ring road.

Wilfrid Laurier University - iXpress stop. University and Hazel

Charles St. Transit Terminal - 15 Charles St. W. Kitchener

Cambridge Smart Centres - iXpress stop. Hespeler Rd. and Hwy. 401

Fares:


Go Transit Fares

Kitchener to Square One - $12.30
Cambridge to Square One - $11.15

Kitchener to Union - $14.35
Cambridge to Union - $14.20

Kitchener to Milton - $8.70
Cambridge to Milton - $8.60

GO Transit Schedule:

Charles St. to Milton and Square One (http://grt.ca/web/transit.nsf/$All/BEBE556F652326F18525764A004FF0F1/$file/GO%20Transit%20Kitchener%20to%20Milton%20&%20Square%20One.htm?openelement)

[UrbanWaterloo]

Still questions about GO bus
Ray Martin, Times Staff - Oct 13, 2009 - 1:08 PM
http://www.cambridgetimes.ca/news/local/article/155573--still-questions-about-go-bus

Reaction to Thursday’s announcement that GO bus service will be launched in Cambridge Oct. 31 is for the most part positive, but it also raises further questions for some.

“This is very positive news,” said John Fagg, a member of Cambridge’s economic development advisory committee (EDAC) and GO Transit subcommittee. “It’s definitely a step in the right direction, but what’s not said is just as interesting as what’s said in the announcement.”

Although the region’s daily newspaper has reported the Cambridge GO station will be located near the Cambridge big box development at the intersection of Highway 401 and Hespeler Road, GO officials say no announcement on where the Cambridge station has been made.

“We expect that the full schedule and bus stop locations will be posted on GO Transit’s website (today),” said GO media relations and issues specialist Vanessa Thomas, Friday.

“GO Transit is working on determining the location of the remaining three park-and-ride locations along the Highway 401 and Highway 8 corridor in the Cambridge/Kitchener-Waterloo area.”

Fagg said the announcement appears to push the concept of getting Waterloo Region riders to Mississauga’s Square One, rather than to the GO train station in Milton.

“They have 11 buses going to Mississauga Square One and only two buses to the train station in Milton, which may not be what’s needed,” he said.

Fagg said more information is required to clarify how the new service will work, but “it’s still great news for Cambridge”.

“It will make the city a more appealing place,” he said.

EDAC chair Miles Lauzon concurs.

“This is great news, but there are still a lot of questions that need to be answered,” he said. “It will lead to bigger things if people support it.”

Lee Palvetzian, who has pushed to have passenger rail service reinstated in Cambridge for more than 20 years, was “ecstatic” over the announcement.

“This will be a stepping stone to rail service if it gets the support we anticipate,” he said. “If the numbers are there, GO will expedite the introduction of rail service here. I’m very excited.”

Palvetzian said there has been a complete turnaround in thinking by government when it comes to passenger rail service.

“When we first started this thing, they weren’t very interested, but that has changed in the last few years. Government now wants to find ways to take cars off the road and help the environment,” he said.

While it may have taken years for government and GO Transit to recognize the potential of bringing GO service to Cambridge and Waterloo Region, Palvetzian said this area “is definitely on their radar now”.

He said the study prepared for Waterloo Region, which city and regional councils endorsed last week, clinched GO Transit’s decision.

“GO is now planning for service here. It’s no longer a matter of if, but when,” said Palvetzian. “I’d expect we’ll see rail service here within five years.”


http://www.newswire.ca/images/companies/gologo.jpg
Milton corridor GO Bus route and schedule changes, including new service to Kitchener-Waterloo and Cambridge
http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/October2009/14/c6303.html

TORONTO, Oct. 14, 2009 /CNW/ - Starting Saturday, October 31, we are introducing several changes to service on the Milton corridor, including the introduction of a new GO Bus service. Here are the highlights:

Milton - Bronte GO Bus Service changes

Starting Monday, November 2, GO Bus trips from Milton GO Station connecting with Lakeshore West GO Train service will run to the Bronte carpool lot, stop at the new bus terminal on campus at Sheridan College, and then connect with GO Train service at Oakville GO Station rather than at Bronte. Departure and run times for this service will be adjusted.

Change to Milton GO Bus service trip

Starting Monday, November 2, the bus trip that leaves Cooksville GO Station at 9:50 a.m. will be extended to include a stop at Square One at 9:35. There will be no change to the trip's scheduled arrival time at Union Station of 10:20.

New Kitchener-Waterloo/Cambridge GO Bus service starting October 31

We're introducing a new bus service to Kitchener-Waterloo and Cambridge, starting Saturday, October 31.

On weekdays, regular trips will run eastbound and westbound, serving the University of Waterloo, Wilfrid Laurier University, the Kitchener Bus Terminal, Cambridge SmartCentres, the Aberfoyle GO park and ride lot, a new Milton park and ride lot at Hwy. 401 and RRNo.25, and Square One GO Bus Terminal. Additional trips in the rush hours will offer connecting service at Milton GO Station to GO Train trips to and from Union Station.

The new service will run on weekends and holidays as well, with trips serving the Milton park and ride lot and Square One (not Milton GO Station).

For specific train and bus schedule information, please pick up a new schedule. The public can also call 416.869.3200, 1.888.GET ON GO (438.6646), or 1.800.387.3652 TTY, or check the Schedules section at gotransit.com.

GO Transit is the Province of Ontario's interregional public transit system linking Toronto with the surrounding regions of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and beyond. GO carries nearly 55 million passengers a year in an extensive network of train and bus services that spans over 10,000 square kilometres. GO Transit is a division of Metrolinx.


GO Bus coming to Waterloo
By Greg MacDonald, Chronicle Staff - Oct 14, 2009
http://www.waterloochronicle.ca/news/article/191461

GO Bus service is coming to Waterloo at the end of the month.
Starting Oct. 31, the bus will have stops at Wilfrid Laurier University and the University of Waterloo, as well as in Kitchener and Cambridge.

Buses will head to and from the Milton GO Station and Mississauga’s Square One.

Riders will be able to get on the bus at one of the two universities and travel into Union Station in downtown Toronto.

The cost of a one-way ride from Waterloo to Union will be $14.35, while a fare to Milton will be $8.75.

The ride to Milton will take just over an hour, while the trip to Mississauga is estimated at an hour and half.

From either of those stations, passengers can hop onto trains and continue on the GO system.

Regional chair Ken Seiling was pleased with the news, saying it will boost the region’s connections to the GTA.

“It’s great news, especially in Waterloo,” Seiling said. “I think university students, as well other people looking to commute, will be quite happy.”

The move also fits in with two of the region’s long-term goals — rapid transit to get riders around locally and GO Trains to get them in and out of the city.

“We see it all as part of a larger picture,” Seiling said. We want intermodal connections for (LRT) and the buses will start to build the ridership we need for GO Trains.”

Kitchener Centre MPP John Milloy also sees the GO Bus as a positive, but the move doesn’t mean that GO Trains are necessarily coming to the region.

“We’re building up ridership and components, but I always try to manage expectations,” Milloy said. “It’s a step forward but we still have a lot of steps to go.”

GO buses in Waterloo will run weekdays, with limited weekend service.

For more information, visit www.gotransit.com


UPDATE ON VARIOUS PROVINCIAL TRANSPORTATION INITIATIVES
October 27, 2009
http://www.region.waterloo.on.ca/web/region.nsf/8ef02c0fded0c82a85256e590071a3ce/99024C2D4749A1B085257658004BDF37/$file/P-09-078.pdf?openelement

...Rail-based alternatives are particularly important, and are achievable in light of the recently-approved expansion of GO Rail on the Georgetown line and the findings of the Cambridge to GTA GO Transit Rail Passenger Feasibility Study, which was presented in Report P-09-077 (October 6, 2009).

[UrbanWaterloo]

http://news.ontario.ca/images/ontario_logo.gif
GO Buses Arrive In Kitchener-Waterloo And Cambridge
October 30, 2009 8:30 AM
http://news.ontario.ca/mto/en/2009/10/go-buses-arrive-in-kitchener-waterloo-and-cambridge.html

McGuinty Government Provides More Green Transportation Options

GO Transit will begin bus service tomorrow between Kitchener-Waterloo and Mississauga with stops in Cambridge, Milton and Aberfoyle.

There will be 11 eastbound trips and 12 westbound trips on weekdays and limited weekend service from Mississauga Square One Mall to downtown Kitchener. Stops will include Wilfrid Laurier University, University of Waterloo, Cambridge SmartCentre, and the Aberfoyle park and ride lot.

At 6:35 and 7:10 a.m., eastbound buses will stop at the Milton GO Station, allowing riders to connect with the Milton GO Train service to Toronto's Union Station. At 5:22 and 6:28 p.m., westbound buses will leave Milton GO Station after the arrival of evening GO Trains from Union Station.

A park and ride lot is now open to commuters at the Regional Road 25 and Highway 401 interchange in Milton. Three additional park and ride lots will open as warranted to support the new Kitchener-Waterloo to Mississauga GO bus service.

QUICK FACTS

The joint federal and provincial GO Transit Improvement Program has committed $2.5 million to build four park and ride lots along the new bus service route. Construction will create 25 jobs.
Nearly 55 million riders a year travel on GO Transit buses and trains.
One GO bus can take about 50 cars off the road.



GO buses underway
November 02, 2009
By Jeff Outhit, Record staff
http://news.therecord.com/article/622897

WATERLOO REGION — Maureen Dooley took a bus Sunday to see her daughter in Mississauga and was pretty happy about it.

She was among the first passengers on the new GO Transit bus service that launched Saturday.

“It’s great. It’s about time,” Dooley said. “We really need it.”

Dooley and her husband Brian paid just under $25 for two return tickets to Mississauga, at the senior discount rate. The noon-hour bus took them from the Kitchener bus terminal on Charles Street to the Square One mall.

“We’ll be using it probably every other week,” she said. “We’re thrilled.”

There were 38 people heading to Mississauga on her bus Sunday. It was slightly more than half full, after collecting some passengers in Waterloo.

Driver Alexis Gene said there were about 25 people per bus on Saturday, fewer on Sunday morning.

Commuter service kicks off Monday. The provincial transit service expects its buses will eventually carry 800 to 1,200 passengers a day between this region and Mississauga.

GO buses stop at two Waterloo universities and in Cambridge at Hespeler Road and Highway 401. Other park-and-ride sites are planned.

The buses do not go directly to Toronto.

On weekday mornings, two buses take passengers to the Milton GO station, where trains leave for Union Station. Kitchener to Union Station takes up to two hours, 12 minutes.

Most GO buses end at the Square One transit terminal. This trip takes up to one hour, 22 minutes.

Buses are pitched as a precursor to GO trains, which are under consideration for this region.

Bruce Norgren is happy to see GO service arrive and would be thrilled to see trains extended here. He drives to the Milton GO station, on his daily commute from Waterloo to downtown Toronto.

But he does not plan to ride the GO buses to Milton.

That’s because there’s no parking where passengers are collected, and because his current commute would get even longer, perhaps by an hour or more per day.

“For the five-day-a-week working commuter, this schedule just does not work. It adds extra time,” Norgren said. He sees GO buses as catering to students and casual travellers.

Sunday bus passengers Graham Goulet and Ana Perunicic said they too would prefer trains over buses.

“It may be faster,” said Perunicic. She was taking the GO bus to visit a library in Mississauga.


GO service officially starts passenger service to GTA and Toronto
By Greg MacDonald, Chronicle Staff - Nov 04, 2009
http://www.waterloochronicle.ca/news/article/193463

GO bus service started in Waterloo Region last weekend and officials expect more than 800 riders to take the buses every day.
Buses started running to and from the GTA on Saturday morning, with service really ramping up Monday morning.

More than a dozen buses run from the University of Waterloo and Wilfrid Laurier on weekdays, while seven trips are offered on the weekend.

The buses travel to the Milton GO Station, Square One Mall in Mississauga and Union Station in downtown Toronto.

At a service launch last Friday at the Kitchener transit hub on Charles Street, Ontario’s transportation minister Jim Bradley said the service will help reduce the number of cars on the road.

“Instead of idling in traffic, commuters will have more options,” Bradley said.

Kitchener Centre MPP John Milloy, Bradley’s fellow cabinet minister, called the arrival of bus service a precursor to bigger transit moves.

Bus service could be the first step towards GO trains coming to the area, Milloy said.

There is currently an environmental assessment being undertaken by GO Transit looking at whether trains are warranted for the area.

Bus ridership will be a factor in that decision.

GO service will help bolster Waterloo Region’s economy by attracting employees for the high-tech sector, Milloy added.

Regional chair Ken Seiling applauded the move and said it was the first of many transit changes the area will see.

“This is the first real sign in a quantum shift in the approach to transit in this region,” Seiling said.

Added connectivity to cities outside the region is a keystone in the region’s transit plan, he said.

“This not only provides access to the GTA, but gives the GTA access to us,” Seiling said.

For a full schedule and more information about Waterloo Region GO service, visit www.gotransit.com .

[UrbanWaterloo]

http://www.gotransit.com/publicroot/en/images/topLeft_full2.gif
Kitchener-Waterloo GO Bus service changes starting Saturday, January 2 [2010]
http://www.gotransit.com/PUBLIC/en/news/whatsnew.htm

Starting Saturday, January 2, we will add a few more trips to the Kitchener-Waterloo GO Bus service. We will also adjust times on weekday, weekday, and holiday service to better reflect actual trip times. Highlights of service changes and improvements include:


New Friday only eastbound bus trips will leave from the University of Waterloo at 12:30 p.m., 2:25 p.m., 3:20 p.m., 4:20 p.m., 5:20 p.m., and 7:30 p.m., running express to the Square One GO Bus Terminal.
New Sunday only westbound bus trips will leave from Square One GO Bus Terminal at 3:55 p.m., 5:55 p.m., and 7:55 p.m., running express to the University of Waterloo.
The weekday eastbound bus trips that leave from the University of Waterloo at 5:25 a.m. and 5:40 a.m. will now stop at the Milton Park & Ride carpool lot one minute earlier at 6:26 a.m. and 6:41 a.m.
The weekday eastbound bus trip that leaves from the University of Waterloo at 5:55 a.m. will now stop at the Milton Park & Ride carpool lot four minutes earlier at 6:56 a.m.
The weekday eastbound bus trip that leaves from the University of Waterloo at 6:35 a.m. will now leave five minutes earlier at 6:30 a.m. Some other stop times will be adjusted.


Many other times along the Kitchener-Waterloo bus route have been adjusted, including earlier departure and arrival times to reflect actual travel times. For more information, please visit the Schedules section or pick up a new schedule at your station.


GO Transit launches six more eastbound routes between UW and Mississauga’s Square One
December 30, 2009
By Melinda Dalton, Record staff
http://news.therecord.com/article/649667

WATERLOO REGION — GO Transit is rolling out more options for travellers looking to head to Mississauga for the weekend.

Starting on Saturday, GO is expanding its Kitchener-Waterloo route to include six more eastbound trips between the University of Waterloo and Square One mall in Mississauga on Friday afternoons as well as three new trips from the mall back to the university on Sundays.

“Students are our customers so we try and service wherever the demand is,” said GO Transit spokesperson, Robin Alam.

The commuter service started offering bus trips from the region to Mississauga and the Milton GO train station in October.

November ridership numbers show that about 325 people a week on average are using the buses, the majority heading to the Mississauga terminal.

December ridership numbers haven’t been released.

“It is meeting our expectations,” Alam said. “We’re happy people are taking advantage of it.”

In addition to the expanded trip schedule, changes will also be made departure and arrival times of existing trips starting Saturday. The changes were made to better reflect actual travel time, Alam said.

GO Transit consistently analyzes ridership and route data and makes schedule adjustments about four times a year, he said.

GO buses currently pick up and drop off riders at four stops in the region:

* University of Waterloo, at the Davis Centre bus station on the east ring road.

* Wilfrid Laurier University, at the iXpress stops at University Avenue and Hazel Street

* Kitchener at Charles Street transit terminal

* Cambridge at the Wal-Mart power centre, Hespeler and Pinebush roads, at the iXpress stops.

GO also operates express buses that travel direct from University of Waterloo to Mississauga.

A one-way ticket to Union Station via Milton cost $14.35. A ticket to Mississauga costs $11.85.

For a schedule, see GO Transit’s website at www.gotransit.com.

[Spokes]

From GOKW.org:


While residents of Guelph, Kitchener-Waterloo and Acton await the decision (yes or no) regarding the westward GO Train expansion from Georgetown, GO is already calling for tenders regarding a temporary layover facility. The following was found on the GO Tender call section of their website.

http://steve.hostovsky.com/go_kitchener_quote.pdf

…. meanwhile the politicians have yet to make an official announcement. Thoughts? Thanks to Tom A/David G for the buzz.http://gokw.org/?p=191


I didn't think a layover site had been chosen? The last I remember they were considering Baden, but the people were in an uproar about it.

[mpd618]

I didn't think a layover site had been chosen? The last I remember they were considering Baden, but the people were in an uproar about it.
The final EA report (http://gotransit.com/PUBLIC/en/news/ea/georgetown-kitchener/ea_georgetown-kitchener.htm) says the layover site chosen is Nafziger Road in Baden.

[jay]

It's a decent spot there is no homes for the most part. Just the Waterloo Oxford Highschool and a church.

[Spokes]

The final EA report (http://gotransit.com/PUBLIC/en/news/ea/georgetown-kitchener/ea_georgetown-kitchener.htm) says the layover site chosen is Nafziger Road in Baden.

Oh I didn't know that. Thanks for posting that!

Bauer123, you're right. It is a good spot. I always liked the Baden spot, but this is good too, and it's away from the Baden subdivision. Now those living in Baden can take GO into town rather than driving on 7/8!

So when will we get a final yes or no? It's the province that gives the final verdict right?

[mpd618]

Now those living in Baden can take GO into town rather than driving on 7/8!
Not quite yet. The proposed stations are at Georgetown, Acton, Guelph, Breslau, and Kitchener. They're setting aside land for a future station, but it won't be there at the beginning of operations.


So when will we get a final yes or no? It's the province that gives the final verdict right?
Right. GO's site says (http://gotransit.com/PUBLIC/en/news/projectsandstudies.htm#kitchenerwaterloo) this:

"Project Stage: The environmental study report resulting from the environmental assessment will be filed for public review for a 45-day period from July 23 to September 7, 2009.
Schedule: Following the public review period, the Province of Ontario will determine support for the project and timelines for expansion."

So I don't know that there's any reason for further delay. Someone should probably just call them to get the final word on the current status.

[YKF]

The fact that GO has issued a tender regarding construction of a layover facility probably means that the province will announce an extension of the Georgetown line.

[Spokes]

Not quite yet. The proposed stations are at Georgetown, Acton, Guelph, Breslau, and Kitchener. They're setting aside land for a future station, but it won't be there at the beginning of operations.

Right. GO's site says (http://gotransit.com/PUBLIC/en/news/projectsandstudies.htm#kitchenerwaterloo) this:

"Project Stage: The environmental study report resulting from the environmental assessment will be filed for public review for a 45-day period from July 23 to September 7, 2009.
Schedule: Following the public review period, the Province of Ontario will determine support for the project and timelines for expansion."

So I don't know that there's any reason for further delay. Someone should probably just call them to get the final word on the current status.

Oh, I just figured they'd be able to get on there since it is the start/finishing point.

It'll be worth getting in touch with MPP's to see where things are at.



The fact that GO has issued a tender regarding construction of a layover facility probably means that the province will announce an extension of the Georgetown line.

I agree. Just a matter of when at this point. What construction needs to be done. The line itself should be all good right?

[mpd618]

What construction needs to be done. The line itself should be all good right?

According to the report, for opening day GO will need to spend $20m on the layover site, $43m on stations, and $62m on rail improvement (with another $29m by VIA). They will add signals, add and extend sidings, fix some low-speed areas, add a second track in some places, and upgrade crossings. For future frequent all-day service they'll need to spend another $300m+ on rail improvements.

[Spokes]

According to the report, for opening day GO will need to spend $20m on the layover site, $43m on stations, and $62m on rail improvement (with another $29m by VIA). They will add signals, add and extend sidings, fix some low-speed areas, add a second track in some places, and upgrade crossings. For future frequent all-day service they'll need to spend another $300m+ on rail improvements.

Wow, had no idea it was that much still. And $300m for all day service. Still a good investment.

[Spokes]

From http://transit.toronto.on.ca/archives/weblog/2010/01/08-go_transit.shtml:

GO Transit adds more bus stops in Kitchener
By Robert Mackenzie on January 8, 2010 3:39 AM

On Monday, January 5, GO Transit buses operating along the 25 Waterloo - Mississauga and 25A Waterloo - Milton routes started serving passengers from two new stops in Kitchener.

Westbound buses now pick up passengers on King Street East, just west of Dixon Street. Eastbound buses now drop off passengers on King East about halfway between Montgomery Road and Jackson Avenue at a pedestrian crossing.


I'm not entirely sure why they're doing this. GRT's route 7 runs right down there from the Charles St. terminal giving easy access.

[1231]

What a pointless bus stop.

[mpd618]

Everyone seems to be piling on this stop, but I don't see how it could be quite that bad. It's along the existing route, and isn't likely all that much delay per passenger. As for distance, it's 2/3 the distance to the Charles St. Terminal that Laurier is. Anyway, when I took the Greyhound to Toronto some morning, it stopped there to pick a couple of people up....

[Spokes]

Everyone seems to be piling on this stop, but I don't see how it could be quite that bad. It's along the existing route, and isn't likely all that much delay per passenger. As for distance, it's 2/3 the distance to the Charles St. Terminal that Laurier is. Anyway, when I took the Greyhound to Toronto some morning, it stopped there to pick a couple of people up....

I don't think its necessarily terrible. I just don't want to see something like this happening at other locations too. Wouldn't want to see this set a precident.

I have no problem with this if the person has their stuff with them. If they need to stop, get off and get stuff from under the bus, then it slows things down.

[jay]

GO trains endorsed, but not funded


WATERLOO REGION — Ontario has endorsed extending commuter trains to Kitchener and Guelph, but has provided no funding to make it happen and no launch date.

Environment Minister John Gerretsen approved the GO Transit proposal in principle Thursday.

If the cash-strapped province chooses to fund the service, residents could see four trains a day roll out of Kitchener, heading east to Union Station in Toronto. Four trains would return in the afternoon and evening.

Passengers would use the Via Rail station in downtown Kitchener and also a proposed park-and-ride station on Greenhouse Road near Breslau. Trains would park west of Kitchener overnight but there would be no station on the west side.

“This potential rail expansion is dependent on government funding,” GO Transit spokesperson Vanessa Thomas said. “No timelines have been established.”

GO Transit has said trains could launch by 2011 for $153 million, to be shared partly by Via Rail. Future upgrades could cost a further $396 million.

“Everybody’s hope is that it’s done as quickly as possible,” said Chair Ken Seiling, of Waterloo regional government. He said regional government will encourage the province to fund the service.

GO buses arrived in the region last year. They shuttle residents to Mississauga and to the GO Transit train station in Milton.

The provincial transit agency estimates commuter trains to Kitchener could generate up to 5,000 daily trips on launch. Ridership could triple by 2031.

Most GO trains would take up to two hours to reach Union Station, on launch. They would be slowed in part by track restrictions.


This is unfortunate but at the same time 2 hors to reach union station is forever... They need to upgrade the tracks to make the service faster. I'm ok if they don't fund this right away and choose to fund the LRT, but if that doesn't get funded this should at least. The region deserves at least one.

[mpd618]

The minister only just signed off on the EA. A few weeks ago GO Transit actually solicited tenders for engineering of the layover facility in Baden -- which certainly indicates some confidence in the expansion. The province hasn't yet announced funding, nor would you expect that to have happened yet. But Jeff Outhit of course needed to spin this good news as actually being bad news. There is no reason to be pessimistic about this! However if funding commitments aren't forthcoming in the next week or so, it's not a bad idea to contact MPP's and other provincial officials to let them know why this is important to fund.

[Spokes]

Its funny you mention contacting MPPs as I emailed John Milloy last week. I think that's important too. I sure hope we don't have to pick between GO and LRT for funding right now.

[UrbanWaterloo]

GO's website got a makeover. Check it out! www.gotransit.com
8:39 AM Jan 27, 2010 from http://twitter.com/GetontheGO

http://i576.photobucket.com/albums/ss203/UrbanWaterloo/Transportation/GOTransitWebsite-February12010.jpg

[mpd618]

GO Transit website, now with photos of random people instead of the information you're looking for! (I thought the old site was just fine.)

[mpd618]

GO is now integrated with Google Transit. Just click the "public transit" when getting directions from A to B. Hamilton Street Railway and York Region Transit are already there, making integrated trip planning possible. GRT should be there later this year.

[plam]

GO's website got a makeover. Check it out! www.gotransit.com
8:39 AM Jan 27, 2010 from http://twitter.com/GetontheGO


Spacing Toronto writes about the new GO website:

http://spacing.ca/wire/2010/02/16/go-unveils-new-website-and-trip-planner/

[UrbanWaterloo]

http://www.gotransit.com/pcs_public/images/GO_ML_logo150x110.gif
Tender Call
Call For Request to Qualify and Quote
Request No.: RQQ-2009-RCI-076
Engineering Assignment for Temporary and New Kitchener GO Train Layover Facilities
http://www.gotransit.com/pcs_public/en/CurrentTenders/TenderAds/RQQ-2009-RCI-076.aspx

Metrolinx is accepting Requests to Qualify and Quote for Engineering Assignment for Temporary and New Kitchener GO Train Layover Facilities

A Mandatory Site / Information Meeting will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday March 4, 2010 at Metrolinx’s Head Office, 20 Bay Street, Suite 600, Toronto, Ontario (Attendees to meet at reception and wait to be directed to a meeting room). Failure of representatives to be present and registered from the time the meeting is called to order until the meeting is adjourned will result in exclusion from the site and subsequent ability to submit a bid. Delete this paragraph if not required

Requests to Qualify and Quote documents are available weekdays from 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. from Metrolinx’s Procurement and Contract Services Office at the address below. Tender documents are provided only in hard copy format. No electronic versions are available. Tender documents must be picked up in person and shall only be issued to persons who provide all of the following: company name, address, telephone and fax numbers and contact name and who reference the above Tender number. Call (416) 869-3600, ext. 5643 or e-mail sabrina.tecca@gotransit.com for inquiries.

Sealed Requests to Qualify and Quote will be accepted until 3:00 p.m. on Thursday March 18, 2010 at the same Procurement and Contract Services Office.

Only Consultants who possess the following experience and qualifications will be considered for award of this Contract:

Design and construction of railway passenger train storage facilities;
Design and construction of fuelling facilities;
Design and construction of high voltage sub-stations and wayside power system; and
Civil works, including grading and storm water management.

Metrolinx reserves the right to reject any or all Requests to Qualify and Quote at its sole discretion.

[UrbanWaterloo]

Metrolinx Board approves GO Transit fare increase
http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/February2010/19/c3254.html

TORONTO, Feb. 19, 2010 /CNW/ - At its February 19 meeting, the Metrolinx Board of Directors approved a fare increase and a more equal discount structure that will enable GO Transit to continue offering the best possible service and to meet the needs of its growing ridership.

The changes that will take effect on March 20 include two primary components:

a flat-rate increase of $0.25 that will apply to every adult single-ride ticket, regardless of trip origin and destination, and
a change to the discount structure for multiple ride tickets and passes so that these discounts will be equal across GO Transit fare zones. All 10-ride tickets offer a 7.5% discount over 10 single-ride tickets and monthly passes offer a 17.5% discount over 40 single-ride tickets.

"A fare increase this year will help to ensure that GO Transit can continue to offer high quality services to its riders in a fiscally responsible fashion," said Metrolinx Chairman Rob MacIsaac.

More information about current and new fares for specific trips and ticket types is available at gotransit.com.

This fare increase is in line with GO Transit fare increases from previous years, and with increases implemented by other transit systems.

GO Transit has one of the best cost-recovery ratios in the world in comparison to other transit systems. GO Transit has two major sources of operating revenue - customer fares, which will make up about 81% of operating costs for fiscal year 2010-11, and a provincial subsidy.

GO Transit remains a strong, high-quality travel option for residents of the Greater Toronto and Hamilton areas, offering financial, environmental, and lifestyle benefits over driving to work.

GO Transit is the Province of Ontario's interregional public transit system linking Toronto with surrounding regions of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). GO Transit carries nearly 55 million passengers a year in an extensive network of train and bus services that spans over 10,000 square kilometres. GO Transit is a division of Metrolinx, an agency of the Province of Ontario. Follow GO Transit on Twitter and Facebook.

[UrbanWaterloo]

Early layover station plans are a GO go
Transit provider issues call for tender on temporary layover station in Kitchener
By Doug Coxson, Independent Staff
Mar 03, 2010 - http://www.newhamburgindependent.ca/news/article/204058

GO Transit issued a call for tender last week seeking a consultant to design a new, temporary layover facility in Kitchener while a permanent layover station is built between Baden and New Hamburg. The temporary station would be used to store trains west of the downtown GO station the public transit provider hopes to have in operation as early as spring 2011.

If the province approves funding for extended GO service between Georgetown and Kitchener, the temporary facility would be used until a permanent layover facility can be built at a site next to the tracks on Nafziger Road. Construction of the permanent layover station could take up to a year to complete once purchase agreements are finalized, or an expropriation process is complete.

The proposal to extend GO service to Waterloo Region remains a proposal at this point — dependent on provincial funding.

Minister of the Environment John Gerretsen approved GO Transit’s Environmental Assess- ment in January based on a final Environmental Study Report on the project completed last July.

In a letter outlining his decision, Gerretson said “the proposed expansion of the rail service to the Kitchener area is seen as a benefit to the Region of Waterloo, its communities and its citizens. In addition, it was determined through earlier studies that there was a need to create other modes of transportation to accommodate future population and economic growth.”

The MOE’s approval denied a request made last fall that provided reasons the proposal should be subject to an individual environmental assessment.

Feasibility for the expansion cites significant population growth along the Georgetown-to-Kitchener corridor over the next 20 years. That growth will place significant demand on existing provincial and federal transportation infrastructure, specifically Highway 401.

Passenger volumes on GO trains in the study corridor are forecasted in the range of 2,300 to 5,000 daily trips in the short term and approximately 9,000 to 16,000 daily trips by 2031.

The Georgetown to Kitchener expansion is expected to cost an estimated $124 million, plus $28.5 million in contributions from VIA Rail, for the initial phase alone.

Future expansion to a full-service plan throughout the corridor will cost the province $550 million.

The Nafziger Road layover facility will cost the province $20 million for the initial phase of the facility to accommodate four trains. An additional $41 million will be required for future expansion at the site, including the construction of progressive maintenance bays and a “kiss and go” boarding station located south of the tracks near Brenneman Drive in Baden.

“We plan to provide more information to the community in the upcoming months,” said GO spokesperson Vanessa Thomas, referring to the call for tender and emphasizing the project is still dependent on government funding. “This call for tender is a strong indication that GO Transit is moving forward with our potential plans to expand our service to the Kitchener-Waterloo Region. We are excited at the possibility of expanding to the Kitchener-Waterloo Region.”

Among the reasons behind GO Transit’s preference for the Nafziger Road site, is its minimal potential for impact on the natural environment, a location that is “reasonably well removed from existing residential areas,” low potential for noise impacts, and the property’s ability to accommodate a future terminal station.

Initial public outcry over the location of the layover station came from residents in nearby subdivisions in Baden and New Hamburg and included concerns about noise, pollution, safety as well as impacts on home values and the surrounding environment. GO Transit attempted to appease concerns with a slate of studies demonstrating how the proposal fits the township’s designated land use for the site.

Enid Schmidt owns the property where GO Transit plans to build the layover facility.

[UrbanWaterloo]

No major changes for this area...
Apr 3, 2010 Schedule: http://www.gotransit.com/public/en/news/Table25.pdf

[Spokes]

I had emailed John Milloy a while ago to ask what the status was. I finally got a letter in the mail back. He either doesn't know or doesn't want to share the status. As much as I like him, I was a little frustrated to read through the full page letter to find out it didn't really answer my question, but that he would CC the Minister of Transport as well.

[me12121]

Who messed up and pasted a Milton GO Train/Bus schedule (rather than a Waterloo schedule) at the Laurier GO bus stop? Seems kind of useless to me.

[Spokes]

Welcome to the forum me12121

Ya I don't know why there's not a Waterloo schedule, but I could see a Milton train schedule being useful for those trying to get to union station.

[me12121]

Yeah, it would be useful if there was a Waterloo schedule to go along with it.

[DHLawrence]

Do the Mississauga-Waterloo buses have luggage space? I'll be moving to Port Credit for a while and plan to leave my car here, so I'll be limited in what I can bring home (except when taking the train to Kitchener).

[plam]

Do the Mississauga-Waterloo buses have luggage space? I'll be moving to Port Credit for a while and plan to leave my car here, so I'll be limited in what I can bring home (except when taking the train to Kitchener).

Yes, I've taken backpacks when going to the airport and put them under the bus.

Unfortunately, the Square One - Airport route is supposedly discontinued now.

[KevinL]

Unfortunately, the Square One - Airport route is supposedly discontinued now.

Yes, Metrolinx doesn't want to compete with Mississauga Transit (which now has an express Square One- airport route). Unfortunately this means paying the MT fare; at least the transfer is still at the same location.

[plam]

Yes, Metrolinx doesn't want to compete with Mississauga Transit (which now has an express Square One- airport route). Unfortunately this means paying the MT fare; at least the transfer is still at the same location.

The express route runs only at very limited times. I would've guessed that it had more to do with the fact that I only saw a couple of people ever take that bus.

I think the MT fare might be less than the GO fare, or about the same.

[mpd618]

The express route runs only at very limited times. I would've guessed that it had more to do with the fact that I only saw a couple of people ever take that bus.

And that in turn has to with the apparently low awareness of that GO route.

[Urban_Enthusiast86]

The express route runs only at very limited times. I would've guessed that it had more to do with the fact that I only saw a couple of people ever take that bus.

I think the MT fare might be less than the GO fare, or about the same.

It has to be marketing for the route. I'd have a hard time being convinced that the largest airport in Canada and the second largest employment cluster in the Greater Toronto Area are incapable of generating any transit ridership...as car-oriented as the area is.

[plam]

It has to be marketing for the route. I'd have a hard time being convinced that the largest airport in Canada and the second largest employment cluster in the Greater Toronto Area are incapable of generating any transit ridership...as car-oriented as the area is.

I'd believe that. Driving to the airport really sucks. GO is a much better way of getting there, and they used to run fairly frequently, but tailed off towards the end.

[UrbanWaterloo]

GO Bus service between The University of Waterloo and Square One start back up as of Sunday, June 27
June 15, 2010 | http://www.gotransit.com/public/en/news/whatsnew.aspx

Starting Sunday, June 27, the Friday, Sunday and holiday express GO Bus service between the University of Waterloo and Square One will begin operating. GO Transit is pleased to return this popular service and provide students with travel options between Waterloo and Mississauga.

For more information, check out the new schedule (http://www.gotransit.com/publicroot/en/PDF/Timetables/NextBoard/Table25.pdf).

33146132&access_key=key-1iqs9i7svyq1yz3qyfvv&page

[UrbanWaterloo]

When I was at the Kitchener Downtown Advisory Committee (http://www.wonderfulwaterloo.com/calendar.php?do=getinfo&e=451&day=2010-9-9&c=1) on Thursday, the members were talking about limited train service by the end of next year. I know this timeline has already been mentioned before, but it's good to hear officials are still talking about it.

[BuildingScout]

When I was at the Kitchener Downtown Advisory Committee (http://www.wonderfulwaterloo.com/calendar.php?do=getinfo&e=451&day=2010-9-9&c=1) on Thursday, the members were talking about limited train service by the end of next year. I know this timeline has already been mentioned before, but it's good to hear officials are still talking about it.

One of the great things about current GO service is that is stops at UW where it serves both RIM and UW employees. Would the service loose ridership if it became a train into Kitchener, far away from the bus station?

[Spokes]

I'd be a bit surprised if we did. I hope we see it though. I got a letter from the minister in charge of it (I forget he name) forwarded to me from John Milloy, it essentially said, first we need to wait for the rail work on the Georgetown corridor to be completed. Then it continued to say no decision has been made with regards with extending service to KW and then said, Waterloo Region just got a bunch of money for LRT which implied, GO might have to wait a little bit.

[smably]

One of the great things about current GO service is that is stops at UW where it serves both RIM and UW employees. Would the service loose ridership if it became a train into Kitchener, far away from the bus station?
We'd only be gettting trains for the peak-hour commuter trips, so we'd still have a lot of bus service -- e.g., on Friday afternoon when students go back to the GTA for the weekend. It's possible that GO could add a train-bus to shuttle passengers between UW, Laurier, and the train station too.

[Spokes]

We'd only be gettting trains for the peak-hour commuter trips, so we'd still have a lot of bus service -- e.g., on Friday afternoon when students go back to the GTA for the weekend. It's possible that GO could add a train-bus to shuttle passengers between UW, Laurier, and the train station too.

Definitely, it'd just require potentially altering their route to leave town and stopping at the train station, and later the intermodal station (which wouldn't require any route change from what they've got now)

[mpd618]

One of the great things about current GO service is that is stops at UW where it serves both RIM and UW employees. Would the service loose ridership if it became a train into Kitchener, far away from the bus station?

Considering that the route 25 bus goes to Mississauga, while the train wouldn't go anywhere near there, I suspect that they'd be keeping the bus around.

[MidTowner]

http://www.lfpress.com/news/london/2010/10/13/15682141.html

The London Free Press reported yesterday that the Mayor of Stratford has sent letters of endorsement to the province, in support of an extension of GO Transit to the city (some also made mention of upgrades to Highway 7/8).

Has anyone heard anything about this before? It is news to me that Stratford was looking at this- I wonder how far from reality it is. I think it would be a great development- the organization I work at has an office in Stratford, I know there are plenty of commuters between Kitchener and there, not to mention leisure travelers. An extension of the line to Stratford would logically mean more buses from the GTA for us here, too.

I wonder if anyone knows anything else.

[Spokes]

There was talk last year about them wanting GO extended. When there was all that fuss in Baden about the layover station being there the Mayor said extend it to Stratford and have the layover there.

I don't think its anywhere near happening. They'd have to do a full EA and everything. No time soon.

Eventually it needs to go to London too though, through Woodstock.

[WatDot]

Royal Bank and Scotia Bank are building multi-million dollar data centers in Stratford. They will be employing a lot of people. Glad to see the endorsements. Banks have A LOT of political influence. We need more of this influential push to have our tax dollars going to public transit. :RpS_thumbup:

[Duke-of-Waterloo]

While this would be great, I think it negates what GO Transit is (http://www.gotransit.com/public/en/aboutus/whatisgo.aspx) - an interregional public transportation system for the Greater Golden Horseshoe. If Stratford and London want in, I think it would be more logical to look at creating a more quick and convenient VIA Rail link, where passengers from Stratford and London can transfer to GO Trains in Waterloo Region. VIA of course would have to create a new form of commuter rail between cities in Southwestern Ontario. This would be more economical, quicker, and not as elaborate as current VIA Trains.

I just think if London and Stratford start pleading for GO service, eventually places like Belleville and Kingston will as well. If this happens, GO will have service extending outside of the Metrolinx jurisdiction and loosing its focus as strictly a GGH interregional transit service.

[Shawn]

I agree Duke. I personally think that KW is already pretty close to the "limit" of what I would consider a "commutable rail distance" to Toronto. Unless you're willing to spend a huge percentage of your work day on a train, I can't see how it would make any kind of sense to have a commuter train to/from Stratford or London. The only way I can see this being worthwhile is if GO is planning on making a direct or rapid train from either of those locations (which is ridiculous) so for a regular GO service with stops you're looking at 2+ hours (probably more like 3 hrs including all the stops) one way. Leave GO as the interregional transport system and have VIA step up their game and be the national carrier they should be!

[taylortbb]

I see a role for both GO and VIA when serving places like London. VIA is a great way to travel, their customer service is second to none, but it's also fairly expensive. I don't think VIA's organizational expertise is in being a value service, and trying to be both at once I don't think would be easy. GO however is good at moving people cheaply, they've got 12 car trains of double-decker seating. As a result VIA generally costs about double what GO does. Getting people out of their cars for inter-city trips is far easier than intra-city, people already dislike the 401 and have to plan trips in advance. The issue is that service is still too infrequent and too expensive. It's competitive for one person, but if you've got a family in a car then the car's cheaper. GO however is in a position to run hourly, or maybe even half-hourly trains from London to Toronto that are cheap. I think GO needs to shift away from being a commuter focused system. Commuters will always be a significant ridership group, but we need more non-commuter service. Getting VIA to increase service to those levels will be hard. Highways are provincially funded while VIA is federally funded. The federal government isn't know for large new spending projects to save the provincial governments money.

I think eventually we'll see a bigger differentiator when VIA becomes the operator of a future high speed rail system. That leaves GO running cheap conventional trains, but ones that are still competitive with the 401, while VIA runs premium service that gets you there in 1/3 the time.

[Shawn]

Do we really want to promote commuting for work from far flung communities? GO is primarily used for people commuting to/from work, whereas VIA is mostly used by leisure travellers (except in the near Toronto communities where I have heard some people take VIA to avoid the GO crowds).

I think the reason the 2 big banks (Royal Bank and Scotia Bank) building multi-million dollar data centers in Stratford is because land and development is cheap compared to the GTA. Also, the cost of living is lower and therefore the salaries they pay will be lower in Stratford. These banks don't intend to have their employees commute from the GTA to Stratford, they expect them to move to Stratford or hire new employees locally.

I know people will use the argument that people can use GO to commute between Stratford and KW for example, but honestly, will those numbers even fill 1 single GO rail car? Sure, there may be more than 60 people who commute daily, but there are many factors to consider. (1) Someone who works in Doon, or Toyota or in Waterloo at any RIM building, probably would still choose their car over GO. Why take GO to KW only to have to bus it for another 45 mins? (2) Why would I take a 7am GO train if I worked 10am-6pm? or any other off shift. GO doesn't cover anything but "office hours".

Here's a crazy idea! Have the province work with the feds to allow GO to connect a nice green GO rail car to the end of their VIA trains (for the Stratford & London routes) and work on enhancing the commuting schedule.

Sure GO sounds good, and I'm all for more public transportation, but adding GO to Stratford and London makes no sense to me. I don't think the number of commuters from these communities is large enough to warrant GO service and do we really want to promote people not living and working in their own community?

[plam]

I agree Duke. I personally think that KW is already pretty close to the "limit" of what I would consider a "commutable rail distance" to Toronto. Unless you're willing to spend a huge percentage of your work day on a train, I can't see how it would make any kind of sense to have a commuter train to/from Stratford or London. The only way I can see this being worthwhile is if GO is planning on making a direct or rapid train from either of those locations (which is ridiculous) so for a regular GO service with stops you're looking at 2+ hours (probably more like 3 hrs including all the stops) one way. Leave GO as the interregional transport system and have VIA step up their game and be the national carrier they should be!

The express VIA train from Toronto to London takes 2 hours, which is the same amount of time as the (very much non-express!) VIA train from Toronto to Kitchener. So if 2 hours is commutable rail distance, why wouldn't London be a good route for an "express GO service"?

Actually I think that getting from Toronto to London by train is quite doable already, it's just expensive. There are 8 trains every day, way more than we have here in Kitchener/Waterloo.

[Shawn]

The express VIA train from Toronto to London takes 2 hours, which is the same amount of time as the (very much non-express!) VIA train from Toronto to Kitchener. So if 2 hours is commutable rail distance, why wouldn't London be a good route for an "express GO service"?

Actually I think that getting from Toronto to London by train is quite doable already, it's just expensive. There are 8 trains every day, way more than we have here in Kitchener/Waterloo.

I don't think GO plans to run an "express" route from London to Toronto. If Stratford is getting GO, logically they would stop there, then probably here in KW, which would really impact the travel time.

Yes, VIA has an express train to Toronto, but remember Union Station is a VIA hub and it makes sense to have an express train going there. Leisure travellers to Ottawa, Montreal, Northern Ontario and even the USA, etc would use that train. Knowing now that VIA does have an express train to GTA makes my "crazy idea" of combining GO cars on VIA trains seem a little "less crazy".

It may be doable, but that leads us back to the question.. just because we can do something, does it mean we should do something? Trust me, I'm not anti transit, I'm just anti long distance commuting.

[plam]

Yes, VIA has an express train to Toronto, but remember Union Station is a VIA hub and it makes sense to have an express train going there. Leisure travellers to Ottawa, Montreal, Northern Ontario and even the USA, etc would use that train. Knowing now that VIA does have an express train to GTA makes my "crazy idea" of combining GO cars on VIA trains seem a little "less crazy".

I'm not sure if they're physically compatible or not. I guess that one could look that up on the Internet somewhere. But it sounds complicated to me.



It may be doable, but that leads us back to the question.. just because we can do something, does it mean we should do something? Trust me, I'm not anti transit, I'm just anti long distance commuting.

Sometimes people have to do it. But I'm anti commuting in general; I ride my bike 15 minutes to work. Having said that, people in France do commute surprisingly far on the TGV. It may be good for the economy to allow people to live in one place and work in another, but it may also be bad for urban life.

[mpd618]

It may be doable, but that leads us back to the question.. just because we can do something, does it mean we should do something? Trust me, I'm not anti transit, I'm just anti long distance commuting.

It doesn't make sense to be this prescriptive about transit without being similarly prescriptive about roads and highways. People already commute between Kitchener and Guelph, Cambridge and Mississauga, Stratford and Kitchener, etc. And the highways they use are all slated for expansion. So clearly our transportation system is not discouraging long-distance commuting -- quite the opposite, really.

But if they're already making the commute, it's a lot easier on the taxpayer and the environment if they do so on a GO train or bus. If sufficiently many people are commuting between two cities, we should be providing high quality transit instead of new and bigger highways -- perhaps even instead of existing ones. What difference does it make whether it's in the GTA? If it's not part of the GO mandate, then the mandate should be changed.

[taylortbb]

Do we really want to promote commuting for work from far flung communities? GO is primarily used for people commuting to/from work, whereas VIA is mostly used by leisure travellers (except in the near Toronto communities where I have heard some people take VIA to avoid the GO crowds).

I certainly don't want to be promoting commuting even from KW, never mind London, to Toronto. I just see GO as in a better position to offer value transit service in Ontario than VIA. I want GO to become less of a commuter system. Given GO's plan is to have all-day two-way train service on all lines I think GO is already moving away from being commuter centric. Don't confuse my advocacy for more GO service with a support of commuter oriented services.

[dunkalunk]

Eventually it needs to go to London too though, through Woodstock.

You wouldn't be able to access Woodstock from Kitchener without taking a detour south and crossing through Cambridge.

[DHLawrence]

Guelph Tribune: GO considering single GO departure to KW/Guelph in 2011, VIA Integration (http://gokw.org/?p=276)

* GO appears to be considering adding a single train in 2011 to start service, with no new platforms or parking required (use existing infrastructure)
* GO and VIA may decide to integrate, so ticket holders of VIA 86/7 and the possible GO train can choose which train to ride. This would give users two options for commuting to Toronto with a single ticket

Not much, but it's a start!

[jay]

I wouldn't worry about GO making KW a commuter train to Toronto. There is a mess of ownership over the lines which were sold years ago and even if they do extend GO to KW it will be slower than a car making it less attractive. It will be a process and I think will be used more for casual travel.

[KevinL]

I wouldn't worry about GO making KW a commuter train to Toronto. There is a mess of ownership over the lines which were sold years ago and even if they do extend GO to KW it will be slower than a car making it less attractive. It will be a process and I think will be used more for casual travel.

There are extensive plans already worked out to double the track from here to Georgetown, and also to upgrade the existing one. GO very much wants to make this a commuter route, and from what I've heard they're pushing hard with numerous stakeholders to get there.


You wouldn't be able to access Woodstock from Kitchener without taking a detour south and crossing through Cambridge.

Correct, Woodstock's nearest route is the Milton/Campbellvile/Cambridge line, it has no easy connection to the Kitchener/Stratford/St. Mary's line.

[mpd618]

I wouldn't worry about GO making KW a commuter train to Toronto. There is a mess of ownership over the lines which were sold years ago and even if they do extend GO to KW it will be slower than a car making it less attractive. It will be a process and I think will be used more for casual travel.

I'm not sure "worry" is the word I'd use. GO Transit has completed an EA for the extension to Kitchener, and they are dealing with the dispute over the North Mainline to be able to make the necessary infrastructure improvements. They've already bought up the land they need in downtown Guelph.

Most of the demand on the line would not be end-to-end. However, for those that do commute or travel to downtown Toronto, GO trains will be plenty attractive (http://www.tritag.ca/blog/2010/08/09/go-trains-to-toronto-will-be-competitive/), as I've written about at the TriTAG blog.

[Urban_Enthusiast86]

It doesn't make sense to be this prescriptive about transit without being similarly prescriptive about roads and highways. People already commute between Kitchener and Guelph, Cambridge and Mississauga, Stratford and Kitchener, etc. And the highways they use are all slated for expansion. So clearly our transportation system is not discouraging long-distance commuting -- quite the opposite, really.

But if they're already making the commute, it's a lot easier on the taxpayer and the environment if they do so on a GO train or bus. If sufficiently many people are commuting between two cities, we should be providing high quality transit instead of new and bigger highways -- perhaps even instead of existing ones. What difference does it make whether it's in the GTA? If it's not part of the GO mandate, then the mandate should be changed.

You read my mind.

If Waterloo Region ever becomes a 'bedroom community', it will be because of the 401, not the GO train. Even as it stands now, most of the GTA-bound commuting is to the western burbs, in employment districts that are poorly served by transit.

And some people act is if having the GO train here means our local economy won't continue to grow, which is just hogwash. It's pretty hard to have a true bedroom community of over 550,000 people unless that community has some serious issues that aren't enabling it to attract business.

[KevinL]

And, now, it seems, Stratford is hearing positive signs (http://www.lfpress.com/news/london/2010/10/15/15710356.html) from the province that things may eventually head their way. Which is great for all involved.

[GGHTransit]

They keep saying that GO rail service is coming next year. Whatever the reasons for the delays are, unless shovels start going in the ground for stations and track work, I'm doubtful it will hapen so quickly.

[DHLawrence]

Apparently they can do one train a day with existing infrastructure. I'd like to see that.

[jamesbow]

I don't think GO plans to run an "express" route from London to Toronto. If Stratford is getting GO, logically they would stop there, then probably here in KW, which would really impact the travel time.

Yes, VIA has an express train to Toronto, but remember Union Station is a VIA hub and it makes sense to have an express train going there. Leisure travellers to Ottawa, Montreal, Northern Ontario and even the USA, etc would use that train. Knowing now that VIA does have an express train to GTA makes my "crazy idea" of combining GO cars on VIA trains seem a little "less crazy".

It may be doable, but that leads us back to the question.. just because we can do something, does it mean we should do something? Trust me, I'm not anti transit, I'm just anti long distance commuting.

Thanks for the thoughtful post. A point that I would say in return is that, as others have noted, people are already commuting to work in Toronto from KW and places beyond. If they can't do it by train, they'll do it by car. I'd rather people lived closer to their places of work but, failing that, I'd rather they make the commute by public transit, if possible. Failing to provide the service prevents that, without addressing the root causes that are lengthening commuting times in the first place. It basically guarantees that long distance commuting will continue to happen, but it will happen by car.

There is no easy solution but a long slog. We need to dense up our cities. Toronto's Transit City plan and many of the Metrolinx LRT proposals are more about building up density along low density suburban routes than they are about downtown commuting. It's about shortening commuting distance rather than commuting times. Waterloo's regional LRT serves the same purpose.

But I still see GO Transit as being useful for a number of reasons. One, we're not going to eliminate long distance commuting, and we should try to move what we can onto more efficient rail and transit. Two, just because GO is primarily a commuter carrier doesn't mean that it has to be. Its intials stand for Government of Ontario, so it theoretically has a mandate to provide passenger rail service throughout Ontario. This may become more relevant once Ottawa's commuter rail system starts up. There is talk that it will be called "GO-East". I could see myself taking GO Transit to the Stratford Festival, or on day trips to Toronto, if the service was available. I'd generally like to go more places without a car, and I don't think we would be able to put a stop to such desires for mobility. Indeed, I think it would be a step back if we tried.

One aspect of GO's extension to Kitchener is that planners think that this could help GO serve _reverse_ commuters -- that is, people coming to work FROM Toronto TO Kitchener. Already that's an expansion on GO's current practical mandate, and I see that as a good thing.

...James

[Spokes]

I think that one thing to note is that the people from stratford/london might not be commuting to Toronto necessarily, but maybe to Kitchener/Guelph

[KevinL]

Apparently they can do one train a day with existing infrastructure. I'd like to see that.

Indeed they can; really all that's needed is to make sure the Kitchener and Guelph riders are on particular cars so they can step off on the existing platforms (too short at the moment for all-car departures). It's the logistics of bringing the empty trains back to the Georgetown yard (and back out here in the morning) that limits them to one train, until the Baden yard gets built.

[dunkalunk]

Indeed they can; really all that's needed is to make sure the Kitchener and Guelph riders are on particular cars so they can step off on the existing platforms (too short at the moment for all-car departures). It's the logistics of bringing the empty trains back to the Georgetown yard (and back out here in the morning) that limits them to one train, until the Baden yard gets built.

The rail distance from Stratford to Kitchener is 10km shorter than Kitchener to Georgetown. If one or two trains can be parked in the existing Stratford yard, and you don't have to climb the escarpment, then why not just save the gas? Or are there track upgrades or passing requirements that would make this impossible without having rail improvements?

[mpd618]

The rail distance from Stratford to Kitchener is 10km shorter than Kitchener to Georgetown. If one or two trains can be parked in the existing Stratford yard, and you don't have to climb the escarpment, then why not just save the gas? Or are there track upgrades or passing requirements that would make this impossible without having rail improvements?

That's a very interesting idea. Though I wonder if the issue with that wouldn't be political. It would be tough to bring the train there without stopping in Stratford, and then it would be politically difficult to abandon service and proceed with the Baden layover site and original plans.

[markster]

It should be noted that the idea of using the Stratford rail yard was covered by the Evironmental Study Report.
http://www.gotransit.com/public/en/docs/ea/georgetown-kitchener/Rail_Expansion_ESR.pdf
Search for "6.4.1.2"

Primary points against it were:
1) GO requires 1000 ft, while only 800 ft are available in the Stratford rail yard.
2) It would be more expensive to rip up the existing yard and rebuild than to build new.
3) Without actually extending service all the way to Stratford, it would add 20 miles of extra travel distance to get the trains to the yard and back.

Given that they aren't servicing Stratford, they have a well defined argument.

As for the rebuttal of "Well they should service Stratford!"
Stratford will get service in due time. GO Transit, simply committing to extend to KW, is more than doubling (http://maps.google.ca/maps/ms?oe=utf-8&client=firefox-a&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Stratford,+ON&gl=ca&ei=_1O_TPTqCsXNswb3o7nHDQ&ved=0CB0Q8gEwAA&hl=en&msa=0&msid=112337843087391091959.00049313db9890875ad4a&ll=43.550539,-79.928284&spn=0.668852,1.146698&z=10) the distance of the line already. This is a fairly risky proposition, and they're probably going to be running it as a loss-leader for years. They've done studies to justify the ultimate benefits, and they've decided they are comfortable with the KW distance.

Further, simply because Stratford is not getting trains does not mean they won't get service. When GO announced the expansion to KW, they quickly set up bus service that has connections to the Milton Line. I wouldn't be surprised if GO sets up a similar bus line to/from Stratford in the near future. Even a simple service that connects to two of the morning/evening trains.

[Spokes]

However, his government appears poised to launch commuter trains to both cities. Government news releases say cabinet ministers will visit Guelph and Kitchener Nov. 12 for major public transit announcements about trains.

Fingers crossed everyone!

[markster]

you forgot the debbie downer of the next sentence

Milloy is making the Kitchener announcement but would not confirm that his government will extend GO Transit trains from Milton, an approved plan that lacks funding.
Maybe the annoucement will be the funding?

[taylortbb]

Maybe the annoucement will be the funding?

Maybe, but it'd be for the Georgetown extension. The Milton extension is the one to Cambridge and they haven't even done an EA.

[Galtonian]

I concur. Lets hope that Kitchener and Guelph get their GO train service asap to compliment the existing VIA rail service :-). I support passenger rail service for all of our cities. Having said that, once Kitchener and Guelph get their GO trains, I hope the momentum doesn't stop there. The Region of Waterloo, municipalities and interest groups SHOULD be advocating hard for the funding to bring back passenger trains to Cambridge through GO to connect to Milton.

A battle since 1971, I cannot stress enough that Cambridge needs this asset badly and IMO Cambridge deserves it and the government should restore this piece of infrastructure that was taken away from the former City of Galt and the former Towns of Hespeler and Preston decades ago. There are lots of smaller municipalities that are served by VIA,GO or both so it's only fair that people of the region advocate for this. I hope the members of this forum support this initiative and perhaps groups like tri-tag can make a push after the Kitchener initiative goes through. A happy Cambridge = A healthier Waterloo Region :-)

Only time will tell, but if Stratford were to get GO train service over Cambridge...I'll leave that to your imagination but it won't be pretty.

I hope this is a positive funding announcement that will gain more momentum for other things in the Region :-)

[PMoney]

What time is the announcement?

[Galtonian]

The announcement will be at noon on CTV Southwestern Ontario. They hinted at the start of rail service to Waterloo/Wellington :-)

[markster]

It may have already been made?
CTV says they'll have coverage during news at noon. They've said it's GO Train related.

[edit] curses!

[markster]

On CTV's website


CTV Southwestern Ontario

Date: Friday Nov. 12, 2010 11:29 AM ET

GO Transit is expanding service between Waterloo Region and Toronto, adding trains to the existing bus service.

The trains are expected to begin service by the end of 2011, running between Toronto and Waterloo Region with stops in Guelph and Acton.

Ontario Transportation Minister Kathleen Wynne was in Guelph for the announcement Friday morning.

The service is expected to begin with two morning trains from Waterloo Region to Toronto, and two return trains later in the day.

Work on improvements to stations along the way, and to build a layover for the trains in Kitchener, is expected to begin shortly.

GO bus service to Toronto was launched just over a year ago, with a pledge that trains could soon be on track.

Two trains for now (late 2011).

[benjaminbach]

Here are some details live from the announcement from GOKW.org:

@ 2 trips per direction per day
@ 18 million dollar project
@ new kitchener layover facility
@ presto card/transit integration
@ first train at 6:15, second 7:30
@ compliment via service, 87 to remain

[KayDubya]

Great news! 570 news was reporting the funding announcement this morning but they believed it was for extended bus service.
Nice to hear trains are only about a year away now.:RpS_thumbup:

[Waterloo II]

Ohhh to be part of the GTA again :RpS_biggrin:

But seriously, awesome news. This was much needed to increase the livability of the region, never mind to stop the traffic congestion and pollution.

[markster]

Highway 7: $250,000,000
GO Transit: $18,000,000

[YKF]

Great News for the Region! The momentum should not stop here. Increasing the frequency of trains on this line is a must, along with an extension of the Milton line. I hope the tracks will see some sort of an improvement between Kitchener and Georgetown.

[Urbanomicon]

:party::banana::1244::beerchug::friday: That about sums it up. Great news!

[DKsan]

Maybe it's just me, who takes the GO Bus between Waterloo and Mississauga because of university, but don't you think GO could have planned these trains better?

Like having trains leave on Friday evening and arrive on Monday morning? My bus on Friday left a sizable crowd behind at both UW and Laurier.

[IEFBR14]

GO Transit Announces Two Trains To Guelph And Kitchener By End Of 2011 (http://transit.toronto.on.ca/archives/weblog/2010/11/12-breaking_g.shtml?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+transit-toronto+(Transit+Toronto+-+Weblog))
Government officials and local MPs gathered in Waterloo Region earlier today to announce that work would begin to extend GO Train service on the Georgetown line west to Kitchener, serving stops in Guelph and Acton. A total of $18 million in spending was announced to provide a storage facility in Kitchener plus new ticketing agencies and stations in Kitchener, Guelph and Acton.

The full press release, courtesy Canadian Newswire, is as follows:


GO Transit is expanding train service to Kitchener-Waterloo, Guelph and Acton

TORONTO, Nov. 12, 2010 /CNW/ - GO Transit will be expanding rail service on the Georgetown line to Kitchener-Waterloo, Guelph and Acton, with service scheduled to begin by the end of 2011.

“We are pleased to be offering GO train service to Kitchener-Waterloo, Guelph and Acton,” said GO Transit President Gary McNeil. “In partnership with the Province of Ontario and these regional municipalities, we can encourage existing commuters to leave their cars behind and use transit. This is also good news for existing Georgetown and Brampton customers who will have improved service as a result of this expansion.”

To begin offering train service by the end of next year, GO will be constructing new infrastructure - a storage facility in Kitchener and ticketing service at new stations in Acton, Guelph and Kitchener, as well as bringing an additional 54 new route-kilometres into to the system. This infrastructure will support two morning and two evening trains.

“This $18 million investment in expanded transit will ensure that the residents of Guelph, Acton, Kitchener-Waterloo and surrounding areas have more transit options when they travel between these communities or into the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA),” said Metrolinx President and CEO Bruce McCuaig. “We appreciate the continued support from the Province of Ontario to deliver Metrolinx’s important mandate to provide transit solutions.”

An Environmental Assessment (EA) for the expansion of train service from Georgetown to Kitchener-Waterloo was completed in 2009 and approved by the Minister of the Environment in January 2010.

GO Transit is the Province of Ontario’s regional public transit service linking Toronto with the surrounding regions of the GTHA. GO carries over 55 million passengers a year in an extensive network of train and bus services that spans over 10,000 square kilometres. GO Transit is a division of Metrolinx, the regional transportation authority for the GTHA.

There are still more details to come, such as whether this announcement covers a new station in Kitchener or the temporary use of the current VIA station (likely the latter), and whether or not a stop with ample parking will be built in Breslau. However, for residents in Waterloo Region who have been campaigning for more train service to Toronto, this announcement is something they have been waiting years for.

[smably]

GO is still very much a commuter-oriented system. They seem to believe that everyone commutes from southern Ontario into downtown Toronto is the morning and back out again in the evening. It will take a while for that mindset to change.

[zanate]

Pop quiz: What noteworthy local columnist wrote the following words less than a month ago?


But working commuters won’t abandon their cars until they have reliable trains.

Look for yourself. (http://news.therecord.com/article/798849)

Irony meter is pegged at 11.

[IEFBR14]

Pop quiz: What noteworthy local columnist wrote the following words less than a month ago?
The difficulty level on that one is, oh -11 ;)

BTW the GO map at the top shows the train going near YYZ. Anyone know how close? Is there a station nearby? (Added: Yes and Yes. Google Maps (http://maps.google.ca/local?f=q&h1=en&q=43.705,+-79.6382+(Malton+GO+Station)).)

I'm thinking along the lines that...
1. This could make for the possibility of GO train service between the region and YYZ.
2. It might also hook up with the proposed rail link between YYZ and downtown Toronto.
3. The combination of 1. and 2. could drive demand for this train enough to ensure frequent service, including on weekends.

[Urbanomicon]

I'm not sure if that station by itself is close enough to the airport to be useful without taking an intermediate bus or taxi. It is about 2km from the airport terminal, a long way when you're dragging luggage around.

[smably]

I quite liked Leeanna Pendergast's speech at the announcement today. She mentioned that it was Random Act of Kindness Day and gave her random act of kindness ticket from the Record (?) to Jeff Outhit. It was pretty funny.

[markster]

Comparing it to the proposed GO schedule in the EA (http://www.gotransit.com/public/en/docs/ea/georgetown-kitchener/VolumeII_Appendices/Appendixb.pdf):

Leave Kitchener @ 6:15; Guelph @ 6:43; Arrive Union @ 8:14
Leave Kitchener @ 7:30; Guelph @ 7:58; Arrive Union @ 9:45

[IEFBR14]

I'm not sure if that station by itself is close enough to the airport to be useful without taking an intermediate bus or taxi. It is about 2km from the airport terminal, a long way when you're dragging luggage around.
Actually 2.5km by car according to Google Maps. However it means that one could get a ride to the GO station in Kitchener, take the GO, then pay for a short taxi or shuttle bus hop to the airport. For many people that could be more convenient and certainly cheaper than using Airways Transit or drive/park at the airport.

The rail link to YYZ from Union seems to be another on again, off again political footballs with lots of NIMBYs in the way. Once they decide to go ahead and do it, I'd hope that they could also integrate the GO line and Malton station so as to make getting to/from YYZ easier for everyone, whether they're from Toronto or the boonies. This is the sort of thing that's taken for granted in Europe. But yeah, I know it's wishful thinking that makes too much sense to actually come about.

[metropolis]

I'm not sure if that station by itself is close enough to the airport to be useful without taking an intermediate bus or taxi. It is about 2km from the airport terminal, a long way when you're dragging luggage around.

Agreed but there is bound to be taxis handy when you pull in and 2km shouldn't cost more than $5-$6 and if GO tickets are priced well then that should easily beat the price of gas + parking + stress for many. Besides it would take just one enterprising company to offer a shuttle for when these train are scheduled to arrive and some Regional advertising and presto you have yourself a service. It will all come down to how well marketed this is by GO but the potential is there.

[mpd618]

I'm thinking along the lines that...
1. This could make for the possibility of GO train service between the region and YYZ.
2. It might also hook up with the proposed rail link between YYZ and downtown Toronto.
3. The combination of 1. and 2. could drive demand for this train enough to ensure frequent service, including on weekends.

GO took over the planning and operation of the rail link to the airport, and I believe connections to the existing GO train line were touted as a benefit of the new arrangement.

[markster]

BTW the GO map at the top shows the train going near YYZ. Anyone know how close? Is there a station nearby? (Added: Yes and Yes. Google Maps (http://maps.google.ca/local?f=q&h1=en&q=43.705,+-79.6382+(Malton+GO+Station)).)

I'm thinking along the lines that...
1. This could make for the possibility of GO train service between the region and YYZ.
2. It might also hook up with the proposed rail link between YYZ and downtown Toronto.
3. The combination of 1. and 2. could drive demand for this train enough to ensure frequent service, including on weekends.

Malton Station is often cited as a good station where a well defined rail link to the airport could be connected to.

However, Metrolinx has some difficulty in seeing GO as anything beyond a commuter service, and as such is instead going to launch a separate service that will run express from Union Station to the airport with a few intermediary stops. Hopefully this service will let you transfer at Malton, but we'll have to see how they decide to do it.

Urban toronto (http://urbantoronto.ca/showthread.php?3188-Georgetown-South-Airport-Rail-Link-Project) has a loooooong thread on it.

[ON-Inspector]

http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/single-view/view/toronto-airport-rail-link-negotiations-collapse/browse/5.html

construction has started on the pearson link, but it was and still is a dedicated line from Pearson to Union, with dedicated light rail style equipment. so the closest we may get to a direct link would be a mid-way station stop to switch from the GO train to the Link light rail. On the other hand, you could just ride the extra 20 minutes to Union, and then 20 minutes back on the Link.

For the Go trains here, look for a 2 track lay-by yard to be built on the North side of the tracks, between King and Park St.

[mpd618]

construction has started on the pearson link, but it was and still is a dedicated line from Pearson to Union, with dedicated light rail style equipment. so the closest we may get to a direct link would be a mid-way station stop to switch from the GO train to the Link light rail.
SNC-Lavalin (which backed out of the project) was going to operate refurbished DMUs, but it seems clear that GO will operate the service using their standard trains.

[SeekForth]

@ new kitchener layover facility


Anyone know where this layover facility will be?

[Duke-of-Waterloo]

Here's the official Press Release from the Provincial Government:

GO Train Service On The Way For Guelph And Kitchener-Waterloo Region
November 12, 2010 | http://news.ontario.ca/mto/en/2010/11/go-train-service-on-the-way-for-guelph-and-kitchener-waterloo-region.html

McGuinty Government Building Better Public Transit

The McGuinty government is building on the success of GO bus service to Guelph and Kitchener-Waterloo, bringing GO train service to the region. The Georgetown line is being expanded with stops in Acton, Guelph and Kitchener. Trains will be running by the end of 2011.

Inaugural service will include two morning trains to Toronto Union Station and two return afternoon trains.

Commuters will be able to use their PRESTO cards to get on the GO train in Guelph, Acton and Kitchener, seamlessly connecting them with other transit systems that are PRESTO-enabled.

GO will be commencing construction on a layover facility in Kitchener to store the GO trains and making improvements to the Acton, Guelph and Kitchener stations.

This project will create approximately 180 design and construction jobs and is part of the Open Ontario plan to create opportunities across the province.

QUICK FACTS


The McGuinty government is expanding GO Transit service to Guelph and the Kitchener-Waterloo area. The project is expected to cost $18 million.
In September 2007, GO Transit began a new GO bus service to the University of Guelph and the Aberfoyle Park-and-Ride. And on October 31, 2009 GO Transit began a new GO bus service to the Region of Waterloo, serving Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge.
Since 2003, the Ontario government has invested approximately $4.7 billion in GO Transit to improve service and expand routes. GO Transit moves 55 million riders a year.


Quotes


Our government is committed to public transit. Expanding GO Train service for Kitchener, Waterloo and Guelph commuters will make it even easier to take public transit and leave the car at home.

– Kathleen Wynne, Minister of Transportation


By expanding GO Train service to the Kitchener-Waterloo Region commuters will have more options and more time to spend with family and friends.

– John Milloy, Kitchener Centre MPP


This is great news. Commuters in Kitchener-Waterloo and throughout Waterloo Region will soon be able to take public transit to work, school or appointments. Our investments in transit are creating jobs and improving our environment.

– Leeanna Pendergast, Kitchener-Conestoga MPP

[Duke-of-Waterloo]

Anyone know where this layover facility will be?

I think it will be between Baden and New Hamburg.

[SeekForth]

I think it will be between Baden and New Hamburg.

The proposed Nafziger road site? This is where I thought it would be, but I don't consider that to be Kitchener like the reports are saying.

[SeekForth]

I think it will be between Baden and New Hamburg.

Further to this, this is what the record article says:
The $18-million service excludes a kiss-and-ride commuter station near Breslau that was planned with a sizeable parking lot. Trains will park overnight in west Kitchener rather than at a permanent facility planned in Wilmot Township.

[Spokes]

Thrilled we've finally got a commitment that this is happening, and a timeline for it! Can't wait for this time next year!

[Spokes]

Maybe it's just me, who takes the GO Bus between Waterloo and Mississauga because of university, but don't you think GO could have planned these trains better?

Like having trains leave on Friday evening and arrive on Monday morning? My bus on Friday left a sizable crowd behind at both UW and Laurier.

Ya they're really targeting the 9-5 commuter here rather than the students. That could happen a year later (if that)

Is it your impression that most students take the bus and stop at Square One, or hook up with the train right to Union Station?

[Spokes]

GO is still very much a commuter-oriented system. They seem to believe that everyone commutes from southern Ontario into downtown Toronto is the morning and back out again in the evening. It will take a while for that mindset to change.

So when will there be trains coming INTO Kitchener? Just after work?

[markster]

Judging by the cost of the project, they probably aren't building the full layover facility they had planned for Baden.
The EA (http://www.gotransit.com/public/en/docs/ea/georgetown-kitchener/Rail_Expansion_ESR.pdf) roughed in costs at $150 million for Day 1. (page iii) This included the layover facility, station upgrades, and numerous small sections of double-tracking. The Layover facility itself would have been $19 million.

It sounds like they are doing the minimum amount of work possible to start running trains, just to get it started. I wouldn't be surpised if this is a result of the conflict with GEXR over upgrade cost-sharing. Maybe they're also seriously considering Stratford's offer of a layover site, and given the GEXR delay impacting day 1 levels of service, they can wait a bit and re-evaluate in the future.

[Spokes]

Anyone know where this layover facility will be?


Further to this, this is what the record article says:
The $18-million service excludes a kiss-and-ride commuter station near Breslau that was planned with a sizeable parking lot. Trains will park overnight in west Kitchener rather than at a permanent facility planned in Wilmot Township.

My guess is just past Ira Needles which I believe was an option before the Wilmot lot was decided on.

[KevinL]

My guess is just past Ira Needles which I believe was an option before the Wilmot lot was decided on.

If it's just a couple sidings for storage, yes, there's just enough room there.


Are these just weekday trains, or will they also run Saturday?

[markster]

There is no existing rail service on the Georgetown line on weekends, so that is unlikely to change.

Also, here's an interesting quote on Urban Toronto (http://urbantoronto.ca/showthread.php?4952-GO-Transit-Service-thread-%28including-Kitchener-extension%29/page114):

I'm reliably informed it's #1, with a twist.

With more layover slots now at their disposal in KW, they're cutting dead-head moves and are able to shuffle the morning schedule around a bit. Some morning trains only start at Bramalea because they're dead-headed into place, and that will change now that they can store trains overnight in Kitchener. Hence, there will be new departures from Georgetown, Mt. Pleasant and Brampton that don't exist currently. Afternoon will be just straight extensions of existing journeys.

Also, they can't run 12-car trains on Georgetown yet because the layover at Georgetown won't fit them, but the new layover in Kitchener will allow for those Kitchener-originating trains to be 12-packs.

[Waterlooer]

http://www.570news.com/news/local/article/128329--go-trains-coming-to-kitchener

GO Trains coming to Kitchener

Local commuters will be able to take a new train to Toronto by the end of next year.

The provincial government has announced $18-million in GO Transit funding that will see the Georgetown rail line expanded to Kitchener, with stops in Guelph and Acton.

The service will include two morning trains to Toronto Union Station and two return afternoon trains.

GO will be commencing construction to build a layover facility to store the GO trains in Kitchener. Construction will also begin to make improvements to the station locations in Acton, Guelph and Kitchener to support the expansion.

“I’m pleased that the many commuters from Waterloo Region will soon be able to take the GO Train to get them to their destinations. This means commuters have more options and more time in our community to spend with family and friends,” says Kitchener Centre MPP John Milloy.

This project will create approximately 180 design and construction jobs.

[smably]

Two GO-related tidbits, courtesy of Steve Munro:
Apparently (http://stevemunro.ca/?p=4584#comments) the temporary layover facility will be just west of King Street and will have space for two 12-car trains plus equipment.

More interestingly, GO has released an update (http://www.metrolinx.com/docs/Agendas/Nov16_10/5-GOElectrificationStudyUpdateFINAL.pdf) to their electrification study. Of the six options for corridor electrification, five include the Georgetown line all the way out to Kitchener. Could it happen -- electric rail in Kitchener?

[Urban_Enthusiast86]

Highway 7: $250,000,000
GO Transit: $18,000,000

I'm surprised it costs so little, yet it took so long to implement. The LRT pricetag looks hefty by comparison.

That said, I still support LRT and think it offers more value than GO trains do in their current form.

It would be nice to see all these recent 'fiscal conservatives' come out against highway 7 in the same way they came out against LRT, but I wont hold my breath. :RpS_rolleyes:


Ohhh to be part of the GTA again :RpS_biggrin:

Well that's it folks. Time for us all to delete our Wonderful Waterloo accounts and register at Urban Toronto. :RpS_razz:

[taylortbb]

Well that's it folks. Time for us all to delete our Wonderful Waterloo accounts and register at Urban Toronto. :RpS_razz:

I certainly hope we don't become a part of the GTA. Both because Waterloo Region has the strength to stand on its own, and because that kind of commuting should never be encouraged. Fortunately I don't think that's likely to happen, GO is just becoming an Ontario-wide service. If we become just another part of the GTA I might as well move back to Toronto.

[Urban_Enthusiast86]

I certainly hope we don't become a part of the GTA. Both because Waterloo Region has the strength to stand on its own, and because that kind of commuting should never be encouraged. Fortunately I don't think that's likely to happen, GO is just becoming an Ontario-wide service. If we become just another part of the GTA I might as well move back to Toronto.

I was trying to make a joke, but it can be difficult to convey that over the internet sometimes. In hindsight, I should've used the :RpS_wink: emoticon instead.

[Newgrad]

I really hope they get Saturday service going... I've been dreaming of taking the GO train to Jays games for years! The traffic out of the Rogers Centre is horrific and it would be fantastic to just hop on a train and get home :RpS_rolleyes:

I hope that they will be able to move to Saturday service on the line now that they have significantly increased the population base that will use the line.

[KevinL]

I'm surprised it costs so little, yet it took so long to implement. The LRT pricetag looks hefty by comparison.

That said, I still support LRT and think it offers more value than GO trains do in their current form.

In their current form, yes. The advantage of GO trains is their upgradability; we can start with these twice-daily deisels, and (hopefully, all going well) in a decade or two have all-day EMUs, with a smooth transition from stage to stage. I can't wait to see what's ahead.

[Spokes]

I really hope they get Saturday service going... I've been dreaming of taking the GO train to Jays games for years! The traffic out of the Rogers Centre is horrific and it would be fantastic to just hop on a train and get home :RpS_rolleyes:

I hope that they will be able to move to Saturday service on the line now that they have significantly increased the population base that will use the line.

Yes!!! I hate post Jays game traffic.

I can't imagine they'll do without saturday service for THAT long.

[taylortbb]

I was trying to make a joke, but it can be difficult to convey that over the internet sometimes. In hindsight, I should've used the :RpS_wink: emoticon instead.

Don't worry, I got your joke, I probably should have quoted Waterloo II. The comments were more general, being associated with the GTA would not be good for this region.

[IEFBR14]

If we become just another part of the GTA I might as well move back to Toronto.
You can jump from the frying pan into the fire. I'll just move further west (back to Kent County) :RpS_tongue:

[IEFBR14]

Metrolinx looks at buying Japanese for air-rail link (http://www.thestar.com/article/890582--metrolinx-looks-at-buying-japanese-for-air-rail-link)
It could be Japanese diesel trains made in the U.S. running up the track from Union Station to Pearson airport when Toronto finally launches its long-awaited air-rail link in 2015.

Heavy rail locomotives are exempt from Ontario’s 25 per cent Canadian content requirements and Metrolinx, which is building the air-rail link, is considering piggybacking on a California order for trains made by Sumitomo Corp. of America.

“No one in Canada makes these vehicles. In Canada you can buy light-rail vehicles through Bombardier. We do not have a buy-Canada kind of requirement,” said Metrolinx President Gary McNeil, who is leading the air-rail project until a new executive is hired, probably in January.

The Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) agency, which is building a 70-mile commuter service north of San Francisco, is expected to order nine two-car trains from Sumitomo for about $60 million next month.

“They were actually looking for a vehicle exactly like us. They have an option in there for buying additional vehicles. So we were looking at tying on to their request for proposals,” said McNeil, who will deliver an update on Toronto’s $300 million airport train project on Tuesday to the Metrolinx board.

The Sumitomo trains have relatively small engines that are on the vehicles themselves, unlike GO trains, where the locomotive pulls unpowered coaches. The single-level trains would run with two cars, each with 64 seats.

Metrolinx is expected to finalize a 36-month delivery of vehicles by Feb. 6. The Sumitomo trains will be Tier 4 diesel — the latest environmental standard that comes into effect across North America next year.

But the air-rail service could be converted to electric trains later, said McNeil.

Toronto’s Clean Train Coalition of residents and businesses living along the Georgetown GO corridor, which would also carry the airport shuttle, have resisted the idea of buying new diesels of any kind, arguing that transit officials would be unlikely to support converting to electric soon after such a purchase.

The Metrolinx board will also receive an update Tuesday on a comprehensive study of the costs and implications of electrifying the entire GO train network, including the controversial Georgetown line.

SNC Lavalin, a private company that was expected to build and operate Toronto’s air-rail link, had laid much of the groundwork on procuring vehicles, said McNeil.

Metrolinx took over the long-anticipated project last summer because SNC couldn’t finance it.

The airport shuttle will see about 140 trains running between Union Station and Pearson for about 20 hours each day, at 15-minute intervals. It is scheduled to begin service in spring 2015 in anticipation of the Pan American Games that summer.

Fares probably won’t be set until 2014. But the 25-minute trip isn’t designed for commuters. It’s seen as a premium service that will appeal mostly to tourists and business travelers — at least 5,000 a day within the first five years of operation, according to McNeil.

“Five thousand is the ultra-low conservative number. We think the numbers will be better than that,” he said.

The airport train will travel up the Georgetown GO line and off on a 3-kilometre spur that will run into the airport and connect directly with the Pearson people-mover.

The biggest challenge to completing the air-rail link on time, according to McNeil, will be finishing the track expansion on the main Georgetown corridor, which is already underway.

[SeekForth]

I really hope they get Saturday service going... I've been dreaming of taking the GO train to Jays games for years! The traffic out of the Rogers Centre is horrific and it would be fantastic to just hop on a train and get home :RpS_rolleyes:

I hope that they will be able to move to Saturday service on the line now that they have significantly increased the population base that will use the line.

I used to drive to Milton and take the GO Bus just to avoid this (before Waterloo had service), would definitely love to take in some Jays games with a cheaper train option than VIA.

[IEFBR14]

http://license.icopyright.net/rights/assetContent.act?id=2825705
Rail link to Pearson won’t be electric by Pan Am Games (http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/toronto/rail-link-to-pearson-wont-be-electric-by-pan-am-games/article1801419/)
There’s no way the long-promised express rail line to Pearson airport can be electrified in time for the service’s Pan Am Games debut, the president of Metrolinx has confirmed.

Instead, the province’s regional transportation agency is moving forward with a plan to buy diesel trains – possibly from a Japanese company – for the line, a blow to some residents and business owners who live along the route.

A group of west-end activists calling itself the Clean Train Coalition, which protested outside Metrolinx’s board meeting Tuesday, had hoped an ongoing $4-million study of electrifying the GO train system would recommend the air-rail link be electrified before it opens in 2015 – despite Metrolinx never making such a commitment.

“The simple message [is] it can’t be electrified in time for the Pan Am Games,” said Metrolinx president Gary McNeil, who is also overseeing the air-rail link.

Mr. McNeil said it would be impossible to complete an environmental assessment, obtain the approvals to build a hydro substation to power the line and test the new system in less than five years.

The year 2018 is the soonest GO’s Georgetown corridor and the three-kilometre spur to the airport along which the 25-minute shuttle service will operate could be electrified, he told the board.

Toronto has been waiting years for train service that could whisk travellers from Pearson International Airport to downtown. The federal government formally kick-started the project in 2003. Then engineering giant SNC-Lavalin was brought in to build and operate the line at no cost to the public purse.

SNC-Lavalin bowed out last summer because it couldn’t finance the project. Metrolinx took over, vowing to open the shuttle service by the spring of 2015.

The transportation authority is aiming to finalize by Feb. 6 the terms of a contract for diesel trains for the air-rail link. It hopes to award the contract by next fall. The vehicles could be converted to electric in future, Mr. McNeil said.

One option is piggybacking on a Japanese train order that the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit Agency is expected to make next month. The northern California agency is looking at cleaner Tier 4 diesel two-car coaches, similar to the trains Metrolinx is eyeing.

“That contract should not happen,” Rob Fairley, a member of the Clean Train Coalition, said during the meeting. The Parkdale resident and his group argue that Metrolinx should order electric trains off the bat, rather than buying diesel and holding out the possibility of converting the line to electric in the future.

An update to the ongoing electrification study presented to the board meeting suggested that converting some or all of the GO system to electric might not be as expensive as originally thought.

The board will look at six options for electrifying the system in the new year, none of which currently have dollar figures or potential timelines attached. That information is expected to be included in the completed electrification study, which is slated to be made public in January.

[DHLawrence]

Hands up if you're surprised. For this line to have been electrified by 2015 they should have started the EA in 1990.

[IEFBR14]

http://1.gravatar.com/avatar/937e599a941a6ea61dd8fadaf0d9116f?s=80&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nationalpost.com%2Fimages%2Fico ns%2Ffavicon-80x80.gif&r=G

How to build a rail link to Pearson (http://news.nationalpost.com/2010/11/17/how-to-build-a-rail-link-to-pearson/)

http://nationalpostnews.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/to1117_georgetownroute-eps.jpg?w=620&h=783


A decades-long plan to launch a train service between Toronto and Pearson International Airport has become “job one” at the regional transportation agency known as Metrolinx, with officials underscoring a pledge to have it running in time for the Pan Am Games in 2015. But considerable opposition remains over the diesel-powered system that critics say should be electric. Officials insist that can’t be done by 2015. The Post’s Natalie Alcoba examines some of the finer points.

What is the link?

Described as a “premium” 25-minute service that connects Pearson airport with GO stations at Weston, Bloor and Union, the Air Rail Link will operate a two-coach shuttle on the tracks used for the Georgetown South service. It will run every 15 minutes, is expected to move 5,000 passengers a day when it launches, and will add 140 trains to tracks that currently see 23 to 45 trains go by. Government officials have long touted it as a way to reduce gridlock. It is expected to cost $300-million, and fell to Metrolinx to see through after private firm SNC Lavalin couldn’t get the financing it needed. GO Transit is also spending $875-million to upgrade its infrastructure on the Georgetown South corridor by adding tracks and widening bridges.

The Spur

In order to feed into Pearson, Metrolinx will have to build a three-kilometre “spur” that extends from the GO line at Highway 427, and weaves into the airport grounds. GO president Gary McNeil described it as a “very complex construction process” that will have to mind airport co-generation plan and utility locations along the way, along with an existing people-mover system on the airport grounds.

The vehicles?

Metrolinx announced Tuesday it will piggyback on another transit agency’s bid process and enter into formal negotiations to purchase up to 18 diesel locomotives for the link. The locomotives will meet stringent Tier 4 emissions standards, Metrolinx said in a statement, and will be convertible to electric in the event that Metrolinx decides to electrify the service. “We’re looking at up to 18 because we’re looking at 12 vehicles on opening day and we want an option to buy additional vehicles in the foreseeable future so we can take advantage of the very competitive price for those vehicles,” said Gary McNeil, president of GO Transit. Sumitomo Corporation of America, whose parent company is headquartered in Japan, is being considered for the award of a contract to produce DMU vehicles for Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit outside of San Francisco, at a cost of $3.1-million a vehicle, said Mr. McNeil. The next bid was $4.5-million. Mr. McNeil said Sonoma-Marin had a “very, very competitive” bid process, took ads out in all major newspapers soliciting proposals and ultimately had five to choose from.

Why can’t an electrified version be completed by 2015?

GO president Gary McNeil provided list of reasons why: “If we actually could electrify the system we’d actually need to test and commission the actual system for probably six-to-nine months. When we’re actually talking about construction finishing, you’re almost looking at a year before when you need the service in place. And we still need to do an environmental assessment associated with electrification. There are impacts associated with electrifying any rail corridor … also Ontario Hydro will actually have to locate a substation location. They’ve indicated to us that can sometimes take up to four years to get the approval process located with a substation because a lot of people don’t want major substations located in their neighbourhood … we’re looking at significantly more than five years.” When pressed for a date, Mr. McNeil said it could possibly be electrified by 2018.

Why the opposition?

Fifty-plus people showed up at a Metrolinx board meeting Tuesday to protest the diesel-powered link. “We want electric trains, not diesel trails. We’re not here to disrupt the meeting, we just want to make sure you know where the community stands,” said Rob Fairley, a member of the Clean Train Coalition and a resident of Parkdale. The Clean Train Coalition raises environmental and health concerns associated with dramatically increasing the number of diesel trains that will roar through several west-end neighbourhoods, including Parkdale, Weston and North Etobicoke, even though Metrolinx assures the public the expansion falls “within the acceptable limits for almost all of the emissions categories evaluated.” The Clean Train Coalition says diesel trains on the Air Rail Link will emit more pollution per person than private cars, while Metrolinx officials said the calculation is based on old diesel technology. “They seem to be ignoring us,” said Mike Sullivan, Coalition co-chair.

The power of a deadline

Depending on whom you ask, a 2015 deadline for the air-rail link is a blessing or a curse. Certainly, in the seemingly caterpillar pace of transit improvements (Metrolinx operates on 10- and 25-year timelines), 2015 seems close enough to touch. But people who live along the train corridor insist there is “no excuse” for the expansion of diesel trains. “We shouldn’t be stuck with decades of diesel in the name of two weeks of transit for the Pan Am games,” said Mr. Fairley from the Clean Train Coalition. Metrolinx chairman Robert Prichard said the project has already seen years of delays, and “there is impatience from the public to have this service.”

[Spokes]

Thanks for finding this article!!

There's no reason there wouldn't be a GO link to Pearson, Im surprised it's taken this long.

We would have access to this then right?

[IEFBR14]

There's no reason there wouldn't be a GO link to Pearson, Im surprised it's taken this long.I'm also surprised that GO wasn't electrified years ago or that at least they'd started the process years ago.


We would have access to this then right?The issue, as someone above mentioned, is that spur line. Assuming the Waterloo to Union GO train will stop at the existing Malton station, the Union to Pearson GO would also have to stop there so you could transfer and schlep your luggage from one train to the other.

A better solution would be for the Waterloo GO to also take the spur (or a different spur) that goes to Pearson. That might even mean that the Malton station would be effectively replaced by the one at Pearson. Depending on what other bus service is available at Malton today, that might even mean that those bus routes would also terminate at Pearson. That would be an additional bonus for those riders.

But then you'd also have to deal with secondary issues like electrification (what if only Pearson to Union is electrified) and the imbalance between number of passengers going to Pearson from Union and the number from Waterloo. You could deal with the former by having locomotives that run on electricity when it's available overhead and diesel when it's not. You could deal with the latter by, say, having 3 trains per hour that run only between Union and Pearson with an additional train that runs Union to Pearson to Waterloo.

[Spokes]

I'm also surprised that GO wasn't electrified years ago or that at least they'd started the process years ago.

Can you, or someone else, explain the whole electrification issue? Right now it's deisel? And going to electrified would...?

[IEFBR14]

And going to electrified would...?
I'm no expert but off the top of my head, electricity is...
1. Cheaper
2. Cleaner
3. Quieter
4. Faster (Are there any diesel powered high speed trains anywhere in the world?)
5. More flexible (Commuter trains in Europe are light enough that each can have its own engine built in so there's no need to shunt locomotives around. I believe this is also how subways, including TTC, work.)

Europe has been electrified for decades. They switched from steam. The only diesel I've seen over there are maintenance vehicles who presumably need to run when there's a catenary outage (think ice storm.) I believe Japan is the same. What do they know that we continue to choose to ignore? I appreciate they can better justify electrification because of higher population densities but surely the Golden Horseshoe's population is sufficiently dense to qualify.

[taylortbb]

The issue, as someone above mentioned, is that spur line. Assuming the Waterloo to Union GO train will stop at the existing Malton station, the Union to Pearson GO would also have to stop there so you could transfer and schlep your luggage from one train to the other.

The airport train won't stop at Malton, but it will stop at Weston. Weston isn't far from the airport and it's not much of an over-shoot to transfer there.

The issue with electrification is that it's only cheaper when you have high enough service that the per-trip savings offset the high installation costs. Lakeshore and Georgetown lines it's clear this is the case, it's not so clear for other GO routes.

Faster is true. There are no diesel high-speed systems that I am aware of, though there are a few natural gas ones.

Having MU trains where each car has its own engine can be done for diesel or electric. They're called DMU or EMU. MU vs locomotive operation is a case of optimized for different situations, one isn't inherently better than the other.

[markster]

I'm no expert but off the top of my head, electricity is...
4. Faster (Are there any diesel powered high speed trains anywhere in the world?)
The existence high speed electric rail does not imply that diesel is slower. The speed benefit is generally because with electric vehicles, all cars now have drive wheels, and thus accelerate much faster.


What do they know that we continue to choose to ignore? I appreciate they can better justify electrification because of higher population densities but surely the Golden Horseshoe's population is sufficiently dense to qualify. But you have to remember that it's not density alone that makes electrification worthwhile. It requires a frequency of service that we're probably only just now approaching. If you have a line that you only run 2 trains a day on, the upfront costs of electrifying could probably instead run the existing service in perpetuity.

Of course, this leads to a chicken/egg scenario (which GO is currently in, and slowly getting out of), where new trains are more costly to run, and so service remains limited, so electrification remains a costly, "needless" expense.

Presumably, with the electrification study, GO will start to have a policy of slowly, but surely upgrading the lines to electric. It will be quite exciting once they get some electric rolling stock on the Lakeshore lines. That will free up a lot of stock for the other lines, allowing them to upgrade their service levels, further making electrification more and more enticing on the other lines.

[dunkalunk]

Also, keep in mind the difference between speed and acceleration. Because electric locomotives are for the most part lighter than diesel units, they can get from station to station quicker than a diesel locomotive. This is important when a train has relatively frequent stop spacing as it allows the trains to complete the route faster. Currently, a train's speed is more limited by track conditions, turning radii, rules regarding high speed operation without grade separation, and having to share track with freight companies.

[Spokes]

Also, keep in mind the difference between speed and acceleration. Because electric locomotives are for the most part lighter than diesel units, they can get from station to station quicker than a diesel locomotive. This is important when a train has relatively frequent stop spacing as it allows the trains to complete the route faster. Currently, a train's speed is more limited by track conditions, turning radii, rules regarding high speed operation without grade separation, and having to share track with freight companies.

I've always wondered this, which was more important speed or acceleration, and which truly effected times between stops more.

[mpd618]

I've always wondered this, which was more important speed or acceleration, and which truly effected times between stops more.

Depends on how wide apart the stops are!

[markster]

GO Trains will park, idle in central Kitchener (http://news.therecord.com/News/Local/article/816415)


November 20, 2010
By Jeff Outhit, Record staff

KITCHENER — Go Transit will park and idle its commuter trains “for a few years” at a central Kitchener site never proposed for overnight storage.

“The obvious concerns would be what impact will it have on the residential community, for the early-morning hours,” said Mayor Carl Zehr, who supports GO trains.

Two commuter trains a day are to launch late next year, as part of a cheap starter service costing $18 million. However, Ontario says it can’t afford the permanent, $20-million layover facility it approved in Wilmot Township.

So “for a few years” GO Transit will instead park its trains above Victoria Street South, between Park and King streets. The site will have a crew trailer, fencing and lighting, spokesperson Malon Edwards said by email. Trains will not refuel there.

The near-downtown site has industry around it but appears to be within 200 metres of homes on Agnes and Walter streets. Diesel trains will idle in place there every morning, for 30 minutes to an hour.

“Warming up our trains allows them to have functioning air conditioning and heat, and our customers have a comfortable trip,” Edwards said.

Commuter trains are expected to leave Kitchener for Toronto between 5:30 a.m. and 7:30 a.m., returning between 5:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Studies conducted at other possible layover sites found idling trains could have “very significant impacts” on neighbours, including noise and odours. These impacts were based on a bigger proposal to park four trains.

“We expect there to be little or no impact on the surrounding neighbourhood because the facility is in an industrial area where there are no residential neighbourhoods in close proximity,” Edwards said.

“As much as I appreciate GO coming to Kitchener, which is long overdue, I think they should certainly be in touch with these residents, to notify them,” said Frank Etherington, councillor-elect for the ward.

Edwards points to advertising in The Record, announcing the layover location. The site is already approved by the province, but is not among six potential sites previously considered by GO Transit. Edwards would not reveal its cost, saying firms are bidding to build it.

Passengers will use the nearby Via Rail station on Victoria Street North. The station has little parking and “must rely on walk-in, drop-offs and public transit,” GO Transit says.

Ontario has also put off plans for an $11 million park-and-ride station with 700 parking spots, east of Kitchener.

jouthit@therecord.com

[KevinL]

I take it this is what will become of the Bramm Street Yards once the city's operations move to Wabanaki?

[panamaniac]

I take it this is what will become of the Bramm Street Yards once the city's operations move to Wabanaki?

I shouldn't think so, unless they were planning to rent the site from the city and build a new siding. I had assumed this would involve some existing siding.

[Spokes]

I shouldn't think so, unless they were planning to rent the site from the city and build a new siding. I had assumed this would involve some existing siding.

Ya I wouldnt' think so either. They can store the trains without going into the Bramm yards I thought.

Plus, the Yards are on the City's list of properties to sell to redevelop.

[mpd618]

I shouldn't think so, unless they were planning to rent the site from the city and build a new siding. I had assumed this would involve some existing siding.

There aren't any existing sidings there. They would need to carve out some new space there to accommodate two 12-car trains, which are about 335m or so in length.

[panamaniac]

There aren't any existing sidings there. They would need to carve out some new space there to accommodate two 12-car trains, which are about 335m or so in length.

Your are right. I wonder would they just use the existing branch that passes over by Swansons? Otherwise there would have to be construction.

[mpd618]

Your are right. I wonder would they just use the existing branch that passes over by Swansons? Otherwise there would have to be construction.

That branch is operational, so I don't think they can make any use of it unless they changed plans to store trains down by Block Line.

There will have to be construction, but pretty minimal as they are not even doing refuelling here.

[KevinL]

Well, they said they're being stored between King and Park. The only lines there now are operational so sidings need to be installed. The Bramm yards are long enough, and will soon be vacant. Makes sense from what I can see...

[IEFBR14]

The NIMBYs are getting restless about the potential for becoming sleepless: Some neighbours ‘blindsided’ by GO Transit plans (http://news.therecord.com/News/Local/article/817547)
Residents were startled to learn that GO Transit will park two commuter trains near their homes overnight, and idle the diesel engines for up to an hour every morning.

“I was shocked,” said Nicole Rasmussen. She lives on Park Street beside the railway tracks and worries about extra noise and fumes. “I don’t know what an idling train sounds like,” she said.

“I’m very nervous,” said Gwen Wheeler, citing the potential for extra noise and pollution. She lives on Agnes Street, near the railway tracks.

“This is a street where people are very house-proud,” Wheeler said. “We’ve been blindsided by this and that’s not fair.”

A petition against the GO Transit layover plan is circulating, citing the impact of noise and fumes. But not all residents are bothered by the plan unveiled Nov. 18.

“We’re sort of used to trains,” said George Adamson, who lives on Stewart Street beside the tracks. “We live between two railway tracks.”

GO Transit is launching two commuter trains a day to Toronto late next year, in a downscaled startup. The approved plan, now put on hold, calls for spending $20 million to park trains overnight in Wilmot Township, at a layover site selected from among six alternatives.

Instead, the transit service will park trains “for a few years” at a never-studied seventh site, between King and Park streets in central Kitchener.

The new site already has provincial approval. Firms are preparing to bid on a construction tender. The area is industrial but there are homes within 200 metres on Park, Stewart, Agnes and Walter streets.

GO Transit contends there will be little or no impact on residences as trains idle for 30 minutes to an hour, before collecting passengers at the Via Rail station between 5:30 a.m. and 7:30 a.m. The transit service said Monday that:

— Idling trains will be no noisier than a normal conversation or the buzz of a library, estimated at 50 decibels.

— The facility will be small — typical layover facilities house four to eight trains — and a series of buildings will shield the nearest homes from the noise.

— Trains will park at the bottom of a slope, lower than the nearest homes, further reducing the potential for noise.

“This is a project with low impact for noise, vibration and air quality,” GO Transit spokesperson Malon Edwards said.

Rasmussen supports GO trains and is accustomed to railway traffic. But she’s upset residents were not consulted. She formerly lived near the Charles Street transit terminal and recalls idling diesel buses spewing unbearable fumes.

Wheeler is also accustomed to rumbling trains but wants more information about potential impacts.

“There clearly seems to be a lack of communication here,” said Debbie Chapman, president of the Cherry Park neighbourhood association.

GO Transit is pledging a public information session some time this winter.

[Spokes]

I love this quote:


“We’re sort of used to trains,” said George Adamson, who lives on Stewart Street beside the tracks. “We live between two railway tracks.”

Exactly, you live between two railway tracks, what do you expect?

Nice noise comparison by GO as well hah...no noisier than a normal conversation or the buzz of a library,

[Urban_Enthusiast86]

NIMBYs never cease to amaze me.

But with that said, they're right about the province not consulting them. The province cheaped out at the last minute and cancelled the layover facility in Wilmot Township, so they are to blame for storing the trains in an inner-city neighborhood.

[mpd618]

The NIMBYs are getting restless about the potential for becoming sleepless:

See, when there's no news to report, it seems like Mr. Outhit maybe just goes and creates some. First he writes a fear-mongering piece about how GO trains are going to idle in downtown Kitchener! And then he goes and asks people whether they're outraged?

[DHLawrence]

I spent eight months living alongside the Lakeshore West line in Mississauga; hearing a dull rumble can't be any worse than hearing freight trains groan and squeak by at all hours of the night.

If they're so concerned about noise, why not park them closer to the station? Goderich-Exeter has a diesel or two idling there almost all the time and nobody complains. Maybe rent a couple of sidings in the yard near Conestoga Parkway.

[IEFBR14]

http://news.therecord.com/App_Themes/TheStar/images/recordlogo_print.jpg

A GO link in need of work (http://news.therecord.com/Opinions/Editorials/article/818689)
This month’s announcement that GO commuter trains will soon link Kitchener and Toronto was fantastic news for Waterloo Region.

It was the long-awaited answer to old dreams that this growing community could enjoy a fast, efficient alternative to Highway 401 that would better connect it to Canada’s biggest city. For all the benefits it will bring, GO Transit deserves to be welcomed to this region.

But in return for this welcome, GO Transit needs to demonstrate it will be a considerate neighbour, good corporate citizen and smart business. While commuter trains make excellent sense in principle, GO Transit has much work to do to make them succeed in practice.

In the short term this means ensuring that idling GO trains don’t disrupt the lives of downtown Kitchener residents. It also means eventually finding a way to provide proper parking for its prospective riders and upgrading the line so a one-way trip to Toronto doesn’t drag on for nearly two hours.

The introduction of this project should have been handled better. GO Transit erred in not giving a timely warning to people living in a section of the Kitchener core that it plans to park two commuter trains overnight near their homes, then idle the trains for up to an hour each day starting as early as 4:30 a.m. The first inkling many residents had of decision was when they read about it in a newspaper advertisement. That’s poor public relations.

When GO examined other sites for permanent parking, it studied the noise, air pollution and vibration impacts the proposal would have on nearby homes. It should do no less in Kitchener’s core, where it has yet to thoroughly study how its plan would affect people’s lives. Before the trains start running late next year, GO needs to conduct such a study. Then GO needs to prove to this neighbourhood that it can address any problem before it arises.

But this is the easiest of the tasks facing GO. In trying to run these commuter trains far more cheaply than originally envisioned, GO Transit has made it harder for this venture to succeed.

The province will save in startup costs by delaying construction of the $11-million park-and-ride station east of Breslau as well as a $20-million layover facility for the trains west of Kitchener in Wilmot Township. It’s also putting only half the number of trains on the line that it originally planned. But will this cut-rate service appeal to enough commuters?

GO’s original studies concluded that two-thirds of the potential passengers from Waterloo Region would drive cars to the Breslau station and park there. Without that station, there will be far fewer riders from this region each day. And those who choose to ride will have to make their way to the downtown Kitchener VIA station which has limited parking. It would be unwise for GO to conclude that a viable service can rely solely on commuters who can get to the station on buses. Better parking options are mandatory.

Mandatory, too, are upgrades to the Kitchener-Toronto line that will let GO trains complete a one-way, 100-kilometre trip in an hour. That’s hardly cutting edge in an era when high-speed trains in Europe routinely travel at speeds of over 200 km/h and even 300 km/h.

Many people in this area still cringe at the memory of how another provincial government, in the 1990s, axed an earlier GO connection between Guelph and Toronto. That must not be the fate of Waterloo Region’s GO service. It is too important for the future of this community for failure to be on its list of options.
ISTM that a commuter train has to be fast, at least as fast as driving. While one hour from downtown to downtown may be too ambitious from the, um get-GO, two hours is too long. Someone who needs to get to their downtown Toronto destination by 09:00 has to catch the 06:30 train. That means they have to get up at 05:30 at the latest, which means 6 to 8 hours each day (3 to 4 x 2) commuting. Is that practical? Would you do it?

[mpd618]

ISTM that a commuter train has to be fast, at least as fast as driving. While one hour from downtown to downtown may be too ambitious from the, um get-GO, two hours is too long. Someone who needs to get to their downtown Toronto destination by 09:00 has to catch the 06:30 train. That means they have to get up at 05:30 at the latest, which means 6 to 8 hours each day (3 to 4 x 2) commuting. Is that practical? Would you do it?

I would do it sooner than I would spend four hours driving each day on the 401 and the Gardiner and downtown Toronto, during peak hours. Doing all of that can be quite the ordeal outside of peaks, and I would rather sleep or read on a train than I would subject myself to the hell of Highway 401.

[IEFBR14]

I would do it sooner than I would spend four hours driving each day on the 401 and the Gardiner and downtown Toronto, during peak hours.
Agreed. And that's only when traffic cooperates. It seems there's an accident or other delay almost daily between here and there.

However, not everyone who does it by car does it 5 days a week or during "prime time" in large part because of the toll it takes on them. I'm hoping that if the train ride is faster then more people will be able to do this more often, sort of like a long subway ride, and hence provide more ridership.

There's also another tradeoff. With a car you can go door to door. With the GO train you'd have to drive/park or GRT to the K-W station then walk/TTC from Union Station to your office. That adds more time to the round trip. That's also time where you can't also do something else like sleep or read. ISTM you have to ensure that the GO solution takes no longer than by car and ideally less. I suspect, but admittedly have nothing to back it up, that the prospect of a shorter time commute is going to be more attractive than the ability to sleep/read/work on the train.

[KevinL]

Excellent points. I'll just point out that personally, I don't mind the transit at either end of the train ride as I always have podcasts or audio books to catch up on (my iPod gets hevy use on those) and transit is a perfect venue for that. I presume I can't be completely alone in that category.

[IEFBR14]

One more concern: If the initial deployment of GO train service between Waterloo Region and downtown Toronto isn't "good enough" (i.e. takes longer than by car and/or isn't convenient, reliable and economical) to make the service economically viable then opponents of public transit will use that "failure" to try to block further service expansion or even to kill the service altogether. If that happens we'll never get to the point where the infrastructure gets improved sufficiently to make one-hour trips possible. The challenge then is going to be to offer something that's initially "good enough" to justify further investment to get the sort of service that makes people who want to go to downtown Toronto say, "Well of course I'll take GO. How else would one get there?" That's another reason why I think linking K-W to Union service with the YYZ to Union is a good idea.

[IEFBR14]

http://news.therecord.com/App_Themes/TheStar/images/recordlogo_print.jpg

GO Transit sidles into trouble (http://news.therecord.com/News/Local/article/820394)
It’s no surprise GO Transit has blundered into a public relations fiasco, blindsiding residents with its never-studied plan to park and idle two diesel engines in central Kitchener.

When the agency first proposed bringing commuter trains, I complained about its poor communication skills, arguing it guards information too closely and needs to be more respectful about seeking public input.

“It makes you wonder how passengers will be treated when the trains get here,” I warned in 2009.

Well, the trains are coming next year and GO Transit has predictably sparked an uproar.

The provincial agency hopes to persuade enough residents that they will be unaffected by its already-approved plan to park trains between King and Park streets. The industrial site, where trains will idle for up to an hour in evenings and mornings, is within 200 metres of some homes.

Following the outcry, residents have been invited to an open house Dec. 16, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the DeGroote School of Medicine, 10 Victoria St. S. They will likely be told that idling trains will be no louder than a library and that homes will be shielded by buildings. This may be true.

What’s certainly true is that GO Transit identified significant impacts in studying six other locations for overnight layovers.

The agency previously considered Greenhouse Road (1) and Fountain Street (2) in Breslau, Ira Needles Boulevard (3) in west Kitchener, and Petersburg (4), Sandhills Road (5) and Nafziger Road (6) in Wilmot Township.

Experts estimated vibration, noise and air quality impacts for up to four idling trains, double the number now approved.

Vibrations and air pollution were deemed insignificant at all sites.

Odours during low wind were deemed a “low to moderate” impact at Breslau, Ira Needles and Nafziger and a “moderate” impact at Petersburg.

Noise was deemed a “very significant” impact at Fountain Street, Ira Needles Boulevard and Petersburg. This is for distances between 130 and 220 metres from idling trains.

Noise was deemed a “significant” impact at Sandhills and Nafziger roads, at distances 300 metres from idling trains.

Ontario approved Nafziger Road at $20 million, including a noise-muffling berm and fence. That’s now on hold to save money, replaced by a downscaled plan to park two trains “for a few years” in central Kitchener.

Stay tuned. As I wrote last month, it’s always one step forward, two steps sideways on the road to intercity transit.

[IEFBR14]

Noise won’t be a problem with idling trains (http://news.therecord.com/Opinions/LettertotheEditor/article/820187)
This Record editorial raised some points to which we would like to respond.

We are very excited to be expanding GO Train service to Guelph and the Kitchener-Waterloo region by the end of 2011. To offer train service by this date, an inaugural train service scenario was developed and includes three new stations on the Georgetown line in Acton, Guelph and Kitchener, and a train layover facility in Kitchener to hold two trains.

We will be hosting an informational open house for the layover facility at the Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine in Kitchener on Thursday, Dec. 16 from 5 to 8 p.m.

Our trains are started in the morning as part of our standard operating procedure to make sure everything is in proper working order and that the coaches are ready for service. On an average weekday, the trains will idle for a total of about one hour in the morning and about one hour for the evening shut down. A layover is necessary to allow us to bring train service to the area; without it service would not be available. Layovers are located throughout our entire rail service network, and are typically found close to the end of the line.

The noise impact of the two trains on the surrounding community will be minimal, as the facility is immediately surrounded by commercial and industrial buildings. The source of noise will be the train’s locomotive engine, located on the east end of the layover. For our neighbours who live about 150 metres away, this will sound like a normal conversation, and will be much quieter than busy street traffic.

Vibration is not an issue, as the trains will remain parked when in the layover and will enter and exit the site at slow speeds.

We anticipate that the arrival of the GO Train will be well received and look forward to riding the rails with you in 2011.

[panamaniac]

Noise won’t be a problem with idling trains (http://news.therecord.com/Opinions/LettertotheEditor/article/820187)

I'm not a PR person and I don't know how activist the concerned neighbours are, but come the December 16th meeting she or the GO reps may regret her comparing the idling trains to the sound of a normal conversation. Not the sort of thing I would want to hear in my house at 0430hrs every morning! It's puzzling that they didn't do any advance work before announcing this.

[YKF]

Can I recommend everyone to send an email to Lynn Haddrall (Editor-in-Chief) at lhaddrall@therecord.com to bring up the issue of Jeff Outhit's articles. He does not inform the public about issues. Rather, he goes about creating stories.

For example: "It’s no surprise GO Transit has blundered into a public relations fiasco". Really Jeff? Did GO actually blunder into a public relations fiasco?

[IEFBR14]

I'm not a PR person and I don't know how activist the concerned neighbours are, but come the December 16th meeting she or the GO reps may regret her comparing the idling trains to the sound of a normal conversation. Not the sort of thing I would want to hear in my house at 0430hrs every morning! It's puzzling that they didn't do any advance work before announcing this.
Note that the letter writer probably didn't write the headline, "Noise won’t be a problem with idling trains" so she shouldn't be held responsible for it. Now if a representative of GO Transit had actually said it, I'd be all over her for making a condescending, silly assertion that she can't substantiate. Noise is subjective. She can't know if it will or won't be a problem without, as you suggest, actually try to sleep in one of the affected houses at 04:30 in the morning. How many people would be able to sleep if there was the "sound [of] a normal conversation" going on beside them?

Oh wait, but she did say, "Vibration is not an issue." What a condescending, silly assertion that she can't substantiate :RpS_sad:

And this is from a GO Transit VP :RpS_ohmy: :RpS_scared: :RpS_cursing:

[jay]

This whole mess is a joke. First off if you live by train tracks what do you expect to hear? What if they increased train traffic with other services? No one could complain. Also the area houses a lot of commercial and industrial business in the area. I bet the industrial buildings end up creating more noise than these trains do.

If you decide to live by train tracks for whatever I think it's reasonable to assume that stuff like this may come up. It's not like they are keeping the layover site there permanently. I shake my head at stuff like this.

[IEFBR14]

This whole mess is a joke.Yes it is, but not for the reasons you give.

It's a mess because of the inept way in which GO Transit is communicating with the people who live near the layover site. I agree that people who live near train tracks (or highways or airports...) shouldn't be surprised that there's noise, vibration, fumes, etc. But at the same time the people who create that noise, vibration, fumes, etc. should be more sensitive in how they communicate with their neighbours, e.g. by holding the informational open house before the location of the layover site became a de facto done deal and by using that open house to explain how little noise, vibration, fumes, etc. they expect, how they came to that determination and how they plan to mitigate it if it proves that they'er wrong.

[panamaniac]

Yes it is, but not for the reasons you give.

It's a mess because of the inept way in which GO Transit is communicating with the people who live near the layover site. I agree that people who live near train tracks (or highways or airports...) shouldn't be surprised that there's noise, vibration, fumes, etc. But at the same time the people who create that noise, vibration, fumes, etc. should be more sensitive in how they communicate with their neighbours, e.g. by holding the informational open house before the location of the layover site became a de facto done deal and by using that open house to explain how little noise, vibration, fumes, etc. they expect, how they came to that determination and how they plan to mitigate it if it proves that they'er wrong.

I agree that GO's communications are lacking - my earlier post was a reference not to the letter headline, but to Ms. Knight's comment in her letter about the noise being like a normal conversation. As for people who choose to live near train tracks, in this case I assume we are talking about the spur that heads south from the main line. If so, these people have been living near a train tracks with limited and declining use for at least the past twenty years. Whatever they expected, it could not have been idling commuter trains at 0430hrs. At the end of the day there may well be no problems and the GO trains will layover where planned, but I think the powers that be could have treated the neighbours with a bit more respect.

[Spokes]

Can I recommend everyone to send an email to Lynn Haddrall (Editor-in-Chief) at lhaddrall@therecord.com to bring up the issue of Jeff Outhit's articles. He does not inform the public about issues. Rather, he goes about creating stories.

For example: "It’s no surprise GO Transit has blundered into a public relations fiasco". Really Jeff? Did GO actually blunder into a public relations fiasco?

Your thoughts about Jeff wouldn't have much effect as Lynn would side with her husband on this one ;)

[IEFBR14]

Your thoughts about Jeff wouldn't have much effect as Lynn would side with her husband on this one ;)
Even so, there are avenues for appeal, e.g. Ontario Press Council: How to complain (http://www.ontpress.com/complain/index.asp).

[KevinL]

Well, they said they're being stored between King and Park. The only lines there now are operational so sidings need to be installed. The Bramm yards are long enough, and will soon be vacant. Makes sense from what I can see...

It would appear I was wrong on this; a diagram is in today's paper, in an ad from GO for the info session. The sidings are to be installed on the north side of the mainline, alongside the back of the plaza there. It seems they have enough space!

Interestingly, they indicate where the locomotives will be located (on the end nearest King) so it seems a good portion of idling-deisel-engine noise will reflect off the plaza building and towards the Pharmacy School area - hopefully some comfort for the concerned residents.

[UrbanWaterloo]

Good find KevinL! For those who haven't seen the notice:

December 11, 2010

http://www.wonderfulwaterloo.com/wdrive/Transportation%20and%20Infrastructure/GO%20Transit/Metrolinx%20-%20Train%20Storage%20Facility%20City%20of%20Kitche ner%20Notice%20-%20The%20Record%20December%2011,%202010%20A10.jpg

[panamaniac]

Problem pretty much solved, it would seem. Too bad they didn't make this clear at the outset.

[DHLawrence]

On the other hand, it got people talking about the new GO service. People are going to use it no matter what people on Park Street think of the layover terminal, but now more people know about it because it was in the news longer. You can't buy that kind of publicity.

[Spokes]

GO Transit Increases Service to Waterloo Region
December 15, 2010 | By John Thompson, Wonderful Waterloo Staff

Starting January 1, 2011, GO Transit will be increasing service to and from Waterloo Region.

In order to deal with the increased ridership on GO buses, added trips have been added servicing University of Waterloo, Wilfred Laurier University and Square One in Mississauga.

For Waterloo Region specifically, several new trips will be added leaving the University of Waterloo on Thursday and Friday. In addition to that, several new weekend trips will also be added. The four Friday trips from the University of Waterloo will now depart 10 minutes earlier.

Also, some bus routes leaving University of Waterloo will be adjusted 5-10 minutes earlier to better reflect actual travel times.

Passengers are encouraged to refer to their schedules online at gotransit.com/schedules.

[IEFBR14]

http://media.mmgdailies.topscms.com/images/c5/6d/f8d7f3d44bd28e94a1dcea09ca74.jpeg

Idling trains noise impact ‘very low,’ residents told (http://www.therecord.com/news/local/article/301476--idling-trains-noise-impact-very-low-residents-told)
A study predicts idling commuter trains will be quieter than allowed by the province, when GO Transit starts parking two trains in central Kitchener next year.

“The study tells us that the noise impact will be very low,” said Greg Ashbee, who manages infrastructure expansion planning for the provincial transit service.

GO Transit commissioned the study in deciding to park trains overnight between Park and King streets, instead of at one of six other locations publicly considered for layovers.

Some residents who live near the tracks worry about noise and fumes from diesel locomotives that will idle for an hour in the evenings and mornings.

The study predicts noise impacts reaching 38 to 53 decibels, at eight homes between 40 and 250 metres away. The province allows for residential impacts up to 55 decibels.

To compare, 55 decibels is a normal conversation while 40 decibels is a quiet room, according to the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety.

GO Transit will discuss the noise study and neighbourhood impacts Thursday at an open house. It’s from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the DeGroote School of Medicine at 10 Victoria Street S.

Two commuter trains linking Kitchener and Toronto will launch late next year. Passengers will use the Via Rail station on Victoria Street North.

Trains with 12 passenger cars will depart Kitchener on weekdays between 5:30 a.m. and 7:30 a.m. and return between 5:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. The trip will take about two hours each way. Trains will not run on weekends.

Ashbee expects locomotives may start idling around 5 a.m. The noise study uses a computer model to predict worst-case impacts, described as all the equipment running at once. Impacts are estimated for upper floors where bedrooms are typically located.

The worst-case impact includes noise from two idling locomotives, 48 heating and cooling units on passenger cars, an air compressor that helps locomotives idle quietly, two hot air blowers that clear snow from tracks and an electrical transformer that may hum or buzz.

Noise impacts are not actual measurements. The study estimates the loudness of equipment and calculates impacts on nearby residences based on factors such as distance, topography, absorption by air, muffling by ground and shielding by buildings.

GO Transit says there will be little impact from vibration and predicts air quality and odour impacts will be low.

Stratford Mayor Dan Mathieson says his city wants trains to park there overnight. The city 45 kilometres west of Kitchener hopes to persuade GO Transit to open a passenger station.

Ashbee said Stratford doesn’t have enough room to park trains and is outside the area served by transit.

Parking trains in Kitchener saves money by reducing distances travelled without passengers, Ashbee said. GO Transit intends to park trains in central Kitchener for a few years before moving them to a $20-million layover facility in Wilmot Township.

GO Transit has not revealed its cost to park trains in central Kitchener but Ashbee said it is much cheaper than the Wilmot facility.
Lots of noise about how little noise there will be, but there's still a not-so faint odour about the air quality. Will fuming residents cause enough stink about the potential smell to cause GO to deal with it head on? ;)

[Urbanomicon]

Lots of noise about how little noise there will be, but there's still a not-so faint odour about the air quality. Will fuming residents cause enough stink about the potential smell to cause GO to deal with it head on?

Nice. :RpS_thumbup:

[IEFBR14]

Concerns heard at GO Transit open house (http://www.therecord.com/news/local/article/302512--concerns-heard-at-go-transit-open-house)
Ask many people, even those living near a planned train storage yard in central Kitchener, about GO Transit’s expansion to this area, and you’ll hear a similar response.

It’s about time.

But concerns about noise, fumes and vibration still swirl around the facility where two trains will be parked overnight when the service to Toronto begins late next year.

GO insists it’s a temporary site, until a larger facility for up to eight trains is built near Baden. But that could take a few years, company officials say, as ridership grows and funding becomes available.

GO Transit hosted an open house Thursday night in an attempt to assuage those concerns. More than 50 people attended.

“How much of a property value hit am I going to take in the short term if I want to move?” asked Dave Gosnell, who lives near the location between Park and King streets.

GO Transit says noise from the locomotives as they idle for an hour in the evenings and mornings could reach 53 decibels, in a worst-case scenario with all equipment running at once. That’s just below the readings for a normal conversation, and just within provincial guidelines for residential impacts at 55 decibels.

But in the summertime, when the windows are open at the Gosnell home, he said that wouldn’t be all that welcome.

“It’s somebody having a conversation next to your bedroom window,” he said. “It’s going to wake you up.”

Leslie Toth, another nearby resident, said he wondered whether diesel fumes would linger near the ground, especially on low-pressure days.

“I don’t want to smell that,” he said. “I have a garden. I enjoy my own vegetables.”

GO predicts air quality and odour impacts will be low and that vibration will be a non-issue.

Toth asked why GO had settled on such a central location, when others were considered in less-populated areas near Bingemans or Ardelt Place.

“There is more room further down the track,” he said.

GO ruled out other locations, citing such concerns as property size, track geometry and environmental concerns.

“I don’t think anyone opposes GO coming in,” said newly-elected Ward 9 Coun. Frank Etherington. “They just want some answers.”

He’s been most critical about the lack of communication with local residents when the plans first came to light last month. “I think if they’d done this kind of communication up front, they wouldn’t be in here doing this.”

Tim Mollison lives nearby, and he’s also a member of the Tri-Cities Transport Action Group.

“These residents can either continue to be surrounded by more and more asphalt, more and more parking, to suit our car culture, or we can put in the infrastructure we need to,” he said. “This is part of the solution. This is the first step. Sometimes the first step is the hardest one to take.”

GO’s manager of infrastructure environmental assessment, Greg Ashbee, said the open house was an opportunity to demonstrate that the layover facility will not be a burden to the community.

“Obviously we’re excited about bringing service to Kitchener,” he said. “We definitely want to be a good neighbour.”

[UrbanWaterloo]

Here's a schedule of the expanded weekday service which began today: PDF (http://gotransit.com/public/en/news/Table25jan11.pdf)


http://www.wonderfulwaterloo.com/wdrive/Transportation%20and%20Infrastructure/GO%20Transit/Waterloo%20GO%20Service%20-%20January%201,%202011.jpg

[IEFBR14]

Diesel or electric, trains are the better way
19Jan11 | Tess Kalinowski | TorStar | Link (http://www.thestar.com/news/transportation/article/924196--diesel-or-electric-trains-are-the-better-way?bn=1)
Taking people and freight off the road and putting them on the rails would reduce pollution. But whether the trains are “clean diesel” or electric makes little difference, according to a report from two environmental think-tanks.

“The difference between road and rail is much greater than the difference between electric rail and diesel rail in terms of emissions,” said David Thompson of Sustainable Prosperity, which produced the report in conjunction with the Pembina Institute.

The Tier 4 diesel locomotives that will become the industry standard in 2015 will produce a fraction of the emissions produced by the current Tier 2 trains — in terms of “criteria air contaminants,” they will be “comparable to those of electric locomotives powered by fairly clean electricity sources,” says the study.

The research was paid for in part by Metrolinx, which is expected to release its own study Wednesday on methods and costs for electrifying the GO train system.
As an aside, this suggests that concerns about emissions, pollution and smell by residents near the GO train "parking lot" may be quite valid, at least before 2015.

[Spokes]

As an aside, this suggests that concerns about emissions, pollution and smell by residents near the GO train "parking lot" may be quite valid, at least before 2015.

It says that they will emit a fraction of the emissions, but if they are already low then the arguement might not be valid. It's hard to make a judgement based on this information because we're not getting the whole picture.

Either way with all of this knowledge out there that trains are so good, why are we so resistant to pushing lots of GO service, increasing VIA service, and heaven forbid building an HSR line?

[markster]

In slightly more exciting news, the Electrification Study is out!

See everything here:
http://www.gotransit.com/estudy/en/default.aspx


For immediate release January 19, 2011

Metrolinx releases Electrification Study
Metrolinx staff recommending to Board of Directors to electrify Lakeshore and Georgetown
corridors

TORONTO – Metrolinx today released the findings of its comprehensive study of the
electrification for the entire GO Transit rail system and the future Air Rail Link (ARL).

After a careful review of the findings, the staff is recommending to the Metrolinx Board of
Directors to move forward on the electrification of the GO Georgetown and Lakeshore
corridors in phases, beginning with the ARL on the Georgetown corridor.

“The staff recommendation is based on the transportation benefits associated with
electrification,” said Bruce McCuaig, President and CEO of Metrolinx. “These benefits
include journey time savings for our customers and a reduction in operating costs. In
addition, proceeding with the recommended option for electrification is a significant step
towards the Big Move’s long term vision for Express Rail."

High ridership numbers and existing infrastructure improvements make the Lakeshore and
Georgetown corridors the strongest candidates for electrification.

The final report, appendices and staff recommendations are available online at
www.gotransit.com/estudy. They will be reviewed at a special meeting of the Board of
Directors on Wednesday, January 26, 2011 where the Board will make a recommendation to
the Ontario Minister of Transportation.

Metrolinx is the province’s regional transportation agency for the GTHA. For more
information, visit our website www.metrolinx.com.

GO Transit is the Province of Ontario's regional public transit service linking Toronto with
the surrounding regions of the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA). GO carries over
55 million passengers a year in an extensive network of train and bus services that spans over
10,000 square kilometres. GO Transit is a division of Metrolinx,

Highlights of the full report (http://www.gotransit.com/estudy/en/current_study/docs/ElectricificationStudy_FinalReport.pdf):
Airport Rail Link is first phase
Then Brampton, Lakeshore east, Lakeshore West, and finally, phase 7 is Kitchener.
It was found that electrifying a full line was a better return than just electrifying the inner portions of multiple lines, so this really means that Kitchener will probably get electric service before the likes of Richmond Hill

They'll be running Electric Locomotives with the existing rolling stock. EMUs will only be looked at in the future as service levels increase.

[IEFBR14]

Electrify Pearson rail link after Pan Am Games: Metrolinx
Wednesday, Jan. 19, 2011 11:00AM EST | KELLY GRANT | G&M | Link (http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/toronto/electrify-pearson-rail-link-after-pan-am-games-metrolinx/article1875565/)
The long-awaited express rail line between Toronto's Union station and Pearson airport should be electrified, but not in time for its opening before the 2015 Pan Am Games, according to Metrolinx.

The province's regional transportation agency is recommending Queen's Park spend $1.6-$1.8-billion to upgrade GO Transit's Lakeshore and Georgetown corridors from diesel to electric trains, with the air-rail link being switched over first.

Metrolinx President Bruce McCuaig said the transit agency is in favour of electric trains because they're faster and cheaper to run than diesel.

The study found electrifying the Lakeshore and Georgetown corridors would save up to $18-million in operating costs per year and shave between five and 10 minutes off the longest trips on those lines.

Note also the projected number of trains by 2015 and 2031.

http://beta.images.theglobeandmail.com/archive/01135/trains_263862a_1135741a.jpg

[IEFBR14]

Queen’s Park on board with electric airport trains
26Jan11 | Tess Kalinowski, Transportation Reporter | TorStar | Link (http://www.thestar.com/news/article/928389--queen-s-park-on-board-with-electric-airport-trains?bn=1)
In what transit officials are calling a “watershed moment,” the province is moving ahead with a plan to electrify the train service between Union Station and the airport — and eventually the entire Lakeshore and Georgetown GO lines.

Queen’s Park gave the nod to an environmental assessment of the airport route minutes after the Metrolinx board approved the $1.8 billion plan.

It will take at least seven to nine years and $457 million just to complete the first phase of work to the airport. After the environmental approvals, GO will need to hang catenary wires, build hydro substations and ground all the fences and structures within 250 metres on either side of the track.

That means the airport shuttles, which are supposed to begin running in 2015, will be diesel trains in the first years of operation...

The project is necessary though if the region is going to accommodate another 4 million people in the next 20 years, said McCuaig.

“If we don’t anticipate those 4 million people we will have given up the game,” said Metrolinx director Jennifer Babe.

[markster]

I saw them putting up some fencing along the railway track next to king. Looks like the first steps for installing the rail sidings.

[Guido]

I'm thinking I'll try to stop over there regularly and post updated pictures of the happenings as they're putting the tracks down... certainly looks like a good sign for the GO train service! :)
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5226/5612121460_9d6ee4cdda_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/rev_aviator/5612121460/)

Source: Gord Spence, http://www.flickr.com/photos/rev_aviator/5612121460/

[Waterlooer]

Awesome!! And Welcome to Wonderful Waterloo! :RpS_smile:

[Guido]

Took a wander over on Saturday and things appear to be progressing. They're spraying cement about halfway down the line to shore up the hillside - it's pretty awesome to see things moving along.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2641/5696520183_442e8ec340_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/rev_aviator/5696520183/)

Source: Gord Spence, http://www.flickr.com/photos/rev_aviator/5696520183/

More interesting hearsay - I was speaking with a transit planner at the Rapid Transit open house in Kitchener this afternoon and he seemed to think that the start date for the train would probably be September or October of this year... sure beats my assumption of December ("before the end of of 2011").

[thmollison]

GO transit improvements typically launch after Thanksgiving and before the end of October.

[Guido]

GO transit improvements typically launch after Thanksgiving and before the end of October.

Good to know - I wasn't aware that they usually happened around the same time... I guess that makes sense when you take into account the quarterly schedule changes.

[UrbanWaterloo]

Layover Groundbreaking Ceremony - May 17, 2011

Tent

http://wonderfulwaterloo.com/wdrive/Transportation%20and%20Infrastructure/GO%20Transit/Layover%20Groundbreaking/GO%20Transit%20Layover%20Groundbreaking%20-%20May%2017,%202011%20-%20Tent%20-%202%20Resized.jpg

Speakers: Greg Percy (GO Transit), John Milloy, Carl Zehr, Ken Seiling

http://wonderfulwaterloo.com/wdrive/Transportation%20and%20Infrastructure/GO%20Transit/Layover%20Groundbreaking/GO%20Transit%20Layover%20Groundbreaking%20-%20May%2017,%202011%20-%20Speakers%20-%20%20Greg%20Percy%20(Go%20Transit)%20Resized.jpgh ttp://wonderfulwaterloo.com/wdrive/Transportation%20and%20Infrastructure/GO%20Transit/Layover%20Groundbreaking/GO%20Transit%20Layover%20Groundbreaking%20-%20May%2017,%202011%20-%20Speakers%20-%20%20John%20Milloy%20-%203%20Resized.jpg

http://wonderfulwaterloo.com/wdrive/Transportation%20and%20Infrastructure/GO%20Transit/Layover%20Groundbreaking/GO%20Transit%20Layover%20Groundbreaking%20-%20May%2017,%202011%20-%20Speakers%20-%20%20Carl%20Zehr%20-%202%20Resized.jpghttp://wonderfulwaterloo.com/wdrive/Transportation%20and%20Infrastructure/GO%20Transit/Layover%20Groundbreaking/GO%20Transit%20Layover%20Groundbreaking%20-%20May%2017,%202011%20-%20Speakers%20-%20%20Ken%20Seiling%20-%201%20Resized.jpg

Shovels

http://wonderfulwaterloo.com/wdrive/Transportation%20and%20Infrastructure/GO%20Transit/Layover%20Groundbreaking/GO%20Transit%20Layover%20Groundbreaking%20-%20May%2017,%202011%20-%20Shovels%20-%201%20Resized.jpg

Construction

http://wonderfulwaterloo.com/wdrive/Transportation%20and%20Infrastructure/GO%20Transit/Layover%20Groundbreaking/GO%20Transit%20Layover%20Groundbreaking%20-%20May%2017,%202011%20-%20Construction%20-%203%20Resized.jpg

http://wonderfulwaterloo.com/wdrive/Transportation%20and%20Infrastructure/GO%20Transit/Layover%20Groundbreaking/GO%20Transit%20Layover%20Groundbreaking%20-%20May%2017,%202011%20-%20Construction%20-%205%20Resized.jpg

http://wonderfulwaterloo.com/wdrive/Transportation%20and%20Infrastructure/GO%20Transit/Layover%20Groundbreaking/GO%20Transit%20Layover%20Groundbreaking%20-%20May%2017,%202011%20-%20Construction%20-%207%20Resized.jpg

[PMoney]

GO train ticket to Toronto: $15 for one-way trip
The Record, May 17,link (http://www.therecord.com/news/local/article/533355--go-train-ticket-to-toronto-15-for-one-way-trip)


KITCHENER — Commuter trains to Toronto are on track to launch by early December. A one-way trip from Kitchener to Union Station will take two hours and cost about $15, cheaper if a monthly pass is purchased.

[markster]

If I'm ever doing a ceremonial ground breaking, I'm going to demand a wheelbarrow to toss the dirt in. None of this useless "put shovel in dirt, call it a day". I want to actually be symbolic of actually doing something!

Worst sod-turning I ever saw was for Quantum-Nano at UW. They poured a pile of dirt on the grass, and then all the officials just pushed the dirt a little with their shovels. No ground was broken, no sod was turned. In fact, there was now more dirt!

[mpd618]

If I'm ever doing a ceremonial ground breaking, I'm going to demand a wheelbarrow to toss the dirt in. None of this useless "put shovel in dirt, call it a day". I want to actually be symbolic of actually doing something!

Hey, at least there were real shovels in the ground next to all this!

[IEFBR14]

Worst sod-turning I ever saw was for Quantum-Nano at UW. They poured a pile of dirt on the grass, and then all the officials just pushed the dirt a little with their shovels. No ground was broken, no sod was turned. In fact, there was now more dirt!
Sorta reminds me of Kernighan & Plauger in The Elements of Programming Style, "Floating point numbers are like sandpiles: every time you move one, you lose a little sand and you pick up a little dirt" except in this case they're trying to move piles of dirt around, i.e. they're not accomplishing anything at all ;)

[Greg Moore]

http://wonderfulwaterloo.com/wdrive/Transportation%20and%20Infrastructure/GO%20Transit/Layover%20Groundbreaking/GO%20Transit%20Layover%20Groundbreaking%20-%20May%2017,%202011%20-%20Construction%20-%205%20Resized.jpg

I think a Wonderful Waterloo 'tag' would look good on that wall. :)

[WaterlooNative]

Does anyone know how GO service might evolve post December 2011? How long might we have to wait for weekend service? Or service heading either further west, or additional trains heading to/returning from the east?

[KevinL]

Does anyone know how GO service might evolve post December 2011? How long might we have to wait for weekend service? Or service heading either further west, or additional trains heading to/returning from the east?

The biggest obstacles to service improvements right now are the condition of the line from Kitchener to Georgetown, and that that line is a single track. Once it can be doubled and repaired, there is room for lots of expansion in the schedule. This will also allow a station at Breslau with a park-and-ride lot, and a bigger storage and repair yard by New Hamburg.

Precisely when weekend or opposite-flow service can start is not as clear; longer-term plans also put this line at a priority for electrification, which will allow shorter train segments that have far more flexibility. We need to keep an eye on Metrolinx's planning announcements and hope for continued support from their Provincial bosses.

[bcwessel]

Does anyone know how GO service might evolve post December 2011? How long might we have to wait for weekend service? Or service heading either further west, or additional trains heading to/returning from the east?

Statements made by Metolinx earlier this week have suggested that service improvements (including off-peak service, and bi-directional service) will be evaluated based on initial ridership, which makes it a bit of a chicken and egg situation. Let's hope that the initial response to the service is strong enough to justify speedy track upgrades, and more and better service overall.

[plam]

Statements made by Metolinx earlier this week have suggested that service improvements (including off-peak service, and bi-directional service) will be evaluated based on initial ridership, which makes it a bit of a chicken and egg situation. Let's hope that the initial response to the service is strong enough to justify speedy track upgrades, and more and better service overall.

Isn't there still the GEXR problem? That would seem to be hard for Metrolinx to fix on its own.

[bcwessel]

Isn't there still the GEXR problem? That would seem to be hard for Metrolinx to fix on its own.

I'm sure there are many hurdles that will need to be cleared before this becomes the hourly, bi-directional service that in my opinion we should be pushing for long-term. However, based on the public remarks made by Greg Percy, VP operations for GO, after the official announcement of the service, ridership will be a key factor in determining how motivated Metrolinx will be to resolve those issues.

[bzmwillemsen]

Here's an updated map I threw together.
http://i1238.photobucket.com/albums/ff482/bzmwillemsen/sysmap-1.png

Don't know if I missed anything.
Except for the fonts for Kitchener and Guelph on the trains stops. If anyone happens to know the name of the font.

[SP!RE]

Sorry, someone get me up to speed here-- when is GO rail service coming to Waterloo region?

I have looked through the thread but I just keep seeing tons of long articles. Before I start reading them all can someone give me the short answer? Thanks!

[mpd618]

Sorry, someone get me up to speed here-- when is GO rail service coming to Waterloo region?

December. Conceivably it could be earlier, if construction goes ahead of schedule.

[Waterlooer]

The station will be by the airport until the transit hub is complete right?

[mpd618]

The station will be by the airport until the transit hub is complete right?

No. Service will start from the Kitchener VIA station, with stops in Guelph, Acton, and then presumably the rest of the Georgetown line. I think a Breslau station is on hold.

[KevinL]

Indeed, they're going with the 'cheapest options first' approach. The VIA station already has a building, a platform, and ticket attendants; Breslau has nothing right now, other than tracks.

[TripleQ]

So I've been commuting semi-regularly from Waterloo to Toronto using the GO Bus/Train service. Yes, it sucks. It takes about 2:45 one way door to door (drive to UW, GO bus to Milton, GO Train to Union, walk to work)

I'm on the 5:25am bus from UW and returning on the earlier trip that leaves Union at 4:30pm. From my observations, there's usually 2-8 people on the morning trip (total, as in how many people get off at Milton) , and maybe 5-10 people on the return trip (busier on Fridays with more students commuting). So the numbers don't really come close to justifying bringing trains to Kitchener, even to build ridership. I can't see many people wanting to commute regularly even with a 2 hr train trip. I can only conclude they're doing this to have layover capabilities for the line, and being able to add more trips to cover the busier portions of the line (from Georgetown to Toronto)?

I don't really have a point.. just wanted to share some observations.

[SeekForth]

So I've been commuting semi-regularly from Waterloo to Toronto using the GO Bus/Train service. Yes, it sucks. It takes about 2:45 one way door to door (drive to UW, GO bus to Milton, GO Train to Union, walk to work)

I'm on the 5:25am bus from UW and returning on the earlier trip that leaves Union at 4:30pm. From my observations, there's usually 2-8 people on the morning trip (total, as in how many people get off at Milton) , and maybe 5-10 people on the return trip (busier on Fridays with more students commuting). So the numbers don't really come close to justifying bringing trains to Kitchener, even to build ridership. I can't see many people wanting to commute regularly even with a 2 hr train trip. I can only conclude they're doing this to have layover capabilities for the line, and being able to add more trips to cover the busier portions of the line (from Georgetown to Toronto)?

I don't really have a point.. just wanted to share some observations.

That is really nice to have some real world observations - I don't have the opportunity to take the GO but am quite interested in how it is going.
I could definitely see more people taking the train rather than the bus - it feels like a more reliable method of transportation (though the tracks really need upgrades before this is really true). I'm sure the initial numbers won't justify the service but it is a great next step.

[markster]

They're doing it for a few reasons:
1) Georgetown doesn't have layover facilities for 12-car trains, and the Georgetown is steadily approaching the capacity of 10-car trains.
2) Reduce deadheading on the line. Currently, they run an empty train to Bramalea every morning to run one more trip inbound to Union. With the Kitchener layover, all runs will be done while in-service.
3) Build ridership. There are plenty of people who commute daily to downtown Toronto via Greyhound/car and they might be enticed to switch to a train.

I will agree though, that the service will be pretty under-used for the time being. Frankly, the only time that KW itself truly justifies a train to Toronto is going to be Friday afternoons to get all the students home for the weekend. But that would require GO to do something other than peak-direction runs, which, operationally, they are not ready for.

[TripleQ]

I will agree though, that the service will be pretty under-used for the time being. Frankly, the only time that KW itself truly justifies a train to Toronto is going to be Friday afternoons to get all the students home for the weekend. But that would require GO to do something other than peak-direction runs, which, operationally, they are not ready for.

I don't think trains (esp from Kitchener) are the best options for student commuting.. I do know they run a lot of extras buses right from UW on Thursday and Friday afternoons, and I think that's the right way to do it.

[plam]

I don't think trains (esp from Kitchener) are the best options for student commuting.. I do know they run a lot of extras buses right from UW on Thursday and Friday afternoons, and I think that's the right way to do it.

I've seen trains used for intracity transit. Back when I went to high school in Montreal, we had students come in from the West Island by commuter train.So that would be like Oshawa to Union. But trains are probably not the thing for getting students to Toronto every week.

I think there is potential for trains for Kitchener to Toronto commuters, which is going to happen more as you get couples with one person working in KW (for instance, at UW) and one in Toronto. In fact, there are quite a few people I know in that situation. In that case, Kitchener is fine.

[thmollison]

I think there is potential for trains for Kitchener to Toronto commuters, which is going to happen more as you get couples with one person working in KW (for instance, at UW) and one in Toronto. In fact, there are quite a few people I know in that situation. In that case, Kitchener is fine.

Yes, yes it is. My spouse is looking forward to a 20% reduction in commute time from 5 hours to 4.

[IEFBR14]

I think there is potential for trains for Kitchener to Toronto commuters, which is going to happen more as you get couples with one person working in KW (for instance, at UW) and one in Toronto. In fact, there are quite a few people I know in that situation. In that case, Kitchener is fine.Yes, yes it is. My spouse is looking forward to a 20% reduction in commute time from 5 hours to 4.
I'm surprised that so little attention gets paid to exploring innovative alternatives to physical commuting. ISTM it would be better for all stakeholders, including employees, employers, the environment, etc., to look options like teleconferencing so as to (1) avoid commutes in the first place or (2) at least reduce their frequency from 5 times a week to maybe 2 or 3.

[plam]

I'm surprised that so little attention gets paid to exploring innovative alternatives to physical commuting. ISTM it would be better for all stakeholders, including employees, employers, the environment, etc., to look options like teleconferencing so as to (1) avoid commutes in the first place or (2) at least reduce their frequency from 5 times a week to maybe 2 or 3.

Faculty do this a lot. It would make sense for other jobs too. It's not as good as physical presence when you actually need it, but working from home can also be more efficient when physical presence is not needed.

[thmollison]

I'm surprised that so little attention gets paid to exploring innovative alternatives to physical commuting. ISTM it would be better for all stakeholders, including employees, employers, the environment, etc., to look options like teleconferencing so as to (1) avoid commutes in the first place or (2) at least reduce their frequency from 5 times a week to maybe 2 or 3.

Agreed - some companies are running towards this model, and some are running from it. Each side has their reasons, but who wouldn't like to work from home on occasion?

[markster]

I don't think trains (esp from Kitchener) are the best options for student commuting.. I do know they run a lot of extras buses right from UW on Thursday and Friday afternoons, and I think that's the right way to do it.
I'm really not just talking students, though they are a large portion of the traffic. It's clear that there's a large demand for intercity travel to Toronto on friday afternoons, judging by the parade of GO buses from Waterloo and Greyhound buses from Kitchener.

I don't see why have to limit our travel options to just these buses. Also, consider that before GO started serving KW, you almost always had to take GRT to Charles St Terminal to catch a Greyhound.

[DKsan]

I don't think trains (esp from Kitchener) are the best options for student commuting.. I do know they run a lot of extras buses right from UW on Thursday and Friday afternoons, and I think that's the right way to do it.
Those buses are starting to reach capacity really quickly though, even with the express runs.

I think if it's two hours, it'll work. I recently had the opportunity to ride the CalTrain, which is a single line commuter (and well others obviously) train service between San Jose and San Francisco. Takes two hours, but the train was medium full when we went in the middle of the day and packed when we came back a few days later in the evening.

Also, a completely random question. Do you think there'll be a Presto machine at the Kitchener (and Acton and Guelph) train station? It would make sense, considering the rest of the Georgetown Line (except for Brampton GO) has been completely Prestofied for awhile now.

[KevinL]

Also, a completely random question. Do you think there'll be a Presto machine at the Kitchener (and Acton and Guelph) train station? It would make sense, considering the rest of the Georgetown Line (except for Brampton GO) has been completely Prestofied for awhile now.

I would imagine so. And I'm sure GRT will be adopting Presto soon enough (certainly before rapid transit is activated).

[WaterlooNative]

It will be interesting to see how many people will actually ride the GO train all the way to Union Station. My guess is that many of them will ride part of the way. For instance, any chance of a rail/shuttle connection to Pearson via the Malton GO Station?

[KevinL]

For instance, any chance of a rail/shuttle connection to Pearson via the Malton GO Station?

The air-rail shuttle will be operational by 2015, but the nearest stop will be at Bloor GO station. (This is, at least, closer than Union.)

[markster]

It's in the plans to have a Presto reader at all new stations.

The air-rail shuttle will be operational by 2015, but the nearest stop will be at Bloor GO station. (This is, at least, closer than Union.)

The ARL (Airport Rail Link) will have 3 stops other than the airport.
Union, Bloor, Weston

We would transfer at Weston station, and pay our $20 extra there. When they finish building the Eglinton line, it's likely that they will relocate the ARL to Eglinton.

[IEFBR14]

any chance of a rail/shuttle connection to Pearson via the Malton GO Station?
See earlier discussions in this thread, e.g. in mid Nov 2010.

[mpd618]

It's in the plans to have a Presto reader at all new stations.

Moreover, all GO buses will have Presto by summer's end, I believe.

[DKsan]

Yep, I was told it's end of summer by the Presto people at Union a few weeks ago.

[IEFBR14]

Bombardier making tracks in South Africa
12 Jun 11 | Geoffrey York | G&M | Link (http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/international-news/african-and-mideast/bombardier-making-tracks-in-south-africa/article2056519/)
As it wraps up completion of a $3.7-billion high-speed railway line in South Africa this month, Bombardier Inc. says it has strong prospects for further rail contracts in Africa’s richest country.

South Africa has announced an ambitious plan to upgrade its decaying rail system, with $14-billion to be spent on rolling stock over the next 18 years. Bombardier, banking on the success of its popular Gautrain project, believes it has a good chance of winning some of those contracts.

The 80-kilometre Gautrain line, the first high-speed train line in sub-Saharan Africa, is scheduled to be finished by the end of June, allowing passengers to zip between Johannesburg and Pretoria in as little as 26 minutes, with more than 100,000 daily passengers expected.
Why is this in the GO Transit thread?

Consider:
1. GO moves 15M people a year on the Lakeshore line alone (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GO_Transit#Ridership). That's about 75,000 passengers per work day, not far from Gautrain's 100,000.
2. The distance between Toronto and Hamilton is about 70km, comparable to the 80km Gautrain line.
3. It currently takes about 1¼ hours on GO. Imagine the increase in ridership if that time were cut in half or more.
4. Presumably once that sort of high-speed rail route proves viable for GO between Toronto and Hamilton then it might also become viable between Toronto and RoW, or Toronto and Oshawa, etc.

[bzmwillemsen]

Bombardier making tracks in South Africa
12 Jun 11 | Geoffrey York | G&M | Link (http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/international-news/african-and-mideast/bombardier-making-tracks-in-south-africa/article2056519/)
Why is this in the GO Transit thread?

Consider:
1. GO moves 15M people a year on the Lakeshore line alone (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GO_Transit#Ridership). That's about 75,000 passengers per work day, not far from Gautrain's 100,000.
2. The distance between Toronto and Hamilton is about 70km, comparable to the 80km Gautrain line.
3. It currently takes about 1¼ hours on GO. Imagine the increase in ridership if that time were cut in half or more.
4. Presumably once that sort of high-speed rail route proves viable for GO between Toronto and Hamilton then it might also become viable between Toronto and RoW, or Toronto and Oshawa, etc.


See: highspeedrail.ca

[IEFBR14]

See: highspeedrail.ca
Sure, but those are all relatively long distance projects that are designed to displace air travel. They're ambitious. They're expensive. They're risky (not only re commercial viability but also if they can work in our climate.) They've been talked about for years. They've never gone anywhere.

My point is that perhaps we could start with a shorter, lower cost route(s) to demonstrate viability in Canada. That would not only address the need in southern Ontario but also smooth the path to more ambitious projects.

[bzmwillemsen]

Sure, but those are all relatively long distance projects that are designed to displace air travel. They're ambitious. They're expensive. They're risky (not only re commercial viability but also if they can work in our climate.) They've been talked about for years. They've never gone anywhere.

My point is that perhaps we could start with a shorter, lower cost route(s) to demonstrate viability in Canada. That would not only address the need in southern Ontario but also smooth the path to more ambitious projects.

I would love to see any high speed rail in Canada. I think that the reason a lot of people do not see it as a viable option is because we are not dense enough, but I personally think we have regions that are perfect for high speed rail. Like the Lakeshore line as you said.

I think a big push is going to come when the US opens its first HSR line and we see that it is a viable option in North America.

[van Hemessen]

As far as I know, the density along the Windsor-Quebec City corridor is comparable to the Paris-Marseilles corridor in France, home of the TGV.

The real reasons we don't have HSR are:

1. We love cars.
2. Lack of political will.
3. Upgrading existing RR tracks would be massively expensive.
4. We love cars.

[mpd618]

The real reasons we don't have HSR are:...

I don't think we love our cars any more than people in France do - we just often don't have any alternatives. One of the biggest factors for the poor quality of our passenger rail is that the infrastructure was sold off to private companies which now have incentives to fight infrastructure improvements even on someone else's dime.

[BuildingScout]

I don't think we love our cars any more than people in France do - we just often don't have any alternatives.

Exactly. It would take a lot to give up my car here, but when I spend time in Europe I rarely rent a car, even though the expense is covered. Why go through the hassle of parking, renting, etc, when travelling by intercity bus + train is faster, easier and more enjoyable?

Boston and Manhattan are examples of places where average, steak-and-potato Americans happily do without cars. Why? because the alternatives are very reasonable.

[plam]

Boston and Manhattan are examples of places where average, steak-and-potato Americans happily do without cars. Why? because the alternatives are very reasonable.


And because it's a hassle (as you say) to have a car and park it.

I did have a car for some of the time I was in Boston, but never used it within the city, just to get out of the city and to Montreal. While I wouldn't be able to get to the White Mountains in New Hampshire by intercity transit, I could definitely have used non-Greyhound ways of getting to Montreal.

[IEFBR14]

I wouldn't be able to get to the White Mountains in New Hampshire by intercity transitAMC White Mountain Huts Fact Sheet (http://www.outdoors.org/lodging/whitemountains/huts/before-you-go.cfm)
AMC’s Hiker Shuttle offers transportation from Joe Dodge Lodge/Pinkham Notch Visitor Center and the Highland Center to all major approach routes to the huts in summer and fall. The Hiker Shuttle also picks up and drops off at the Irving gas station on Main Street in Gorham. Reservations are required – call 603-466-2727.

Shuttle Connection also offers airport service from Boston Logan and Manchester Airports to trailheads servicing all huts, as well as to Joe Dodge Lodge and the Highland Center. Reservations are required, with a minimum 48 hour advance notice.

Via Pinkham Notch:
Concord Coach Lines offers daily bus service between Boston Logan Airport and Boston’s South Station (Amtrak and MBTA Commuter Rail) and AMC’s Pinkham Notch Visitor Center.

Via Franconia or Crawford Notch:
Concord Coach Lines offers daily bus service between Boston Logan Airport and Boston’s South Station (Amtrak and MBTA Commuter Rail) and Lincoln, NH. From Lincoln, Shuttle Connection can provide van service to trailheads servicing all huts. Reservations are required, with a minimum 48 hour advance notice.
(Granted it's 4 to 5 hours to get from Logan to Pinkham Notch.)

[benjaminbach]

Random - I LOVE the Joe Dodge Lodge at Pinkhams Notch. Great place to stay while hiking Mount Washington & the surrounding trails.

[IEFBR14]

Random - I LOVE the Joe Dodge Lodge at Pinkhams Notch. Great place to stay while hiking Mount Washington & the surrounding trails.
[way off topic]
Compare with the 100s of similar lodges operated by the Austrian and German alpine clubs in the Austrian alps. ÖAV Hutfinder (http://www.alpenverein.at/huettenHome/DE/index.php?lang=en) :RpS_drool:

BTW the trailheads to most of them are served either by bus or train so again, no car is necessary.

[/way off topic]

[plam]

AMC White Mountain Huts Fact Sheet (http://www.outdoors.org/lodging/whitemountains/huts/before-you-go.cfm)
(Granted it's 4 to 5 hours to get from Logan to Pinkham Notch.)

It is possible, but doesn't work so well for many situations in which one would actually want to hike, which is actually a problem with transit in general. Also, I hiked all of the 4000 footers, and there are lots of those which the Hiker Shuttle doesn't gonear.

[IEFBR14]

[way, way, way off topic]

Which is one more reason why I do my mountain hiking in the Alps rather than on this side of the pond.

But an even more important reason is that all alpine huts serve beer and wine. AMC huts don't. There's nothing better than a cold beer (or three) after climbing a kilometer or more to get to it ;)

[/off topic]

[UrbanWaterloo]

Kitchener Layover Facility - July 16, 2011

http://wonderfulwaterloo.com/wdrive/Transportation%20and%20Infrastructure/GO%20Transit/GO%20Transit%20Kitchener%20Layover%20Facility%20-%20July%2016,%202011%20-%201%20Resized.jpg

http://wonderfulwaterloo.com/wdrive/Transportation%20and%20Infrastructure/GO%20Transit/GO%20Transit%20Kitchener%20Layover%20Facility%20-%20July%2016,%202011%20-%202%20Resized.jpg

http://wonderfulwaterloo.com/wdrive/Transportation%20and%20Infrastructure/GO%20Transit/GO%20Transit%20Kitchener%20Layover%20Facility%20-%20July%2016,%202011%20-%203%20Resized.jpg

http://wonderfulwaterloo.com/wdrive/Transportation%20and%20Infrastructure/GO%20Transit/GO%20Transit%20Kitchener%20Layover%20Facility%20-%20July%2016,%202011%20-%204%20Resized.jpg

[markster]

Some sections of track have arrived on site.

[bcwessel]

Smart cards ready for GO fares, but not Grand River Transit
The Record | Jeff Outhit | 30 August 2011 | LINK (http://www.therecord.com/news/local/article/586885--smart-cards-ready-for-go-fares-but-not-grand-river-transit)

Intercity passengers on GO Transit buses can now pay fares by loading money onto plastic cards.
And they can use the smart cards when commuter trains start rolling out of Kitchener later this year.
But passengers won’t be able to use the cards to pay for Grand River Transit. The local bus service is not planning to launch smart cards until 2013 at the earliest, said Graham Vincent, regional director of transportation planning. . .
Regional council has not determined if it will adopt Presto or a different card-reading technology. No funds are budgeted for card readers.
Using Presto cards would have advantages. It provides one system for intercity and local travel and it may draw provincial funding. But other technologies may offer other advantages such as lower costs over time.
“We need to do our due diligence and see what’s there,” Vincent said.
Regional government is negotiating to integrate local transit fares with GO Transit, Vincent said. If approved, passengers would show their GO fare to ride a local bus to or from a commuter station.
GO would reimburse Grand River Transit for the fare.

[skyhook19]

I used the Presto card on Mississauga Transit awhile back. It was fun, although I don't think mi-way had anysort of multiple ride discount, so if you used mi-way to commute daily it wouldnt make much sense. Hopefully GRT does something similar to what GO Transit has done.