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Councillor John Campbell’s latest commentary on the Eglinton West extension here.

Technically, this is a Smarttrack issue, but seemed to make more sense to be posted in this thread.

- Paul
 
crs1026 said:
Councillor John Campbell’s latest commentary on the Eglinton West extension here.

Technically, this is a Smarttrack issue, but seemed to make more sense to be posted in this thread.

- Paul
Click to expand...
It says that Sheppard East is funded? I thought the funding was taken away and moved (to Eglinton?)

It also says there is no business case for tunneling, although if he means grade-separation, he is wrong because the fully grade-separated option had the best benefit/cost ratio.
 
BurlOak said:
It says that Sheppard East is funded? I thought the funding was taken away and moved (to Eglinton?)

It also says there is no business case for tunneling, although if he means grade-separation, he is wrong because the fully grade-separated option had the best benefit/cost ratio.
Click to expand...
Not under the criteria that the city staffs looked at. It can't be elevated cause no one wants to see this ugly concrete beam in their backyard or front windows along the new townhouse. So it has to be tunneled.

Grade separation would be an addition 5 minutes of walking time spent with the station to enter and exit from the platform. It also means making people with walking difficulties even harder to access transit. For a short trip, this is super unappealing and I rather ride the bus instead. I really don't see how this is the best benefit cause obvious BRT on shoulder side bus lanes would been so much better. They should just do that and run artics every 5 minute with POP. Same with Sheppard East.
 
BurlOak said:
It also says there is no business case for tunneling, although if he means grade-separation, he is wrong because the fully grade-separated option had the best benefit/cost ratio.
Click to expand...

It had the best cost/benefit ratio, but only at the lower end of its estimated price range.
 
I’m not sure Campbell has all his facts straight (wasn’t it McGinty, and not City Council, that cut back Crosstown?) and I am surprised he isn’t pushing harder for transit spending in his part of the city - the polar opposite of GdB! - but I admire his willingness to ignore anybody’s party line, ask some business minded questions, and form his own view of the situation. And let the chips fall where they may in terms of rational, disciplined prioritisation instead of putting his own interests first.

In the article, he accepts the LRT potential for several routes, including Finch (no Ford/Mammo synchophant here!) and keeps Waterfront reset and the Relief line on the table..... while showing no loyalty to Tory and Smarttrack.

I can’t argue with his basic premise: we have multiple projects competing for funding, money doesn’t grow on trees, so where do we start and what order do we tackle these in? From that viewpoint, maybe Eglinton West can wait a bit.

- Paul
 
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Steve X said:
Not under the criteria that the city staffs looked at. It can't be elevated cause no one wants to see this ugly concrete beam in their backyard or front windows along the new townhouse. So it has to be tunneled.
Click to expand...

So even though 95% of this route has nothing directly fronting Eglinton, this option is discarded because of the hypothetical aesthetic objections of a couple dozen townhomes?

I'd also like to point out that there is nothing but empty fields on the south side of Eglinton across from the townhomes, so the LRT could swing over to that end if more setback is needed. Expropriation is always an option in a multibillion dollar project like this.

I think the main option looked at in the grade separation study for Martin Grove was tunnelled, anyway, to better avoid the hydro wires.

Steve X said:
Grade separation would be an addition 5 minutes of walking time spent with the station to enter and exit from the platform. It also means making people with walking difficulties even harder to access transit. For a short trip, this is super unappealing and I rather ride the bus instead. I really don't see how this is the best benefit cause obvious BRT on shoulder side bus lanes would been so much better. They should just do that and run artics every 5 minute with POP. Same with Sheppard East.
Click to expand...

5 minutes for one flight of stairs? This isn't the DRL queen station with its 5 levels of concourses and mezzanines. These stations would all be accessible with elevators.

Frequent stops are good for saving people from having to walk. Transit is more effective when it is in a non-overlapping, and therefore complementary role with walking. If we're spending billions of dollars on Eglinton West, it should function as a trunk line to the airport instead of as an expensive local bus route.

If you're making a short trip, then walking or a local bus is better suited to your needs.

But TBH, I think you're right about BRT on Eglinton West and Sheppard East. There are already higher priority projects (DRL, RER) which will use up all the borrowing room in the near future, so BRT is an affordable way to improve transit in areas that don't merit rapid transit yet.
 
aquateam said:
5 minutes for one flight of stairs? This isn't the DRL queen station with its 5 levels of concourses and mezzanines. These stations would all be accessible with elevators.
Click to expand...

5 minutes is a bit of an exaggeration, but only just. A lot of people here are completely oblivious to how much time is involved in accessing stations, or transit service in general.

Try it - walk from the corner of say Dufferin and Bloor to the subway platform and time it. (For more fun, try from the corner of Bayview and Sheppard to the platforms.) It won't be 5 minutes, but it's certainly not inconsequential.

aquateam said:
Frequent stops are good for saving people from having to walk. Transit is more effective when it is in a non-overlapping, and therefore complementary role with walking. If we're spending billions of dollars on Eglinton West, it should function as a trunk line to the airport instead of as an expensive local bus route.
Click to expand...

Except that if you make it a "trunk line" with stops every kilometer, you are then required to run a paralleling bus route. Which would be the opposite of the "more effective" tenant that you just wrote above, no?

Dan
Toronto, Ont.
 
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smallspy said:
Except that if you make it a "trunk line" with stops every kilometer, you are then required to run a paralleling bus route. Which would be the opposite of the "more effective" tenant that you just wrote above, no?
Click to expand...

It's fine to run an occasional bus for the small minority of elderly/infirm who have mobility issues for coverage. We do that already on Yonge or on Sheppard. It just doesn't make sense to have *all* of the vehicles stop for the sake of that small minority. WheelTrans, dial a ride, or a half-hourly bus would be a better way of meeting that coverage goal. 1 km stop spacing (each arterial) is perfectly reasonable, especially in such a sparse, suburban environment.

It would be more 'effective' in gaining ridership. If you see a choice between an express and an all-stop bus route (e.g. Finch E vs. Finch) generally the express buses are full but the local ones half empty. From daily experience, everyone empties out of my local bus (202) when they see that an express (460E) has arrived at the station platform, despite having almost identical route and stops.

It's more 'effective' in making more of the city accessible by transit users within a reasonable time frame. For short journeys, more stops and no grade separation might make a journey slightly shorter/more convenient. But those short journeys are better served by walking/biking anyway. For other journeys, if it takes above an hour, people will give up and take a car instead. We want to increase how much of the city can be accessed within an hour by transit (or 45 mins, or 30 mins) if we want to make transit a viable option. Consider also that Eglinton LRT will be part of a network, not a standalone line, and that people will be transferring from other lines, not just points on the line.
 
This user on Twitter points out that the "new" Mount Dennis Station walk through video is actually months (3 years) old, and the Crosstown account just says "Ah, right!". The only changes I can see between the videos are some colour differences, different FOV, different speeds and transitions, and some people moved around. Calling old news new news now?
Original Video:
"New" Video:
 
From link.

Upcoming Traffic Changes at West Portal

Traffic lanes and the pedestrian sidewalk will be shifted to the south side of Eglinton Avenue between Black Creek Drive and Bicknell Avenue.

Work is expected to begin as early as August 17th and last for approximately 4-6 months.

west_portal_traffic_flip.jpg


Traffic and Pedestrian Details

  • Traffic lanes and the pedestrian sidewalk will be shifted to the south side of Eglinton Avenue between Black Creek Drive and Bicknell.
  • The sidewalk on the north side of Eglinton Avenue from Black Creek Drive to Bicknell Avenue will be closed.
  • All currently open crosswalks will be maintained for this stage of work.
  • At least one (1) lane in each direction east-west along Eglinton Avenue will be maintained.
  • Conditions may change due to unforeseen circumstances and will be communicated separately.
​
 
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... that shows 3 lanes eastbound on Eglinton at Black Creek and only two on the opposite side... that surely cant be right ? I can see that causing accidents, lots of them.
 
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