[adma]

Under what circumstances would a tourist who is not a railbuff need to use line 6?

(1) Foodies headed for Plaza Latina, (2) people visiting or staying w/friends and relatives and whatnot along Line 6. And both cases are "atypical".

I consider Line 6 to be still a "work in progress"; but I also consider those who are really taken to grumbling about too many stops and suboptimal speed on the eastern stretch of Line 5 (at least relative to "rapid transit" expectations stoked by the Line 5 label) to be the transit version of those grumbling about how we wouldn't be having all those travel bottlenecks were it not for the long-ago Stop The Spadina NIMBYs. That is, in multiples of 72 they're an Al-Qaeda suicide attacker's destiny, figuratively speaking.

 

[kotsy]

My final batch of opening day photos

 

[Leo_Chan]

The Don Valley Station bus terminal elevator being out of service for the Ontario Line confuses me. Are they being extremely precautions to prevent riders from being in any danger at all? I can understand not opening the bus platforms and street entrance, but why would the inside of the bus terminal be dangerous? Are they scared that the Ontario Line guideway will fall onto the building and drop through the roof, or is there actually construction occurring inside the terminal?

 

[A 6264]

The Don Valley Station bus terminal elevator being out of service for the Ontario Line confuses me. Are they being extremely precautions to prevent riders from being in any danger at all? I can understand not opening the bus platforms and street entrance, but why would the inside of the bus terminal be dangerous? Are they scared that the Ontario Line guideway will fall onto the building and drop through the roof, or is there actually construction occurring inside the terminal?

As far as I can tell, it's that same agreement that Metrolinx had at Eglinton station, where new escalators connecting the existing Yonge subway platform to the existing mezzanine level could not be opened to the public, just because they signed contracts agreeing not to open any new part until the new line is open. They couldn't even open a passageway connecting the station to a shopping mall to the north, which has nothing to do with Line 5, even though there used to be a connection before contruction. Back at Don Valley, the elevator is positioned in a place where the top level is in the existing station, all ready to go, but in a place which there is contractual agreement that the hallway leading to it can't be opened. A short section of hallway is there, but blocked off. As for the Don Mills Road entrance to the building, the door is only 6 feet away from the sidewalk. Typically, the sidewalk in front of a building under contruction or refurbishment has a protective overhead covering, and pedestrians safely walk under it and use the entrance. Frankly, I don't know how a building with a single entrance at one end, is legal under the fire code.

Realistically, the Ontario line isn't opening for another 15 years, most likely. If parties foolishly signed a contract agreeing to have the elevator sit out of use until that time, and can't get around it, they need to build a new elevator a little further down the bus platform. "Oh, we signed a contract, our hands our tied" is no excuse for stations not being accessible.

 

[A 6264]

Further to my note above, if the TTC says it would take half a year until they can put in a new elevator, I should point out that construction has not begun on the second phase of the station. They should open the existing elevator now, and at the same time, put in a new one further along the platform. By the time construction starts on the new part of the station, the new elevator should be installed and ready, and then they can close down the other one. As for "the contract says we can't", I sincerely doubt that a contract can't be modified if both parties agree to it. The city should order both parties to agree there is a need to open that little section of hallway and its elevator right away, and agree to put a small exception clause into the contract ASAP.

 

[doublemint]

Realistically, the Ontario line isn't opening for another 15 years, most likely.

That's quite an alarming number. Any sources backing up that estimate?

 

[KevinT]

Hoping to ride Line 5 from Mount Dennis to Kennedy for the first time this weekend. Which stations are the most visually interesting? I'll likely choose three.

I did this on Monday, taking the GO Train in from Kitchener to Mount Dennis and then doing the out and back on the Crosstown. I started too late in the day to catch any of the morning trains out of Kitchener though, so didn't have time to see any stations other than Kennedy and Mount Dennis. After seeing all the pictures posted both here and on Facebook though, I realize that was a mistake... nice that you're taking the time to check some of them out!

 

[Monarch Butterfly]

The City of Toronto in 1834, when it was created from the former Town of York, was much smaller. Many of the annexations since then was done by swallowing former villages, towns, and cities that surrounded it. Those former far-flung "suburbs" are now part of the City.

From https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1GTnC5Be9M/

Where Line 5 is now was farmland back in 1834.

 

[Dan416]

You do understand that Toronto isn't some homogenized region, but is rather a jigsaw puzzle of many different communities living in their own separate enclaves semi-detached from each other? As such by that token, you do understand that A) Not everything can be found downtown, and B) Many people travel to cities like Toronto not just to see the big ticket sights, but also to visit distant friends and family who knows where. If you're Iranian and you're visiting the city, sure you will visit downtown and see the big ticket places and attractions, but you'll also probably head up to Yonge Street in York Region where you'll find where most of the Iranians live (including likely distant friends/family), Persian Restaurants, Persian Stores, etc. This isn't some rare occurrence either, this is actually a very typical case of someone or a group travelling to Toronto. Toronto is a giant global city that constantly accepts immigrants from all over the world, immigrants who often have to leave friends and family behind. People traveling to the GTA to visit them is something that is constantly occurring.

The touristy stuff is definitely downtown. But how many people live directly downtown versus the suburbs? Whether we're talking about suburbs like Etobicoke or Scarborough, Mississauga or Vaughan or Ajax, visitors are coming from all over to all over. The majority of people in the CMA don't live downtown. That doesn't mean I think that Alto shouldn't go to Union though, because it absolutely should. But let's be cognizant that the suburbs/sprawl whatever you want to call it, should have high quality transit too. And no I'm not saying a subway to everywhere. But I think everyone agrees that the Eglinton tunnel is a success, the eastern at-grade portion less so, but still better than the disaster that is Finch West. If they are able to improve Finch West to the point of being faster than the bus, then great. If it never reaches THAT milestone, then to me, it was a waste of money and they shouldn't have bothered. Even equaling the speed of the bus isn't worth it. It should be faster. And it CAN be faster. We should NOT accept LRTs being unnecessarily stuck at red lights.

 

[T3G]

You do understand that Toronto isn't some homogenized region, but is rather a jigsaw puzzle of many different communities living in their own separate enclaves semi-detached from each other? As such by that token, you do understand that A) Not everything can be found downtown, and B) Many people travel to cities like Toronto not just to see the big ticket sights, but also to visit distant friends and family who knows where. If you're Iranian and you're visiting the city, sure you will visit downtown and see the big ticket places and attractions, but you'll also probably head up to Yonge Street in York Region where you'll find where most of the Iranians live (including likely distant friends/family), Persian Restaurants, Persian Stores, etc. This isn't some rare occurrence either, this is actually a very typical case of someone or a group travelling to Toronto. Toronto is a giant global city that constantly accepts immigrants from all over the world, immigrants who often have to leave friends and family behind. People traveling to the GTA to visit them is something that is constantly occurring.

There are always going to be exceptions to the rule, but the number of people that use the 6 that don't live along the corridor is going to be a hell of a lot less than those that use the lines that run downtown, and a fringe case is not a compelling reason to create policy, especially something that no one really cares about, like a unified numbering scheme.

This is not to say that I don't think the 6 couldn't have been the 536, but it doesn't matter, remotely, either way whether a tourist is given conflicting information from the numbering scheme or not. If you're traveling to a new city, you should be doing research ahead of time, and not relying on whatever numbering scheme the city uses to deduce the nature of a service. Anyone who gets on the 6 and suddenly acts shocked that it's not a line 1 style subway hasn't done adequate research on their journey, and is undeserving of sympathy. Or perhaps we should also renumber bus routes 7-9, since maybe someone in an invented UrbanToronto scenario has decided in their head that all routes with one digit are actually subways?

This whole discussion is a non issue. In the real world, numbering schemes do not interest the majority of transit riding clientele.

 

[GenerationLee]

Some more notes as I now use the crosstown nearly daily...

The affliction of TMA (too many announcements) is getting very annoying...(I'm grateful I just bought a music streaming service to drown em out), but, there needs to be a chanhe made here. Its absurd.

Secondly, I'm finding one of my longtime concerns with this line is getting closer to reality.
I've noted privately before that I find some platforms too narrow, especially at Eglinton and Eglinton West.
Although today was a PA Day, the trains were fairly busy, but the platform at Eglinton had a fairly decent crowd. I know service is supposed to be improved soon (as in, I waited today at Bayview for 7 minutes for a train...meaningg the 34 or shuttle bus wouldve actually been the same time to get to Eglinton), but, I hope to see a fast tracking of these phased openings.

My third concern is with the routing of local buses. The 51 now combining with the 56 is a sore spot for many folks in my neighbourhood, but this is partly felt due to the lack of decent bus connections directly from say, Laird station. There is a bus stop at Leslie, but most folks taking the 56 are west of that intersection, meaning you're hoping to catch a bus thats taking a much longer, and thereby more prone to delay, bus route.
Otherwise...I'm still trying to figure out what the 54 bus is now.

My fourth concern has been noted in its proper thread, but remains a sore thumb to me, and I'm sure others in my area (the Salvation Army at 7 Eglinton East remains femced off).

 

[nfitz]

I've noted privately before that I find some platforms too narrow, especially at Eglinton and Eglinton West.

Yeah, I thought that. It's like they've forgotten lessons learned from the 1960s stations.

Narrow staircases in those stations too, lack of escalators. Only 2 escalators where there should be a 3rd redundant one. Lack of redundant elevators (hopefully this is not true in the very deep stations). And even broken elevators and escalators, with no warnings. Arriving at Eglinton station, there was a person with a wheelchair who got off, by the elevator, only to find an out-of-order sign on it Is there a second elevator on that platform somewhere else?

Normally in these circumstances one takes the train an extra stop, and then doubles back - but that falls apart on centre platforms.

 

[Admiral Beez]

Have any of the haters ridden Line 5 yet?

 

[duffo]

Have any of the haters ridden Line 5 yet?

Line 5 is "too cooked" for them to even try it out...

 

[A 6264]

That's quite an alarming number. Any sources backing up that estimate?

It's a prediction, not an estimate. But sure. What's the title at the top of this thread, again? And which of the 2 projects is bigger?