[Allandale25]

While expensive for a GO project, the chunk from Eglinton north could be tunnelled for under $2B. Compared to the price of a DRL extension to Richmond Hill, this looks ridiculously cheap for 2 exclusive tracks with very large potential capacity.

Are you suggesting it would need to be tunnelled because there's an existing trail that occupies the former Leaside Spur? Wouldn't they also need a rail-over-rail grade separation to deal with the CP Rail sub?

 

[gweed123]

Hmmm, very interesting report! One thing in particular caught my eye, and that's on the Kitchener line in Etobicoke. A while ago on one of my maps I proposed closing Etobicoke North (Kipling) and placing 2 new stations in northern Etobicoke in it's place, at Highway 27 and at Islington. Islington has far better access to the 401, and Highway 27 has many more trip generators in the area (including 2 pretty big ones). I'm glad Metrolinx was on the same wavelength.

As for a new GO station at Gage, I fully support that. Having something like that may even allow Hamilton to run an O-Train type of service between Confederation and Aldershot, connecting to the Lakeshore RER during non-peak periods. The O-Train was definitely done on the cheap, but it was effective.

 

[44 North]

Interesting news, however I'm a little disappointed with a couple of stations that got screened out.
...
Eglinton East GO - Richmond Hill Line

I understand that a station here would be technically difficult, but one of the biggest reasons for low ridership on this line is the lack of stations, so not having one at Eglinton is a missed opportunity to connect with the Eglinton crosstown and make this GO line more useful.

View attachment 55139


I see that Metrolinx is at least considering a different alignment via the Leaside rail corridor, but I highly doubt this will ever come to fruition.

View attachment 55140

Interesting. I don't really know what this is that you've posted or where it came from, but I'm all ears when it comes to the RH corridor. I'm a bit AFK at the moment, so more info would be much appreciated.

Edit: Nvm, I read the previous page and saw the link.

 

[DonValleyRainbow]

A grade separation would definitely be required to get to the northside of the North Toronto sub (or Belleville or whatever its called at that point). Besides getting GO traffic to the other side, it would also:

• permit VIA to switch sides as well, if they elected to follow that right of way too;
• open the opportunity for GO trains to use the Havelock sub to Locust Hill; and
• Express trains to and from the future Pickering Airport.

As I and vegeta_skyline reported in the Pickering Airport sub, CP has sold northwest portions of their Agincourt yard, so there is plenty of incentive for development of the Don Branch and the midtown line east of Leaside.

I also doubt that Metrolinx would propose anything other than removing the trail in substitution for tracks. I would fully support it, but hoo boy, prepare yourselves for NIMBYs from hell.

 

[rbt]

Are you suggesting it would need to be tunnelled because there's an existing trail that occupies the former Leaside Spur?

Unfortunately, yes. It'll be a massive fight stuck for years in the courts if they try to expropriate land to run a 3-track at-grade corridor through that section. Obviously a detailed business plan would be necessary to see if it's worth while, but I whole-heartedly think it's worth taking a look at it.

I say 3-track (despite Metrolinx asking for twin) because they always seem to need 1 more track than you would think is necessary. If they twin it now they'll come back in a decade or two looking for a 3rd.

Wouldn't they also need a rail-over-rail grade separation to deal with the CP Rail sub?

They would, travelling north, need to get from the East side to the West side as you indicate. That might occur near the tiny CP yard between Millwood and Wickstead. You can imagine a fly-under which preserves the spur to Industrial Road.

If they can't buy space from CP for 3 tracks, Redway Road, Village Station Road can be shifted to make space with only expropriations (the Esso station) and a sacrifice of a bit of park land, then Miki's Fine Linen's and the Toyota Dealership to drive through a new bridge at Eglinton.


Widening the existing corridor isn't trivial either due to numerous bridges, flood protection, and other issues; and at the end of it you still take every train on a 20 minute longer journey than necessary.

 

[andrewpmk]

I believe that's the Eglinton spur.

Funny how we can throw 2 billion at a useless spur but can't add a station where the highest concentration of condo towers outside of downtown is developing.

This city is fantastically dysfunctional.

I don't think that Metrolinx is taking the Eglinton spur SmartTrack proposal at all seriously, it is just showing it on the map because of politics. If SmartTrack gets built it will almost certainly take a more northern route to the airport and end up replacing the UP Express. Metrolinx doesn't (yet) want to admit that the UP Express is a failure. This is just like how the Sheppard LRT still appears on the map even though it is well known to be dead.

At least Metrolinx is considering a station at Park Lawn (though I think it would make sense to move this further east to where the Lakeshore West line crosses the 501 streetcar.

I think that the idea of adding more stations to the Richmond Hill line south of Sheppard is pointless. The Downtown Relief Line is going to have to be extended north up Don Mills Road up to Finch. This is going to cost a lot of money, but the Richmond Hill line takes such a poor route that this is necessary.

 

[Filip]

I don't think that Metrolinx is taking the Eglinton spur SmartTrack proposal at all seriously, it is just showing it on the map because of politics. If SmartTrack gets built it will almost certainly take a more northern route to the airport and end up replacing the UP Express. Metrolinx doesn't (yet) want to admit that the UP Express is a failure. This is just like how the Sheppard LRT still appears on the map even though it is well known to be dead.

At least Metrolinx is considering a station at Park Lawn (though I think it would make sense to move this further east to where the Lakeshore West line crosses the 501 streetcar.

I think that the idea of adding more stations to the Richmond Hill line south of Sheppard is pointless. The Downtown Relief Line is going to have to be extended north up Don Mills Road up to Finch. This is going to cost a lot of money, but the Richmond Hill line takes such a poor route that this is necessary.

That wouldn't work that well. Next to no road infrastructure and that's not really where the people live. Park Lawn is in the thick of things, has generous road access and most importantly space.

The 501 should terminate at the new Park Lawn station and have a Lake Shore streetcar for the Long Branch run star from there.

With fare integration and RER - that solves most of South Etobicoke's infrastructure deficit.

 

[Dan416]

Interesting that Milton is no longer listed as getting RER. I guess we do need that subway to MCC after all.

 

[andrewpmk]

If a tunnel were built under the Gardiner then a GO station near where the 501 streetcar crosses the Lakeshore West line would work well. It doesn't matter if it has no parking or road access.

Interesting that Milton is no longer listed as getting RER. I guess we do need that subway to MCC after all.

The Milton Line is owned by CP. Without a big freight bypass project significantly expanding service is impossible. Metrolinx is studying "freight rationalization".

 

[innsertnamehere]

The difficulty of reactivating the leaside spur really depends on what people were thinking when they decommissioned it in the first place. I know that there is a rail trail in Ottawa that has signs posted on it stating that VIA owns the corridor and reserves the right to reactivate it at a later date. There may be the same sort of agreement for the leaside spur, where the rail trail is permitted on the condition that the rail agency reserves the right to reactivate the line at a future date.

 

[DonValleyRainbow]

The difficulty of reactivating the leaside spur really depends on what people were thinking when they decommissioned it in the first place. I know that there is a rail trail in Ottawa that has signs posted on it stating that VIA owns the corridor and reserves the right to reactivate it at a later date. There may be the same sort of agreement for the leaside spur, where the rail trail is permitted on the condition that the rail agency reserves the right to reactivate the line at a future date.

Well maybe that means city council will have a say on it? That would just be great...

 

[vegeta_skyline]

The difficulty of reactivating the leaside spur really depends on what people were thinking when they decommissioned it in the first place. I know that there is a rail trail in Ottawa that has signs posted on it stating that VIA owns the corridor and reserves the right to reactivate it at a later date. There may be the same sort of agreement for the leaside spur, where the rail trail is permitted on the condition that the rail agency reserves the right to reactivate the line at a future date.

Not the case here CN sold the spur to the city because they had absolutely no future use for it and the line was only a rail spur not a mainline corridor.

 

[wopchop]

So why is the Barrie line is not worthy of the same attention? Is it because it's not part of Dumbtrack? I'm not wishing for that many stations, but I thought that a station at Wilson would have been worthy considering because:
- It's close to the Humber River Regional Hospital (among other buildings) that employs hundreds of people
- It intersects one of the busiest bus corridors in Toronto, which at one point was slated to become a BRT under Transit City
- There's even an existing GO bus stop at Keele & 401 (presumably because of the Hospital), so why reject a rail station near the same area? Why does a station at St Clair merit further evaluation but not this one?

This also pisses me off. And you are being rather conservative. Humber River Hospital will quite literally employ thousands. The current three sites of Humber already employ almost 4,000 people.

In addition to a really busy bus route, and Humber Hospital, you also have the MTO office across the street to the south, and the Coroner's office to the east. I believe that there are also plans to accommodate new province offices in this area, as well. The Downsview Assembly plant for Bombardier, which is nearby, also probably employees hundreds of people.

 

[Filip]

If a tunnel were built under the Gardiner then a GO station near where the 501 streetcar crosses the Lakeshore West line would work well. It doesn't matter if it has no parking or road access.



The Milton Line is owned by CP. Without a big freight bypass project significantly expanding service is impossible. Metrolinx is studying "freight rationalization".

I disagree solely on the basis there is no room for platforms at the Humber Loop. You'd have to move the Gardiner off ramp to Lake Shore.

Park Lawn allows a station to be built - one that can serve as a hub for this part of Toronto.

 

[Allandale25]

Not the case here CN sold the spur to the city because they had absolutely no future use for it and the line was only a rail spur not a mainline corridor.

So would Metrolinx have to expropriate the spur walking/cycling trail from the City? Would the rail-over-rail grade separation and construction of the spur even have been included in the overall RER budget? Or, would that be hard to tell because the RER budget wasn't broken down by line?