[smallspy]

Overhead catenary to Hunter St? Not going to happen, tunnel is too small.

Quite to the contrary - as far as some of these pie-in-the-sky projects go, adding catenary to the Hunter St tunnel - or even double-tracking it (again) - is really not very far-fetched.

The tunnel was built as a two track cut-and-cover tunnel, and was single-tracked with the advent of larger freight cars in the 1960s. While it would be a big project, it certainly isn't out of the realm of possibility to re-open the cut and reconfigure the tunnel to allow more overhead clearances for things like catenary.

Dan
Toronto, Ont.

 

[Garuda]

Quite to the contrary - as far as some of these pie-in-the-sky projects go, adding catenary to the Hunter St tunnel - or even double-tracking it (again) - is really not very far-fetched.

The tunnel was built as a two track cut-and-cover tunnel, and was single-tracked with the advent of larger freight cars in the 1960s. While it would be a big project, it certainly isn't out of the realm of possibility to re-open the cut and reconfigure the tunnel to allow more overhead clearances for things like catenary.

Dan
Toronto, Ont.

What about digging a little deeper into the earth?

 

[smallspy]

What about digging a little deeper into the earth?

Can absolutely be done, but the staging for it will be much, much more difficult. Much easier to go up in this case then down.

Dan
Toronto, Ont.

 

[DonValleyRainbow]

Quite to the contrary - as far as some of these pie-in-the-sky projects go, adding catenary to the Hunter St tunnel - or even double-tracking it (again) - is really not very far-fetched.

The tunnel was built as a two track cut-and-cover tunnel, and was single-tracked with the advent of larger freight cars in the 1960s. While it would be a big project, it certainly isn't out of the realm of possibility to re-open the cut and reconfigure the tunnel to allow more overhead clearances for things like catenary.

Dan
Toronto, Ont.

Got a price tag? Plus that's a lot of disturbance for one station. Somehow I think there's more appetite to hold our breath for hydrogen trains.

Long-term, I'm all for it if they end up making the downtown station the mainline through to Niagara somehow, connecting CN and CP subs east of Stoney Creek or something. But given all factors, I stand by my statement 'it ain't happening.'

 

[mdrejhon]

Got a price tag? Plus that's a lot of disturbance for one station. Somehow I think there's more appetite to hold our breath for hydrogen trains.

Long-term, I'm all for it if they end up making the downtown station the mainline through to Niagara somehow, connecting CN and CP subs east of Stoney Creek or something. But given all factors, I stand by my statement 'it ain't happening.'

Small batteries in each coach (potentially smaller than Tesla car size pack per coach, each coach gets a small lithium battery good for 10km at slow speeds) can be sufficient enough to easily taxi through a short catenary-free section. Enough to cross freight tracks (without a grade separation) or go through a shared tunnel.

They already do it in some LRVs/trolleybuses, including for operational reasons like trolleypole slip, so why not scale upwards utility batteries to small lithium batteries for EMUs, too. Not real massive sized battery for high speed long-distance. Just slow taxi past short dead-sections. And it could also be useful during a power outage to successfully inch to the nearest platform (and open doors) too. Ability to temporarily switch to a catenary-free track to get around a stalled train. Etc. It has immense operational advantages for GO.

I think it is less pie-in-sky than hydrogen trains.

And commonplace by 2020s-2030s, relevant to Metrolinx 2041 timelines.

This makes 15-min RER possible without a wire above existing CP or CN tracks, and without taking tracks away from them.

 

[smallspy]

Got a price tag? Plus that's a lot of disturbance for one station.

No, I don't have a price tag. But similar projects have happened before - the B&O's Howard St. Tunnel project is the most recent one I can think of off of the top of my head - and the prices aren't exorbitant. The Howard St. expansion is costing somewhat less than a half-billion dollars (USD) for a tunnel 2.3km long. (Hunter St. is a shade over 560 metres.)

Somehow I think there's more appetite to hold our breath for hydrogen trains.

Don't bother. Hydrogen trains aren't likely to get much traction any time in any of our lifetimes. It's a nice idea, but ultimately just a distraction.

Dan
Toronto, Ont.

 

[DonValleyRainbow]

Don't bother. Hydrogen trains aren't likely to get much traction any time in any of our lifetimes. It's a nice idea, but ultimately just a distraction.

Dan
Toronto, Ont.

I 100% agree, but my point is a politician may be willing to.

 

[Allandale25]

Latest article on the horn battle in York Region and specifically Thornhill. Article notes the crossings are being upgraded. Anyone know which crossings GO has to use the horn at?

http://postcity.com/Eat-Shop-Do/Do/September-2017/Thornhillers-oppose-new-train-schedule/

 

[rbt]

Article notes the crossings are being upgraded. Anyone know which crossings GO has to use the horn at?

AFAIK the rule is all crossings get the same horn treatment within a municipality. So, the crossings where the horn is the problem may not be the same crossings which need to be upgraded to enable quiet operations.

 

[joet00]

Earlier this week, was at a meeting at Vaughan City Hall. To my surprise, Minister Del Duca was on the agenda to speak.

In his remarks, during a self-described "informercial" for his ministry, he highlighted:

1. TYSSE opening Dec. 17,
2. Barrie line mid-week, 2-way day and evening service "coming in a few months",
3. 2WAD electrified service to Aurora with 15-minute headways "in 6 years".
4. GO-TTC co-fare.

1 and 4 are publicly announced.

2 seems accurate based on comments in this thread.

For 3: Does his forecast of 2023 match what ML is putting out there? I can't find the link to Steve Munro's table, but 6 years seems earlier than what I recall.

 

[Allandale25]

For 3: Does his forecast of 2023 match what ML is putting out there? I can't find the link to Steve Munro's table, but 6 years seems earlier than what I recall.

ML has been saying 2024-2025 so maybe he's stretching it to 2023-2024 fiscal. So could be as late as March 2024.

 

[Admiral Beez]

I've been driving to work for ages. I live at Parliament and Gerrard St., and work on Hurontario near Pinewood Trail (south of QEW, north of Lakeshore). My hours are 8:30am to 5:30pm, Monday to Friday. The drive there is okay but the return is getting worse, meanwhile every day while I sit on the Gardiner I see the GoTrain racing past eastward to Union.

So, I'm going to give the GoTrain a shot, I've got my Presto card loaded, here's my plan.....

http://www.gotransit.com/timetables...x?tableid=10&dir=E&date=2017-10-17&parentid=1

7:48am Train Departs Union, arrives at Port Credit at 8:15am
5:41pm Train Departs Port Credit, arrives at Union 6:11pm

If I miss either train there's a 30 min wait, which pretty much wrecks the time advantage of taking my car.

I'd like to avoid spending money on the TTC to get to Union. GO allows bikes on trains if you're reverse commuting, so I could do that and lock my bike at the office. Or I could do a Bike Share, what does that cost? Is there a strong risk that there's no empty docking stations at Union in the AM?

 

[mdrejhon]

I'd like to avoid spending money on the TTC to get to Union.

This January 1st, co-fare is reduced to $1.50 so you can use TTC on rainy/slushy days, while using bikeshare on good/dry days.

GO allows bikes on trains if you're reverse commuting, so I could do that and lock my bike at the office.

You can also try that. If it's difficult to battle the crowds, try a folding bike to more easily battle the counter-flowing crowds.
At the moment, I highly recommend bike share because it allows you to use TTC spontaneously "in the other direction" if weather is terrible.1

Or I could do a Bike Share, what does that cost?

Presto special of 50 bucks for unlimited 30-minute bike rentals for one year. Pretty cheap. Less than the price of annual bike maintenance at some places! (But no theft, damage, or maintenance worries -- that's *their* responsibility once the bike is docked)

You get a bike share card which allows you to spontaneously rent any bike at any bike dock in a mere 3 seconds, and return to any dock in any location. Or if you forgot your bike share card from home, just use TransitApp to rent a bike if you don't have the card.

Is there a strong risk that there's no empty docking stations at Union in the AM?

In a counter-commute, you're at a huge advantage.

The Union bike share dock is never full in the morning as people are rapidly taking them away. They even have a bikeshare van nearby to keep refilling the docks as quickly as they are being taken away. Also, even in a normal commute (mine) -- Union docks is manned by bikeshare staff in the evening so they can take your bike at that location even if the bikeshare docks are full.

There are also several nearby docks, plus docks on Wellington (1 block walk) and King (2 block walk). You've got more than half a dozen docks within 2 block walk, that is a whopping couple hundred bikes total:

The numbers seen on the pins from the map at torontobikeshare.com, you can tell whether a dock is full, empty, or has bikes. Or more quickly with better color indicators, you can use an app (e.g. SpotCycle, etc) to determine which docks near you is empty or is full. This allows you to avoid the "dock hunting" game, even before you step out of the door or train. But that probably doesn't apply to you because of your counter-commute.

 

[Admiral Beez]

This January 1st, co-fare is reduced to $1.50 so you can use TTC on rainy/slushy days, while using bikeshare on good/dry days.


You can also try that. If it's difficult to battle the crowds, try a folding bike to more easily battle the counter-flowing crowds.
At the moment, I highly recommend bike share because it allows you to use TTC spontaneously "in the other direction" if weather is terrible.1


Presto special of 50 bucks for unlimited 30-minute bike rentals for one year. Pretty cheap. Less than the price of annual bike maintenance at some places! (But no theft, damage, or maintenance worries -- that's *their* responsibility once the bike is docked)

You get a bike share card which allows you to spontaneously rent any bike at any bike dock in a mere 3 seconds, and return to any dock in any location. Or if you forgot your bike share card from home, just use TransitApp to rent a bike if you don't have the card.


In a counter-commute, you're at a huge advantage.

The Union bike share dock is never full in the morning as people are rapidly taking them away. They even have a bikeshare van nearby to keep refilling the docks as quickly as they are being taken away. Also, even in a normal commute (mine) -- Union docks is manned by bikeshare staff in the evening so they can take your bike at that location even if the bikeshare docks are full.

There are also several nearby docks, plus docks on Wellington (1 block walk) and King (2 block walk). You've got more than half a dozen docks within 2 block walk, that is a whopping couple hundred bikes total:

View attachment 124145

The numbers seen on the pins from the map at torontobikeshare.com, you can tell whether a dock is full, empty, or has bikes. Or more quickly with better color indicators, you can use an app (e.g. SpotCycle, etc) to determine which docks near you is empty or is full. This allows you to avoid the "dock hunting" game, even before you step out of the door or train. But that probably doesn't apply to you because of yourcounter-commute.

Thanks, that's great info! Alrighty, I'm going to sign up for bike share tomorrow and give this a shot.

 

[Admiral Beez]

Is there an App that shows when GoTrains are running, including real time gps tracking of trains?

I have Transit Now for TTC streetcar gps tracking.

What the App for bikeshare? Too bad there isn't one at Port Credit Go station.