[canmark]

Details on the door problems in the Globe:

At issue, TTC spokesman Brad Ross said Tuesday, is part of a safety system that doesn’t allow the trains to move unless all the doors are closed. And if the doors fail to close three times in a row – for example because someone is blocking the gap – “the train has to be taken out of service.” In these cases, all passengers must be offloaded and wait for the next train.

It was not immediately clear how often the new trains have had to be unloaded. Mr. Ross said it was “not nearly as frequent” as a smaller but still significant related problem. If a train’s door doesn’t close until the second or third attempt, although not triggering a disembarkation, these few additional seconds can add up and have a knock-on effect that cascades through the system.

* * *

Although the frequency of both types of door problem was unavailable Tuesday, delays with the new train are at the heart of scheduling issues cited in a recent report to the Toronto Transit Commission. Punctuality targets on the route on which the new trains have been deployed were met 92.7 per cent of the time in September, below the goal of 96 per cent.

 

[Johnny Au]

Here is some on cbc.ca: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/story/2012/12/04/ttc-new-train-problems.html

[h=1]New TTC trains' performance 'unacceptable,' says CEO[/h]
TTC boss Andy Byford will speak with Bombardier officials Friday about technical problems that are causing passenger delays aboard the new Toronto Rocket subway vehicles.
A total of 27 of the new trains are currently in service on the Yonge-University-Spadina line, with the full fleet of 70 trains to be operating by end of 2014.
The new trains, which are built by Bombardier, have increased capacity and other service enhancements but problems with the doors are causing delays, according to a TTC report that calls the performance of the new vehicles “unacceptable.â€

Door circuit problems

TTC spokesperson Brad Ross said the problem is related to a safety feature on the train doors that prevents the train from moving until the doors are closed.
"If the doors get held or they’re jammed in some way, then they won’t close and we need to cycle them again," Ross told CBC News.
"That means we need to reopen them and reclose them. If after the third time of having to do that, then the system needs to be rebooted and that causes us to take the trains out of service.â€
The report says the new trains are on time 92 per cent of the time; The on-time target is 96 per cent.
Ross said Byford will meet with Bombardier officials on Friday for an update on resolving the door problem.
“Bombardier is well aware of the issue and we’re working with them to come up with a solution,†said Ross. “With new technology, there are always going to be teething problems."

 

[Cast2]

Teething problems isn't new to the T.T.C. An example would be the C.L.R.V.s back in March of 1980 when snow, slush, & salt ate the vehicle insulation that led to electrical components beginning to short out according to Mike Filey's book, The T.T.C. Story published in 1996.

 

[Electrify]

This probably means absolutely nothing, but I was at the TRL yesterday and it took 30 minutes to get from Bloor to Finch. According to Google Maps, the train I took (approx 3:50) should have only taken 20 minutes to get to Finch. Not sure if this was because of the slower doors, congestion on the line, or a bit of both.

Also, how long does it take to reboot the system if the doors fail to close? Could an update be applied so that the reboot process is sped up, or system doesn't have an emergency crash?

 

[officedweller]

Regarding delays in doors opening -
if there were platform screen doors - it would be even slower.

 

[In4matt]

Regarding delays in doors opening -
if there were platform screen doors - it would be even slower.

I'm not sure it would. If the screen doors close first it stops people from jamming the train doors.

Also, keeps the garbage that causes smoke and delays off the tracks...and people

 

[noctis]

was on the TR yesterday and i noticed that the door closing announcement has finally been changed to "Please stand clear of the doors". Now it's time to change the station announcement such as the interchange stations...

 

[TheTigerMaster]

was on the TR yesterday and i noticed that the door closing announcement has finally been changed to "Please stand clear of the doors". Now it's time to change the station announcement such as the interchange stations...

What's wrong with the station announcements?

 

[car4041]

What's wrong with the station announcements?

In particular the announcements for transfer stations: "The next station is interchange station...St. George". It sounds silly -- because of the pause before St. George, your first impression is that the name of the next station is "Interchange Station" -- and nobody in Toronto talks about "interchanging" or "interchange stations" anyway. How about something like "The next station is St. George, transfer available to the Bloor-Danforth line". Clearer, and more informative too.

 

[Hank]

In particular the announcements for transfer stations: "The next station is interchange station...St. George". It sounds silly -- because of the pause before St. George, your first impression is that the name of the next station is "Interchange Station" -- and nobody in Toronto talks about "interchanging" or "interchange stations" anyway. How about something like "The next station is St. George, transfer available to the Bloor-Danforth line". Clearer, and more informative too.

Couldn't agree more. Also, anyone else notice how "Summerhill" is pronounced as if it's two words? What's up with that?

 

[TheTigerMaster]

In particular the announcements for transfer stations: "The next station is interchange station...St. George". It sounds silly -- because of the pause before St. George, your first impression is that the name of the next station is "Interchange Station" -- and nobody in Toronto talks about "interchanging" or "interchange stations" anyway. How about something like "The next station is St. George, transfer available to the Bloor-Danforth line". Clearer, and more informative too.

Couldn't agree with you more, car4041. It really is quite annoying.

Couldn't agree more. Also, anyone else notice how "Summerhill" is pronounced as if it's two words? What's up with that?

The system mispronounces many stations incorrectly. I believe that it also pronounces Dupont and Glencarin incorrectly.

While Bombarider works on fixing the door issue it would be nice to see the TTC also have them have some useful information on the LED displays. Rather than simply identifying the next station they should also have the time and date. More than a year after our TRs were launched I still find myself instinctively looking to them for the time and being disappointed when I realize I have to take out my phone. Having the time there just makes sense.

Also they should run something other than safety adverts and "The Toronto Rocket is jointly funded by the City of Toronto, Province of Ontario and Government of Canada" on the LCD screens. I expected those to just be placeholders for something better, but the fact that a year later they still have that completely unhelpful information about the TR funding is unacceptable. A better use of the LCD would be to have the following on them:

-Next stop
-Weather
-System delays
-Safety information
-News

 

[Fred.S]

was on the TR yesterday and i noticed that the door closing announcement has finally been changed to "Please stand clear of the doors". Now it's time to change the station announcement such as the interchange stations...

Noticed that too yesterday, sounded better. Also, I think the voice sounded a bit smoother than before, slightly less robotic. Maybe it was just me though...

I also noticed on the newer TRs that the bars around the inter-car gangways now have a yellow/black striped pattern instead of red. Guess the changes are ongoing.

 

[W. K. Lis]

Couldn't agree with you more, car4041. It really is quite annoying.



The system mispronounces many stations incorrectly. I believe that it also pronounces Dupont and Glencarin incorrectly.

While Bombarider works on fixing the door issue it would be nice to see the TTC also have them have some useful information on the LED displays. Rather than simply identifying the next station they should also have the time and date. More than a year after our TRs were launched I still find myself instinctively looking to them for the time and being disappointed when I realize I have to take out my phone. Having the time there just makes sense.

Also they should run something other than safety adverts and "The Toronto Rocket is jointly funded by the City of Toronto, Province of Ontario and Government of Canada" on the LCD screens. I expected those to just be placeholders for something better, but the fact that a year later they still have that completely unhelpful information about the TR funding is unacceptable. A better use of the LCD would be to have the following on them:

-Next stop
-Weather
-System delays
-Safety information
-News

The information displayed on Montréal's Metro trains displays weather information and what buses are available (by name and number) at the next station.

 

[11th]

Also they should run something other than safety adverts and "The Toronto Rocket is jointly funded by the City of Toronto, Province of Ontario and Government of Canada" on the LCD screens. I expected those to just be placeholders for something better, but the fact that a year later they still have that completely unhelpful information about the TR funding is unacceptable. A better use of the LCD would be to have the following on them:

-Next stop
-Weather
-System delays
-Safety information
-News

It's already kind of questionable to put safety information on an LCD screen in loop mode, when it should be on fixed medium (i.e. sticker). If the screens are being used effectively, it can also fill the role of the current LED system map.

 

[rm20010]

Something odd I noticed on a train I was on yesterday. The driver was able to start moving the train immediately after the doors fully closed at some stations. Normally there would be a one or two second delay before the train moves.