[The Mad Navigator]

Toronto has already done that for Sheppard West.

The Highway 407 station would require the province to decide to build density because they own most of the land. It is designed to be a transfer point for GO bus services and a commuter park-and-ride station.

It will never look that nice. LOL

 

[Darwinkgo]

It will never look that nice. LOL

The Canada Lands Company has done great work before, like the Garrison Woods project in Calgary:

Photo by Xochitl Benjamin

 

[CDL.TO]

It still bugs me that the two intended major destinations on the line (where people actually will want to go) are York University and Vaughan Centre, but yet those two stations have no bus terminals planned, and instead want to route buses away from those major destinations. It isn't a coincidence that hundreds of buses pass through the York U campus every day, it's because that's where people want to go! This plan will add countless unnecessary transfers to people's trips and really is terrible transit planning. It would make far more sense to kill Highway 407 station and build a York Mills/Don Mills/St. Clair West style underground bus terminal at York U.

 

[The Mad Navigator]

The Canada Lands Company has done great work before, like the Garrison Woods project in Calgary:

Photo by Xochitl Benjamin

You can try and convince me all you want, but those place AREN'T exactly destinations of interest.

It's like putting lipstick on a pig, in the end it's still a pig, get what I'm saying?

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

re: Sheppard West station urban context

I think the area directly around the station is height limited - it aligns almost directly with the Downsview Airport runway.

AoD

 

[scarberiankhatru]

It still bugs me that the two intended major destinations on the line (where people actually will want to go) are York University and Vaughan Centre, but yet those two stations have no bus terminals planned, and instead want to route buses away from those major destinations. It isn't a coincidence that hundreds of buses pass through the York U campus every day, it's because that's where people want to go! This plan will add countless unnecessary transfers to people's trips and really is terrible transit planning. It would make far more sense to kill Highway 407 station and build a York Mills/Don Mills/St. Clair West style underground bus terminal at York U.

True, for routes like Steeles and Viva, but the bulk of the buses and bus riders to York are/use the York U Rocket that will be effectively replaced by the subway extension, so the overall impact may not be that terrible. It'll probably be a pretty painless transfer. I mean, there's tons of people that transfer from the Yonge line to the Bloor line only to get off at Bay, and people will be travelling like a kilometre or two on Spadina, so it may end up feeling not-pointless, especially compared to potential traffic in and around York or in and around Jane & 7.

re: Sheppard West station urban context

I think the area directly around the station is height limited - it aligns almost directly with the Downsview Airport runway.

If there's room for 2 or 3 storey entrance huts and 2 or 3 storey trees, there's room for 2 or 3 storey commercial/residential/retail/whatever buildings.

 

[AnnetteMeetsJane]

The YorkU administration absolutely wants rid of ALL of the bus traffic around campus. (I don't understand why this is such a line in the sand for them, but it appears to be so...)
AmJ

 

[rbt]

The YorkU administration absolutely wants rid of ALL of the bus traffic around campus. (I don't understand why this is such a line in the sand for them, but it appears to be so...)

Noise and general atmosphere possilby.

It also allows for easier general traffic movements, pickups/dropoffs to be in the location where buses currently are, etc.

 

[Justin10000]

The YorkU administration absolutely wants rid of ALL of the bus traffic around campus. (I don't understand why this is such a line in the sand for them, but it appears to be so...)
AmJ

Reduced traffic in area?

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

scarberian:

If there's room for 2 or 3 storey entrance huts and 2 or 3 storey trees, there's room for 2 or 3 storey commercial/residential/retail/whatever buildings.

I think that's the intent:

http://www.downsviewpark.ca/images/NeighbourhoodMap_28Jan2010.jpg
http://www.toronto.ca/planning/pdf/panel17sheppard.pdf
http://www.toronto.ca/planning/pdf/panel18chesswood.pdf

AoD

 

[scarberiankhatru]

scarberian:

I think that's the intent:

http://www.downsviewpark.ca/images/NeighbourhoodMap_28Jan2010.jpg
http://www.toronto.ca/planning/pdf/panel17sheppard.pdf
http://www.toronto.ca/planning/pdf/panel18chesswood.pdf

No, that's not the intent. Look, I'm talking about the actual acres of land at the station that the station actually sits on...the massive entrance huts surrounded by parkettes, not what's a block away. It's the trend, though - things like light wells that occupy an entire block, etc. We see it on the Sheppard line and we'll see it here, too. It costs a fortune and ensures that the most transit accessible areas - the sites of the stations themselves - are turned over to concrete planters and aircraft hangar-sized pavilions.

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

Oh I agree with you there and the broader issue of "suburban" station designs.

AoD

 

[CDL.TO]

The YorkU administration absolutely wants rid of ALL of the bus traffic around campus. (I don't understand why this is such a line in the sand for them, but it appears to be so...)
AmJ

I know! It's annoying! The idea of quiet, quaint urban campuses unmarred by the effect of traffic feels like a holdover from the 1950s planning that gave us the York U campus in the first place, with its traffic-free internal walkways.

The subway will undoubtedly massively reduce bus traffic no matter what because it will eliminate the need for the 196 and VIVA orange, as well as probably some others like 41. But I don't see why they need to get rid of routes that serve areas that don't overlap with the subway. Most importantly the GO Buses, as well as other routes like the 107, 106, or the YRT 3.

And they sure as hell had better sort out fare integration by the time the line opens, otherwise this will be a real boondoggle, forcing transit riders to pay a TTC fare for a 1 or 2 stop trip, which previously was free and transfer-free.

If you want to talk about "transit priority" and "transit being forced to take a second place to private automobiles", then talk about a university which is actually planning to ban public transit vehicles from their campus!

 

[TJ O'Pootertoot]

I think they already have a plan for this.
My recollection is that you won't have to pay a separate fare for crossing Steeles on the subway.
You'll pay the extra fare when/if you leave the subway and board a Viva/YRT and/or GO bus.

 

[nfitz]

I think they already have a plan for this.
My recollection is that you won't have to pay a separate fare for crossing Steeles on the subway.
You'll pay the extra fare when/if you leave the subway and board a Viva/YRT and/or GO bus.

I don't think that there's been any plan for this.

TTC is going to have to recover the extra expense for running the subway in York Region somehow. Most riders will already be on the subway, so they won't get much additional at the farebox, if they use the current pricing. Either there will have to be an annual contribution to TTC from York Region, extra fares (like on the Laval station on the Montreal metro), or both.