[Chris84]

Divisions

Thanks 299. I was confused.
I thought they were implying that this part of St. Clair was partly in Toronto and partly in East York.
I was just dealing with Toronto Water which divides the city as follows (for customer service purposes):
1. Toronto and East York
2. York and Etobicoke
3. Scarborough and North York

 

[Dichotomy]

As already posted, fire trucks come in many sizes. It's good to hear of the new Volvo trucks. Most calls seem to be for medical emergencies, it seems to me. Anyone here knowledgeable as to why they send fire trucks out to assist someone who has collapsed/fallen ill/with no fire to be seen anywhere??

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

That, my friend, is the $64,000 question. I see 8-11 'emergency' vehicles parked in front of St. Jamestown (the world's Tallest Free Standing Slum) all the time. It's common knowledge that the drug dealers pull the fire alarms to alert others that a narc is in the building.

But the 50-odd $65k a year firefighters, cops and other assorted crew all get to go back to their desks and report yet another 'call.'

Looks good on paper at budget time...not so much if you put up with the incessant sirens at 4 a.m.

Try and argue with the union about ANYTHING and they will hide behind the banner of 'safety.'

 

[Chris84]

What is happening on St. Clair these days?

Phase 2 is slowly approaching completion. It appears all the concrete work and paving is done except where the temporary wooden poles were. The pavers are in place along the curbs and on the platforms. Trees are in and clinging to life. Shelters and overhead wiring appear to be the major things left to do.

The new trees are in large rectangular holes in the sidewalk. I'm wondering if they are going to put concrete aprons or pavers around them? Otherwise the soil and mulch will settle / get washed out and people will be spraining their ankles in them. This week the trees on the north side just west of Bathurst to just west of Vaughan had the angled concrete lips around them removed creating similarly large holes in the sidewalk. Surely this isn't how they will remain?

And what of Phase 3 (Vaughan to Dufferin)? Anyone know when construction wiil start? Are we waiting for the snow to fly?

 

[drum118]

Phase 2 is slowly approaching completion. It appears all the concrete work and paving is done except where the temporary wooden poles were. The pavers are in place along the curbs and on the platforms. Trees are in and clinging to life. Shelters and overhead wiring appear to be the major things left to do.

The new trees are in large rectangular holes in the sidewalk. I'm wondering if they are going to put concrete aprons or pavers around them? Otherwise the soil and mulch will settle / get washed out and people will be spraining their ankles in them. This week the trees on the north side just west of Bathurst to just west of Vaughan had the angled concrete lips around them removed creating similarly large holes in the sidewalk. Surely this isn't how they will remain?

And what of Phase 3 (Vaughan to Dufferin)? Anyone know when construction wiil start? Are we waiting for the snow to fly?

I call it Phase 3 as that how it was setup from day one.

I like you, I am not sure what going to happen with the new trees, but expect to see pavers or something else late this year. It been done this way to make sure the trees are well water and get a good chance to grow.

The only thing to be done in phase 3 is the removal of the 3 temporary traffic signals poles intersection and some other ones along with a couple existing poles. Once they are remove, the sidewalk can be finish hope full by next week.

The work around the community centre is to be finish by the end of Aug assuming we don't get as much rain like we have these past few months.

On Aug 5, crews were sweeping and clearing the streetcar track area at Caledonia Rd this week and moving all construction items onto the new ROW.

The last I heard, work for phase 2 will start in Sept.

As for TTC shelters and overhead system, it could be next year before they get install since the streetcars are not going to be running until June 2009 in this area.

What disturb me is new cable running from pole to pole on the north side. I thought the whole idea for spending extra money was to have all overhead wires underground and why is this happening? July 23 Visit.
Aug 1 visit

 

[W. K. Lis]

...
I like you, I am not sure what going to happen with the new trees, but expect to see pavers or something else late this year. It been done this way to make sure the trees are well water and get a good chance to grow.
...

With this year's snow and rain, the trees have had plenty of water. The problem with all that H2O will slow construction down too much. (My grass is too high, but any free time for me to cut it happens the same time it is raining.) I wouldn't want to handle the rails during a thunderstorm.

 

[Chris84]

The last I heard, work for phase 2 will start in Sept.

The city just posted this notice stating that Phase 3 will start mid-September.
The city calls Westmount to McRoberts Phase 2 and Vaughan to Westmount Phase 3 as inicated on the map contained in the above notice.
It looks like another year until streetcars will even get to Lansdowne. Too bad the 512 buses can't use that shiny new ROW through Corso Italia.

 

[drum118]

The city just posted this notice stating that Phase 3 will start mid-September.
The city calls Westmount to McRoberts Phase 2 and Vaughan to Westmount Phase 3 as inicated on the map contained in the above notice.
It looks like another year until streetcars will even get to Lansdowne. Too bad the 512 buses can't use that shiny new ROW through Corso Italia.

The wires and top of poles are gone on the north side between Vaughan and Wychwood. Haft of the wire west of Wychwood to mid area near Oakwood are down.

Hydro still doing underground work.

I made the comment at TTC meet yesterday that I don't expect to see streetcars along the route until late June 2009 or early July and was told that about right.

Phase 3 is completed except for the community centre that is now part of the old TTC loop. A couple more weeks for this work.

Some of the new trees look pretty dead.

Trees and brushes have been added to the stop planters.

It hard to say when the top of the pole and wires will be added as well the shelters for TTC. Most likely May 2009, but who knowns.

All the intersection lights are 100% in service with the new system including TTC signals.

The only thing remaining is on street parking machines.

Can't use the ROW west of Lansdowne as it has material on it for the loop as well storage boxs. Rest could be use, but "my wheel will fall off the ROW and my knuckles are white".

 

[kEiThZ]

Just curious why St. Clair wasn't considered for an upgrade to TC style LRT from the regular streetcars.

 

[dowlingm]

Just curious why St. Clair wasn't considered for an upgrade to TC style LRT from the regular streetcars.

if anyone in the TTC had any brains, it would have been TC Line 1 and a showpiece for the network to come. It would likely have involved a new yard rather than Hillcrest and reduced the number of CLRV/ALRVs required down the road, and eliminated loops in favour of crossovers.

Instead people look at St Clair and think that's how TC will look. No wonder the public aren't buying in and demanding the project funding be provided by the Province and Feds - they don't trust the TTC to build it properly.

It's getting near the point for me where I think the only option is a third party design-build consortium for all TC lines. ATU113 and their pals won't like that but they'd like a design-build-operate one less.

 

[Hipster Duck]

if anyone in the TTC had any brains, it would have been TC Line 1 and a showpiece for the network to come.

Nah, that would have just demonstrated to the general public early on just how lousy the Transit City concept really is.

 

[drum118]

if anyone in the TTC had any brains, it would have been TC Line 1 and a showpiece for the network to come. It would likely have involved a new yard rather than Hillcrest and reduced the number of CLRV/ALRVs required down the road, and eliminated loops in favour of crossovers.

Instead people look at St Clair and think that's how TC will look. No wonder the public aren't buying in and demanding the project funding be provided by the Province and Feds - they don't trust the TTC to build it properly.

It's getting near the point for me where I think the only option is a third party design-build consortium for all TC lines. ATU113 and their pals won't like that but they'd like a design-build-operate one less.

St Clair and Cherry St "WHERE" to be LRT and a showcase for other lines before TC surface. Even the new Queens Quay expansion was to be LRT from day one, but no equipment was going to be there when it opens. It's a good thing that expansion is behind schedule due to the redevelopment of QQ west of Yonge St.

The real blame lays at the feet of council since they were not prepare to move to new cars years ago. This has cause today problems. No one wanted to invest new money in new vehicles or new systems as well having the extra expense show up on their shift.

At the same time, TTC staff is not off the hook since they keep coming up with poor planning as well not building for the future. They want to reinvent the wheel over and over. Also, they refuse to admit other systems that were smaller than TTC had a better system and better planning than they did.

 

[Chris84]

Phase 3 Construction is Underway

I’m not sure when it started but by last weekend the old shelters and platforms had been removed at Wychwood and at Christie. I haven’t been further west but maybe they're gone all the way to Dufferin?

Today water main installation was in full swing just west of Vaughan. According to this notice, it should also be starting up from Winona. When the water work has progressed sufficiently, the track and sidewalk work will begin. Hopefully some real progress will be made before the snow flies.

Kenco Construction trucks were on site today. I wonder if they are doing the whole project or are just a subcontractor for the water mains and services? The contract award notice hasn’t been posted on the city’s page yet. I know that Phase 2 was posted there (Pave-Tar $10.08 million).

 

[Chris84]

Phase 3 price: $21,553,662

According to the minutes of the August 20 Bid Committee meeting(pg.7), Domti
Engineering & Construction Ltd. was awarded the contract for $21,553,662.00 net of GST.

 

[unimaginative2]

Wait...this project still isn't done? How long has it been now, a decade? They built Hoover Dam, put a man on the moon, and defeated Nazi Germany in less time than it's taken to put up a pair of curbs in the middle of a road.

 

[kEiThZ]

Wait...this project still isn't done? How long has it been now, a decade? They built Hoover Dam, put a man on the moon, and defeated Nazi Germany in less time than it's taken to put up a pair of curbs in the middle of a road.

The US and the Allies weren't led by Toronto City Council....

Follow up question to one before....can these upgrades support LRT down the road? Would it be minimal cost and effort to switch, or is this work only to support streetcars?