Different modes of transit in Greater Toronto – removing political spin and disinformation

Photo By Myke Waddy, Sept 5th 2006. Health Sciences LRT Station, Edmonton, Alberta. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Explaining different modes of transit in the G.T.A; removing political spin and disinformation

Found a great article on transit through “What happens to public opinion when LRT is explained”. It is a great piece, which is quite informative. Take some time to read the article. Cherise Burda takes to time to explain the differences between subways, light rail, GO Trains, rapid bus and right-of-way streetcar modes of transit.

Related articles

• Future north C-Train route to be re-considered (cbc.ca)
• The Game of Thrones and Transit in Toronto (thegtapatriot.com)
• James: Return to LRT is a gift for both sides in the debate (thestar.com)

Advertisement

Keep it simple stupid Air Rail link options dead on arrival

Toronto Skyline (Photo credit: Bobolink)

Keep it simple stupid Air Rail Link options dead on arrival

It was actually a novel idea and it was nice to see a unity at City Hall. They may have been a bit far reaching, however it would have been nice to see connections at Eglinton and maybe St. Clair. However this was “dead on arrival”. As indicated on NewsTalk1010 this morning, the Government said “what part of express rapid air link to you not understand”.  Well I guess council got it’s answer? In some sense it was nice to see a decision actually made by Metrolinx. It would have been nice for them to offer an opinion and some decisions in regards to Transit City.

On Wednesday council will consider a motion put forward by Councillor Frances Nunziata – a close ally of Rob Ford – that calls for a major revamp of the Air Rail Link planned to run between Pearson Airport and Union Station by 2015.  

Read More

Related articles

• The TTC will TCB with LRT, we’ll SEE? (doorleader.wordpress.com)
• Trains and Ontario’s Government – GO and Ontario Northland (patrickboyer.wordpress.com)

More political interference with the Transit City plans will cause delays

Light-rail for the Eglinton crosstown route

Leave the Transit City plan alone and do not attempt to hijack the Eglinton-Crosstown line or any other part of the Transit City plan. Who am I speaking to? Well none other than Metrolinx. The organizational body in charge of coordinating transit plans across the city. The Eglinton-crosstown line will meet the needs of Toronto. I will not go back into my opinions on the ill-fated and wasted expense of a subway extension to Vaughan and the political interference in that situation.

The Eglinton-crosstown line will essentially be underground from the Leslie area, through the mid-point of the city. The question is should it be upgraded to handle a full subway or should it link to the Scarborough RT and its “upgraded vehicles”. Its starting to sound like the same old political interference that happened when the original RT was supposed to be a streetcar/LRT on a dedicated ROW. We ended up with those wonderful mini-trains (UTDC), which of course can barely handle a Canadian winter. I do not have all of the details, however you can read more on The Toronto LRT Information Page. Sure it is not a full subway, but we do not need one on Eglinton. The character and charm of light-rail can work, if it is done right! The Eglinton line will be just fine, as long as there is no political and 3rd party interference. The danger, as always, is that if we leave it to the politicians, we may end up again with something we cannot afford or a half completed job. If you really want to get to the airport, I doubt you will be taking the Eglinton line anyway. Maybe Metrolinx should concentrate their time and effort on other solutions or GO Transit? However, don’t take my word for it. Check out the following link for information on LRT (light-rail transit) and get informed. We do not need more empty promises. We do not need another group attempting to undermine a good plan. Keep it simple and lets just get something done for the city of Toronto and now!

By: Andy MJ
a.k.a. The G.T.A Patriot

More information on LRT (Light-rail) is available at http://lrt.daxack.ca/

GTTA and the MoveOntario 2020 Plan – Phase 2

It looks like the GTTA has received funding for the following projects. Maybe I am still in disbelief until I see shovels in the ground? I am not in favour of all of the plans listed, but this definitely will be some good news for once for public transit in the Greater Toronto Area. What seems to be lacking is funding for Transit City, other than the head start funding. What is interesting is the Durham BRT funding, which will be a definite boost to transit in Pickering, Ajax, Whitby and Oshawa.
By: Andy MJ (a.k.a “The G.T.A Patriot” / Toronto, Ontario)

MoveOntario 2020 Foundation Investments Total: $791.3 million

• Hamilton A-Line, James-Upper James corridor and Airport connector – $6.9 million
• Hamilton B-Line, King-Main corridor – $17.4 million
• Hamilton James Street North GO/VIA Station – Gateway to Niagara – $3.0 million
• Halton Region Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) – $57.6 million
• Bolton GO Transit service improvements – $600,000
• Dundas and Hurontario higher-order transit corridor development – $26.5million
• Mississauga Transitway Hub: Airport-Renforth Gateway – $39.0 million
• York-VIVA Highway 7, Pine Valley Drive to Kennedy Road – $62.0 million
• York-VIVA Yonge Street, Richmond Hill Centre to 19th Avenue – $19.0 million
• York-VIVA Yonge Street, 19th Avenue to Newmarket – $29.0 million
• Toronto-York Yonge subway extension to Richmond Hill (Phase 1) – $423.7 million
• Toronto-TTC Transit City Light Rail Transit (LRT) head start – $7.1 million
• Toronto Yonge Finch-Steeles BRT – $17.3 million
• Durham-Highway 2 BRT Spine – $82.3 million

—-

See more information from the link below:

http://www.urbantoronto.ca/showthread.php?t=7454