GO Transit

[G.A]

8199 is refurbished. Is there any reason why the 2015 batch is being done before the batch previous to them?

[110B West Pickering]

https://news.ontario.ca/mto/en/2019/09/ontario-introducing-free-wi-fi-on-go-transit-in-2020.html

wifi appears to be making a return.

on another not, heading out to Guelph and Kitchener today to see how the public is responding to the introduction of the midday and the late evening train.

 

Ford and his government have done some pretty crappy things, but in terms of GO transit specifically (service not stations and other stuff) they’ve done pretty good. Mind you, I know most of everything has been planned for a while By our previous government

[Shaun]

I think that this Ontario Northland and Go transit partnership should continue year round. Who wants to drive the 400 in a snow storm? I dont! It would be nice if they could have connecting bus service to Collingwood and other cities in cottage country. 

https://blog.metrolinx.com/2018/08/07/bus-service-to-muskoka-sold-out-to-start-new-go-transit-and-ontario-northland-partnership/

[FutureHeartsJunkie]

On 9/6/2019 at 9:53 PM, Shaun said:

I think that this Ontario Northland and Go transit partnership should continue year round. Who wants to drive the 400 in a snow storm? I dont! It would be nice if they could have connecting bus service to Collingwood and other cities in cottage country. 

https://blog.metrolinx.com/2018/08/07/bus-service-to-muskoka-sold-out-to-start-new-go-transit-and-ontario-northland-partnership/

I would agree! Not many people who don't have a car (and wanted to hit the slopes at Blue Mountain ski resort in Collingwood) really wanted the Ontario Northland/GO Transit partnership to continue!

As for Uber from the Barrie South and/or Allandale Waterfront to the ski resort, the cost can be very prohibitive. It would be nice if the Blue Mountain ski resort should offer bus trips through bus.com to shuttle the winter sports revellers from the Allandale Waterfront (or Barrie South) GO station. That's my wish list - unless I launch a petition demanding such a service to be offered!

[110B West Pickering]

2 hours ago, FutureHeartsJunkie said:

I would agree! Not many people who don't have a car (and wanted to hit the slopes at Blue Mountain ski resort in Collingwood) really wanted the Ontario Northland/GO Transit partnership to continue!

As for Uber from the Barrie South and/or Allandale Waterfront to the ski resort, the cost can be very prohibitive. It would be nice if the Blue Mountain ski resort should offer bus trips through bus.com to shuttle the winter sports revellers from the Allandale Waterfront (or Barrie South) GO station. That's my wish list - unless I launch a petition demanding such a service to be offered!

Doesn’t Simcoe County now operate a Linx bus from Barrie to Collingwood?

[FutureHeartsJunkie]

8 hours ago, 110B West Pickering said:

Doesn’t Simcoe County now operate a Linx bus from Barrie to Collingwood?

It does, but you have to transfer to two different buses.

Also, one of their routes only operates during the weekdays (IIRC, the Barrie-Wasaga Beach bus).

 

Posted from my Samsung Galaxy S9

[Wayside Observer]

String of wheel thefts targeting trucks at GO stations extends along Lakeshore West route

I honestly hope that since Metrolinx appears to be hell bent on running what amounts to a large in-house police department between the special constables and revenue protection squads that, as an organization, they're taking this seriously and doing some aggressive patrolling of the parking lots to deter criminals doing things like this.

[Bus_Medic]

Did they ever get a handle on the tweakers with sawzalls stealing catalytic converters in the ‘Shwa?

[Wayside Observer]

17 hours ago, Bus_Medic said:

Did they ever get a handle on the tweakers with sawzalls stealing catalytic converters in the ‘Shwa?

I've been wondering the same thing.  Oshawa's also had problems with car thefts outright.  One lady I work with and her husband have gotten off the train in Oshawa twice now only to discover their car's been stolen, and they had a catalytic converter stolen out of another car.

[DavidH]

On 9/17/2019 at 3:05 PM, Wayside Observer said:

String of wheel thefts targeting trucks at GO stations extends along Lakeshore West route

I honestly hope that since Metrolinx appears to be hell bent on running what amounts to a large in-house police department between the special constables and revenue protection squads that, as an organization, they're taking this seriously and doing some aggressive patrolling of the parking lots to deter criminals doing things like this.

This wasn't posted earlier, but arrests were made the next day after your post.

https://globalnews.ca/news/5917787/arrest-tire-rim-thefts-go/

 

[FutureHeartsJunkie]

ICAMI (In case anyone missed it):

The Lakeshore East line will be closed on the weekend of October 26 and 27 for maintenance work.

The GO Transit route 90B buses will run between the Union Station Bus Terminal and stop at Pickering to Oshawa GO stations. For those who live between the Danforth and Rouge Hill GO stations, they can use the TTC.

 

Not sure how the 96B GO bus will play a role on the closure...

 

Posted from my Samsung Galaxy S9

[Shaun]

They need to close the whole line? Why not in stages?

[FutureHeartsJunkie]

18 hours ago, Shaun said:

They need to close the whole line? Why not in stages?

We don't know nor understand why they have to close the entire line, but here are the reasons:

We’re performing maintenance work and upgrading our infrastructure to help keep service consistent and comfortable for you. The work can only be completed when trains aren’t running. We’re coordinating the projects to occur during a single weekend to minimize the disruption to you.

When we’re finished, there will be several benefits to Lakeshore East passengers including:
 

• repairs to the Danforth Avenue bridge that will ensure your safety;
• repairs of two railroad crossings in Pickering and Scarborough that will help minimize delays and help ensure you get to your destination on time;
• track maintenance so we can continue to provide you with a comfortable commute;
• upgrade of our signals equipment, which will improve train performance and prevent delays; and
• installation of tactile yellow tiles on the platform at Ajax GO to remind passengers how far back to stand for their safety.

While it may be sound to close the line in stages, it would have added years to the upgrade work. If GO wanted to have more frequent service on that line sooner rather than later, they have to close the entire line. 

[Doppelkupplung]

I guess it’s like ripping a bandaid, may as well get it done, and quick. 

[Shaun]

Once this current order of doubled Decker's is finished, is that it for new buses? 

They will continue to retire MCI coaches, and is there a need to replace them with single level busses where double deckers are not needed?

[Doppelkupplung]

I’m actually curious about this as well, because well over half of the 23xx MCIs have silently disappeared. The wiki calls for another 52 or so SuperLos. How many MCIs will get axed going forward, or is it mileage based retirement? 

Also just scared my ISM MCIs might get chopped sooner than I think....

[Shaun]

Some of the older double deckers will be retired soon as well requiring more buses to replace those. 

It's cheaper to keep the assembly line going than to have it and and start up again, so I wonder what the plan is. 

[G.A]

1 hour ago, Shaun said:

Some of the older double deckers will be retired soon as well requiring more buses to replace those. 

It's cheaper to keep the assembly line going than to have it and and start up again, so I wonder what the plan is. 

That 2012 batch wont be going anywhere for a little while. They all have been recently refurbished along with some of 8196-8205 batch.

[drum118]

Saw something yesterday that I have never seen before and that was 3 old car cars as coaches on a train. Seen a lot of single cars on trains, one 2 cars on a train, but 3? 251 car car was on the rear of a train heading to Union and still see it from time to time on various lines.

Caught 671 & 680 MPI MP40PH-T4AC Mu on an eastbound Lakeshore train as well 669 & 675 Mu on an eastbound Lakeshore Train

[soo8513]

I believe there are 4 "old" cab cars still active as control cars. the others, after conversion to coaches, run in normal circulation so it could happen that 3 are on one train just like it could happen that 3 2100's are on one train.

[Shemar]

1 hour ago, soo8513 said:

I believe there are 4 "old" cab cars still active as control cars. the others, after conversion to coaches, run in normal circulation so it could happen that 3 are on one train just like it could happen that 3 2100's are on one train.

I think there are 6 of them that are still lead cab cars: 251, 253-257

[Shaun]

12 hours ago, soo8513 said:

I believe there are 4 "old" cab cars still active as control cars. the others, after conversion to coaches, run in normal circulation so it could happen that 3 are on one train just like it could happen that 3 2100's are on one train.

I was under the impression that the new cab car order was enough to replace all of the old ones?

[DavidH]

21 hours ago, Shaun said:

I was under the impression that the new cab car order was enough to replace all of the old ones?

For what it’s worth, I was on an LSE train last weekend that had an old cab car.

[FutureHeartsJunkie]

ICAMI (In case anyone missed it), one of the GO Transit Double Decker buses was involved in a collision. I believe that a bus with a fleet identifier of 8385 - was invovled in the crash:

https://globalnews.ca/news/6032307/crash-van-go-bus-dufferin-finch-toronto/

[Articulated]

GO Transit schedule changes effective November 2nd are now posted online. The key tagline in most of the changes is "Starting November 2, we’re reducing and adjusting service on some bus routes to ensure we’re using our resources when and where they’re needed most." Highlights (or lowlights) of the changes include:

• Minor schedule adjustments for Lakeshore East and West trains, including shortened running times for the Niagara commuter trains.
• New weekend train service on the Stouffville line, running hourly to Mount Joy.
• Route 12 will move to the new Park and Ride at Centennial Parkway and QEW, replacing the Nash and Barton temporary lot.
• Route 21 will have reduced weekday service to compensate for the use of higher-capacity double deck buses on many trips (for example, Milton will only receive hourly service inbound after 1pm). The overlapping branch structure will also be simplified during some time periods, collapsing 3 branches into 2 for example.
• Route 30, 31, 33 will see reduced service because of the additional train service added in September.
• Route 37 will change its southbound evening departures to better align with the train service.
• Route 66 will receive double deck buses, and service will be cut to compensate (hourly during rush hour, every 2 hours during midday).
• Routes 70/71 will be revised because of the additional evening and weekend train service. It seems they will continue to run hourly northbound 71A express buses from Union while the evening trains are running, likely because the all-stop trains are significantly slower than the bus service for people heading to northeastern Markham, Stouffville, and Uxbridge. Parallel bus service to Union will also be maintained on weekends (with bus departures spaced between train trips to provide half hourly service).
• Minor timing/trip adjustments on routes 36, 52, 61, 63, 65, 67, 68, 90, 91, 93.