Streetcar News

[Streety McCarface]

1 hour ago, nfitz said:

Not far? It's about a 2.5 km, half-hour walk. And a lot longer with small kids. That's a tiny bit longer than walking from Bloor to King Street down Yonge - by the same argument, we could just shut down Line 1 south of Line 2, and run a frequent rail shuttle to connect to Union.

Speaking of Exhibition Loop - what's with this weekend's closure of Exhibition Loop and Union Station loop for inspections? Which oddly, I can't find any mention of on the TTC website - but they've been tweeting it, with a lot of detours all weekend. Will make the Sunday TFC game messy.
 

 

It's only 550 meters to the Princess gate and 1.2 km to the Exhibition loop. 5-15 minutes of walking isn't really that bad for the average person, but admittedly, with children, it sucks. 

[nfitz]

 

2 hours ago, Streety McCarface said:

I mean, you wouldn't even knock out the 509 and 511, since they could use the Queens Quay loop instead. The walk to the Ex isn't that far, and it could still work as an interim solution until we get more storage. 

 

14 minutes ago, Streety McCarface said:

It's only 550 meters to the Princess gate and 1.2 km to the Exhibition loop. 5-15 minutes of walking isn't really that bad for the average person, but admittedly, with children, it sucks. 

It's a lot further than 550 metres from Queens Quay Loop to Princess Gate; it doesn't even get you to Bathurst! About 3 times further! About a mile if you walk along Lakeshore. In 5 minutes?

https://www.google.ca/maps/dir/Queens+Quay+Loop+At+Lower+Spadina+Ave,+Toronto,+ON+M5V+3A2/43.6347983,-79.4095217/@43.636515,-79.4054729,16.06z/data=!4m9!4m8!1m5!1m1!1s0x882b3527d6160f09:0xde851c82989e9198!2m2!1d-79.3916564!2d43.6384598!1m0!3e2?hl=en

[Streety McCarface]

1 hour ago, nfitz said:

 

 

It's a lot further than 550 metres from Queens Quay Loop to Princess Gate; it doesn't even get you to Bathurst! About 3 times further! About a mile if you walk along Lakeshore. In 5 minutes?

https://www.google.ca/maps/dir/Queens+Quay+Loop+At+Lower+Spadina+Ave,+Toronto,+ON+M5V+3A2/43.6347983,-79.4095217/@43.636515,-79.4054729,16.06z/data=!4m9!4m8!1m5!1m1!1s0x882b3527d6160f09:0xde851c82989e9198!2m2!1d-79.3916564!2d43.6384598!1m0!3e2?hl=en

Wow I'm an idiot, I meant the Fleet Street loop. My bad. 

[nfitz]

20 minutes ago, Streety McCarface said:

Wow I'm an idiot, I meant the Fleet Street loop. My bad. 

Yes, I suppose that would work and that's what they are doing with 511 today - though would make connections to Exhibition GO frustrating. I really can't see them choosing, if they had more than the 264 streetcars that the current yards can support (after they finish all the renovations), knocking out Exhibition loop. I'd think temporary storage at Hillcrest would be simpler.

Also, 264 was prefaced on the old 8 cars out on 301/306 overnight, with 256 not in service. On the current board, there's 23 out overnight on 301/304/306/310, and that seems to jump to 27 in October, and could be 28 if 306 was every 15-minutes like 301/304 and 310. So only 236 not in service.

In theory should be able to handle 284 cars without having to worry too much, assuming they sized 264 correctly in the first place. Which seems unlikely in the current environment.

I doubt we'll really have to worry about this issue for a long time.

[Streety McCarface]

9 minutes ago, nfitz said:

Yes, I suppose that would work - though would make connections to Exhibition GO frustrating. I really can't see them choosing, if they had more than the 264 streetcars that the current yards can support (after they finish all the renovations), knocking out Exhibition loop. I'd think temporary storage at Hillcrest would be simpler.

Also, 264 was prefaced on the old 8 cars out on 301/306 overnight, with 256 not in service. On the current board, there's 23 out overnight on 301/304/306/310, and that seems to jump to 27 in October, and could be 28 if 306 was every 15-minutes like 301/304 and 310. So only 236 not in service.

In theory should be able to handle 284 cars without having to worry too much, assuming they sized 264 correctly in the first place. Which seems unlikely in the current environment.

I doubt we'll really have to worry about this issue for a long time.

But is adding blue night service to the 506 the best use of resources? Part of me thinks the 505 and 512 would benefit just as much (if not more) from a blue night streetcar service. 

[nfitz]

11 minutes ago, Streety McCarface said:

But is adding blue night service to the 506 the best use of resources? Part of me thinks the 505 and 512 would benefit just as much (if not more) from a blue night streetcar service. 

They got rid of the 512 all-night streetcar, because it made more sense using a bus instead, to allow through service to Jane. I don't see how reversing that change helps.

A Dundas night-car might be useful, though it's only a short walk from 301 or 306 (or 304). I'd sooner have every 15-minute one one route, than every 30-minutes on two. But it's an option.

With them using 5 (I assume) cars for the already-announced every 20-minute service on 306, I don't think increasing to 6 cars for every 15-minute service is huge change.

[Wayside Observer]

2 hours ago, Jonah N. said:

Just seen PCC 4549 heading south on Bathurst at Lennox. My guess it's heading to Leslie for the open house on Saturday

That's good news because that implies that it's been repaired after breaking down about a month ago.

[TTC Guy]

1 hour ago, Wayside Observer said:

That's good news because that implies that it's been repaired after breaking down about a month ago.

It was in service on the 501 Bathurst-Russell EXPRESS run for a little bit after being in the Labour Day parade. 

[Wayside Observer]

2 hours ago, TTC Guy said:

It was in service on the 501 Bathurst-Russell EXPRESS run for a little bit after being in the Labour Day parade. 

The PCC was?   I thought that was one of the ALRVs.

[TTC Guy]

58 minutes ago, Wayside Observer said:

The PCC was?   I thought that was one of the ALRVs.

4549 did a couple of “EXPRESS” runs using the same routing as the ALRV runs after the Labour Day parade, the drivers of 4207 were on the PCC earlier that day. The TTC put no clear info about this. 

[T3G]

Service Changes Coming to 506 Carlton in October 2019

 

https://stevemunro.ca/2019/09/18/service-changes-coming-to-506-carlton-in-october-2019/

[CLRV4002]

September CEO report shows LFLRVs finally met and exceeded 35000 KM reliability targets for July for the first month ever. 

44 minutes ago, PCC Guy said:

Service Changes Coming to 506 Carlton in October 2019

 

https://stevemunro.ca/2019/09/18/service-changes-coming-to-506-carlton-in-october-2019/

I’m still unclear about how and when the decision was made to convert the 506 before the 511. For quite a while I kept hearing that the 506 was to be the last route converted to Flexities. 

Is it possible that Bathurst will get Flexities before the 506 trippers are converted or reverted to buses ? I think similarly to the ALRVs, they could be used solely as trippers during their last days while both the 506 and 511 are fully Flexity. 

[T3G]

According to the head of the rail department at Leslie, 4505 is out due to an undiagnosed gearbox issue. On inquiry he told me they hope that it will be back in service within a month or two, but that is pending troubleshooting and correction. Fingers crossed!

[TTC4120fan]

Would anyone happen to what happened to 4490? I spotted it parked between all the MIA units at Leslie (some on, some turned off). Last in service on September 3rd on 508/501/301. 

[2822]

Will the 6 clrv trippers be permanent once all the 22 regular runs are converted to flexitys?

[T3G]

Any word on the service hours for this car? I doubt it will run late into the night or early in the morning.

[CLRV4094]

3 hours ago, PCC Guy said:

Any word on the service hours for this car? I doubt it will run late into the night or early in the morning.

I suspect it will be just be out during the day for the 506 weekday and 501 weekend service, although if you read the article, the night of October 5th/Nuit Bluanche it's expected to be out all night on 511. 

[Xtrazsteve]

4 hours ago, PCC Guy said:

Any word on the service hours for this car? I doubt it will run late into the night or early in the morning.

I suspect it might just end up on those CLRV tripper runs in rush hour next board.

[bus_7246]

With the missing in action count of the Flexitys still significantly high, let’s see what happens with the Carlton line the day after Thanksgiving Day

[TTC Guy]

19 hours ago, Transit_Hub said:

The artist painted CLRV will be on display this Wednesday at Hillcrest. I saw it this morning doing brake tests at Harvey and is completed now. Information on when it will run is provided in this article. 

https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2019/09/23/ttc-marks-the-end-of-a-streetcar-era-with-a-splash-of-colour.html?fbclid=IwAR12tJuHgcCQ6zA8eqHVtVu9gda7CeDJj3PC_H-mySHIzJkjMHOPyzefWFQ

What number is this?

[43 Kennedy]

4 minutes ago, TTC Guy said:

What number is this?

It's 4178. It says it in the article.

[drum118]

Long over due
TTC asks province to allow streetcar cameras to catch drivers who blow past open doors

[lip]

3 hours ago, drum118 said:

Long over due
TTC asks province to allow streetcar cameras to catch drivers who blow past open doors

About damn time. I was wondering if they were waiting for 50+ people to get killed before someone finally opened their damn mouths and demand for change.

Hopefully our idiotic provincial government will decide to show some common sense for once in their life.

[drum118]

Enjoy
TTC partners with CityFund and local artists to create A Streetcar Named Toronto

Sept. 25, 2019

As the remaining Canadian Light Rail Vehicles (CLRVs) head toward retirement after 40 years of serving commuters, the TTC has partnered with CityFund and local artists to send one off in unique style.

A Streetcar Named Toronto is a public art project that pays tribute to this unique civic icon.

"The retirement of the CLRV has presented a rare opportunity for the TTC to not only support the arts, but also to set a new bar for the integration of art on public transit," said TTC Chair Jaye Robinson.

Several local artists were selected to transform streetcar #4178. Jacquie Comrie painted the exterior of the vehicle using a variety of paints and full spectrum palettes, including neons and glow-in-the-dark paint, making it visible to everyone at night.

The interior will feature art activations by Nicole Beno, Ryan Van der Hout and Chris Perez, along with textile and lighting modifications by Suanne McGregor.

The vehicle will run until December primarily on the 506 Carlton route during the week and periodically on the 501 Queen route on weekends. It will also run on 511 Bathurst during Nuit Blanche on Sat., Oct. 5.

Funding for A Streetcar Named Toronto is provided through CityFund, a new charity dedicated to bringing the city to life.

"It's been a thrill to be able to do this," said CityFund President Mark Fiorillo. "Art is often a destination kind of thing so to be able to bring it to people in an intimate space like this and show them something during their commute that they might not otherwise see is a real privilege."

The first CLRV was put into service 40 years ago this week, on Sept. 30, 1979, on the 507 Long Branch (Humber Loop-Long Branch Loop) route.

The last of the CLRVs will be retired in December with other special commemorative events planned between now and the end of the year.

In addition to being spotted on the streets of downtown Toronto, the public can catch an up-close look at this vehicle during a community event to be held on Sat., Sept. 28 at Roncesvalles Carhouse, between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. A TTC/United Way barbecue will be held as part of this event.

 

 

 

[T3G]

The Instagram page for this project said that the car was supposed to hit the streets the week of September 27. Anyone know if the car is supposed to run that day, or if it will be entering service next week after the open house?