(01-30-2019, 10:41 AM)robdrimmie Wrote:

(01-29-2019, 10:40 PM)Spokes Wrote: Is he just delusional?

I had a short twitter conversation with Jaworksy (starts with my tweet at https://mobile.twitter.com/RobDrimmie/status/1090328218370859009). Based on his responses I think that his quote was not presented entirely in context. He never blames the Record, a level of tact I have a lot of respect for, but he does elaborate a bit and it seems to me that there is more nuance to what he said than was included in the article.

Putting a lot of my opinion into it, my guess is that he was making a point that the system as it is today is impossible to navigate without an app, and the ideal state is a system that truly does have a level of frequency where it isn't required. If you look at a system like Manhattan, you can be reasonable assured during daytime hours that a train is going to come by pretty soon. There are almost certainly better systems around the world where that's true all day every day. I don't believe he intended to assert that GRT will be there once the Ion is running, just that the new routes are a meaningful step in that direction.

Edit to add: It looks like Jaworsky's response from this morning isn't showing in the thread? Just in case: https://mobile.twitter.com/DaveJaworsky/status/1090607231547039744

Quote:Transit pass fees to remain mandatory for post-secondary students

Transit passes will be added to the list of fees that post-secondary students cannot opt out of, Colleges and Universities Minister Merrilee Fullerton announced Friday.

“After hearing from stakeholders, it is clear that transit passes need to be considered mandatory under our Student Choice Initiative,” she tweeted. “Ontario students need to have safe access to campus, work, and home.”

(02-01-2019, 09:13 PM)timio Wrote: I get the feeling the PCs don't really know what is important to "the people", so they throw out the most ridiculous suggestions and then backpedal as soon as they get any opposition.

(02-02-2019, 01:22 PM)tomh009 Wrote:

(02-01-2019, 09:13 PM)timio Wrote: I get the feeling the PCs don't really know what is important to "the people", so they throw out the most ridiculous suggestions and then backpedal as soon as they get any opposition.

That's pretty much what it looks like.

They haven't backed down on the OPP leadership issue yet, though.

(02-01-2019, 09:13 PM)timio Wrote: I get the feeling the PCs don't really know what is important to "the people", so they throw out the most ridiculous suggestions and then backpedal as soon as they get any opposition.

(02-07-2019, 07:23 PM)KevinL Wrote: A large number of bus stop names (as used in the onboard announcements and digital signs, and in GTFS feeds) will be updated effective this coming Monday; major landmarks will be used in favour of minor side streets, specific addresses if no other landmark available, and cross streets added when the context is helpful. https://www.grt.ca/Modules/News/index.aspx?newsId=dea09d7b-83f2-4585-9150-2ba7090e85e3

Quote:Much like a dozen years ago, public transit carries mostly students, people younger than 30, and commuters with low-paying jobs, according to fares, census findings and travel surveys.

Transit advocates hope soon-to-launch streetcars will finally put older commuters with average wages onto transit, while helping transit rebound from its recent slump.

"It was starting to happen," said Mike Boos, who helps advocate for transit with the grassroots Tri-Cities Transport Action Group. But then transit ran into troubles and "we sort of tapped the brakes a bit."
...
Passengers enjoy 37 per cent more service today. They have responded by riding transit 32 per cent more often, government figures show.

To achieve this, transit spending increased by 55 per cent, adjusted for inflation. The cost per resident hit $92 in 2017.
...
While no other big Ontario transit system surged as strongly between 2006 and 2013, no other system saw ridership plunge as hard between 2014 and 2017.

Transit ridership dropped by 15 per cent after 2013 even as service increased by eight per cent and real spending on transit increased five per cent.

"To the credit of our council, we stayed the course. We didn't react with service reductions," said John Cicuttin, manager of transit development for Waterloo regional government.

It seems the plunge has bottomed out. Transit recovered more than a million lost passengers in 2018, the bulk of them students.

Quote:GRT’s new EasyGO fare card will be available starting March 1.