ION - Waterloo Region's Light Rail Transit

[Pheidippides]

PS - how do you find all these nuggets of information burried so deep in these documents?! Do you read every one?

Keyword searches in the PDFs mostly.

Like this one, I just came across indicating that the budget is being built on the assumption of revenue service will start as of May 1st, 2018 (yes that is a Monday, but probably makes the accounting easier; maybe that is where Galloway got the date from originally - a preview of the budget):
"B2 ‐ Budget increased to reflect the following operating costs, all based on May 1, 2018 revenue service date."

Park and Ride           75,000
Fare Enforcement                          730,000
Traction Power                                    778,000
Insurance                                            662,300
Property Taxes                                   557,200
GrandLinq Contract                7,648,000
Sub-total  10,450,500

Reduction in general office expenditures.          (55,889)
Total  10,394,611



It should probably be noted that is this is probably a best practice, especially in an election year. Allocate funding ahead of the time you will need it so that you don't suddenly have a major hole in your budget halfway through the year right before electors go to the polls.

[Canard]

It makes sense that revenue service would start on a Monday. I fully expect the opening ceremony will be on a Saturday (or, a little less likely, a Sunday), with free rides all weekend.

[tomh009]

I’m well aware that there is a double standard where anything involving roads is allowed to be wildly unsafe.

Anything involving roads is wildly unsafe? Seriously? While it's far from perfect, the accident stats do not bear out that claim.

[ijmorlan]

I’m well aware that there is a double standard where anything involving roads is allowed to be wildly unsafe.

Anything involving roads is wildly unsafe? Seriously? While it's far from perfect, the accident stats do not bear out that claim.

No, allowed to be wildly unsafe, when compared with the safety requirements for anything on rails.

For example, you can have a sidewalk immediately next to a traffic lane full of 80km/h traffic driven by anybody smart enough to pass a driving test, separated only by a 15cm curb. By contrast, the spur line trail has to be separated from the rails by a substantial gap, well in excess of the space required for the train, which comes twice a day, cannot deviate from its route, goes no faster than a jogging speed, and is driven by professionals.

Or check out the fences separating the tracks from the sidewalk on Hayward and Courtland. Replace the LRT tracks by a general traffic lane, and those fences could come out, even though the traffic would be way more dangerous than an LRV every few minutes.

For the most part, I think the rails have it right, in that we should be designing our transportation systems not to kill people; but sometimes the safety rules are over-applied where they don’t make sense, and sometimes the contrast with some of the things allowed on the roads is pretty glaring.

[danbrotherston]

I’m well aware that there is a double standard where anything involving roads is allowed to be wildly unsafe.

Anything involving roads is wildly unsafe? Seriously? While it's far from perfect, the accident stats do not bear out that claim.

I think ijmorlan said it well already, but I'm going to guess you've never walked down a curb faced sidewalk on a 70 km/h truck route.  

The collision stats may not say I'm likely to be hit, but it is still rather terrifying.

Moreover, what do the collision stats bear out?   The context ijmorlan was discussing was in comparison to rails, I'm pretty sure compared with railways, roads *are* wildly unsafe.

It's all a matter of what baseline we take.  We've grown accustomed to our level of road violence, but it is actually the top cause of unexpected death for many age groups.  It is very likely the least safe thing we do on a regular basis.

[Waterlooer]

Like this one, I just came across indicating that the budget is being built on the assumption of revenue service will start as of May 1st, 2018 (yes that is a Monday, but probably makes the accounting easier; maybe that is where Galloway got the date from originally - a preview of the budget):

May 1st, 2018 is actually a Tuesday.

[Coke6pk]

It makes sense that revenue service would start on a Monday.  I fully expect the opening ceremony will be on a Saturday (or, a little less likely, a Sunday), with free rides all weekend.

Well I hope my winning of the "Be the first to ride iON" isn't first revenue trip and all the "free-loaders" go before me...

Coke

[timc]

There's a very big lot at Northfield Crossing that is essentially empty all weekend (or any day after business hours).  It'd be a shame to have all that available parking but not allow anyone to use it.

I get that it's private property though and probably owned by a company.  Still, it would make a great park-and-ride.

Um, isn't there supposed to be a park-and-ride lot at Northfield?

[Markster]

Also, there is a line for $50,000 in 2020 called "Feasibility Study ‐ Mill Station to Hayward, Rail Corridor. Any ideas what that might be about?

Maybe a MUT alongside the tracks for that stretch? That would be awesome!!

I would really like to see a south egress from the Mill St station. As it is, it's a personal security issue. If you want to get away from someone on the platform, you have no escape to the south.

[Canard]

Well, you actually have two paths There is the platform, and then the “why is this here?” sidewalk on the East side of the tracks.

[panamaniac]

Well, you actually have two paths There is the platform, and then the “why is this here?” sidewalk on the East side of the tracks.

Does the current configuration preserve the "informal" pedestrian way to the "east" of Ottawa/Mill that used to lead over to Borden and Granville Aves?  I think that it was, at least in part, originally a railway service road of some sort.  

To the "south" (ie "west" but really south) of the station, perhaps we'll someday see a pedestrian way down to a redeveloped Rockway Golf course (the section "south" so really east of Courtland). ;

[timio]

Taking bets on when we'll see the next LRV (504, IIRC) that was slated for late November.

I'm guessing December 2nd delivery to Lancaster.

[embe]

Taking bets on when we'll see the next LRV (504, IIRC) that was slated for late November.  

I'm guessing December 2nd delivery to Lancaster.

Taking bets? What are the odds?  Serious question, lol

[ert86]

@Pheidippides

Don't they need more than 14 just to achieve their planned top frequency? Also having bare minimum would mean they're basically running almost all of the all day every day, increasing wear&tare and more frequent maintenance schedules. There's also the what if factor, if some of them get into accidents and not enough spares are available they could be forced to run on a reduced schedule with little notice.

[panamaniac]

@Pheidippides

Don't they need more than 14 just to achieve their planned top frequency?  Also having bare minimum would mean they're basically running almost all of the all day every day, increasing wear&tare and more frequent maintenance schedules.  There's also the what if factor, if some of them get into accidents and not enough spares are available they could be forced to run on a reduced schedule with little notice.

Wouldn't that be the when factor rather than the what if factor?