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(06-16-2021, 09:33 AM)ijmorlan Wrote: (06-16-2021, 08:43 AM)ac3r Wrote: It would be great if we could, but would likely be very hard to accomplish. Nationalization of the railways in the United Kingdom was an absolute mess for example and they still debate whether or not their rail system was better as a national or private service.
Also don’t forget that it’s not all bloody-mindedness: they want their freight traffic to move smoothly, and so do the rest of us; making railway freight work more poorly so that shippers end up shifting even more to trucks would not be an improvement.
That being said, my impression is that right now they basically just say “no” rather than actually applying their creativity to figuring out how to accommodate passenger traffic better.
I'm not disagreeing, but ultimately, we need to get our passenger rail moving. I didn't necessarily say that they need to be nationalized, but they shouldn't be able to say "no".
In either case, the real solution was for us to actually build and own tracks, but thanks to our current government, it's pretty clear we won't be building anything but roads for a long time.
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On an interesting side-note, in the United States, passenger trains have priority over freight trains. According to Amtrak ( circa 2019), the freight operators largely flout that legal requirement. Even more interesting, Canadian National received a D- on Amtrak's report card: "Most Passengers are very late" Who received an A? Canadian Pacific: "Most passengers are on time"
Since that 2019 blog post, the US Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) published a final rule in November 2020 that Amtrak and its host railroads must certify Amtrak schedules, and that on-time performance must be 80% for two consecutive calendar quarters.
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That's a curious contrast to this side of the border, where CP is much more antagonistic to passenger traffic than CN.
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Looks like the Guelph slowdown is almost a thing of the past - the new crossings east of the station will be tested by a dry run on Sunday, with speeds up to 80 km/h (up from the former 16!). Actual passenger trains should hit those speeds in the fall.
https://blog.metrolinx.com/2021/06/23/go...K84vzPlNtk
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Excellent! That will be at least a small travel time savings.
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(06-23-2021, 02:27 PM)tomh009 Wrote: Excellent! That will be at least a small travel time savings.
These things are always save 1 minute here, save 2 minutes there. The Guelph savings is going to be pretty substantial on this scale.
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(06-23-2021, 01:50 PM)KevinL Wrote: Looks like the Guelph slowdown is almost a thing of the past - the new crossings east of the station will be tested by a dry run on Sunday, with speeds up to 80 km/h (up from the former 16!). Actual passenger trains should hit those speeds in the fall.
https://blog.metrolinx.com/2021/06/23/go...K84vzPlNtk That is certainly good news. I can jog faster than the train goes through this section.
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GO Transit is offering a weekend pass for their entire network - $10 for one day travel on Saturday/Sunday/holidays, and $15 for two-day travel. A return trip from Kitchener to Toronto is normally $38. Tickets are bought online only and delivered to your phone.
https://blog.metrolinx.com/2021/07/06/me...ic-behind/
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(07-15-2021, 12:59 PM)goggolor Wrote: GO Transit is offering a weekend pass for their entire network - $10 for one day travel on Saturday/Sunday/holidays, and $15 for two-day travel. A return trip from Kitchener to Toronto is normally $38. Tickets are bought online only and delivered to your phone.
https://blog.metrolinx.com/2021/07/06/me...ic-behind/
There is no GO train service to Kitchener on weekends, so this sale is worthless to us.
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This pass includes buses.
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(07-15-2021, 01:14 PM)KevinL Wrote: This pass includes buses.
There's also no buses to Toronto from KW.
Or at least, no direct buses.
And the most convenient bus (the 30) doesn't run on weekends either. I hate the stupid 25 bus.
Honestly, it's insane how pathetic our regional transportation network is. This isn't rocket science, just run some damn buses.
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I didn't realize we couldn't get to Toronto on the weekend now... I see now the weekend #31 to Toronto originates from Guelph, not Kitchener and the only way to get there is the 3+ hour trip via Square One.
This is going to be a problem when schools open up in-person again - the Greyhound from Toronto to Kitchener was always packed on Sunday nights but the powers-that-be have consistently ignored any need for weekend service.
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(07-15-2021, 02:20 PM)goggolor Wrote: I didn't realize we couldn't get to Toronto on the weekend now... I see now the weekend #31 to Toronto originates from Guelph, not Kitchener and the only way to get there is the 3+ hour trip via Square One.
This is going to be a problem when schools open up in-person again - the Greyhound from Toronto to Kitchener was always packed on Sunday nights but the powers-that-be have consistently ignored any need for weekend service. It is not true that you can't get to Toronto on the Weekend. The #25 may not be as fast as the #30 to Bramalea, but there are several GO bus connections at Square One to Finch, Yorkdale, Scarborough Town Centre, Richmond Hill and beyond. Even taking the #30 during the week requires a transfer to the train or another bus.
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(07-15-2021, 02:20 PM)goggolor Wrote: I didn't realize we couldn't get to Toronto on the weekend now... I see now the weekend #31 to Toronto originates from Guelph, not Kitchener and the only way to get there is the 3+ hour trip via Square One.
This is going to be a problem when schools open up in-person again - the Greyhound from Toronto to Kitchener was always packed on Sunday nights but the powers-that-be have consistently ignored any need for weekend service.
It looks like Via Rail has a single trip, but it doesn't get *TO* Toronto until 7:15 (scheduled to anyway). Otherwise, 25 via Square One.
God I fucking hate Ontario sometimes. How is it possible to be this pathetic?! Before the pandemic, it was embarrassing...now...forget about it.
I'd like to go visit some friends in Toronto. But the idea of renting a car and driving to downtown makes me want to scream. But that's pretty much the only option.
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07-15-2021, 03:12 PM
(This post was last modified: 07-15-2021, 03:12 PM by danbrotherston.)
(07-15-2021, 02:56 PM)Acitta Wrote: (07-15-2021, 02:20 PM)goggolor Wrote: I didn't realize we couldn't get to Toronto on the weekend now... I see now the weekend #31 to Toronto originates from Guelph, not Kitchener and the only way to get there is the 3+ hour trip via Square One.
This is going to be a problem when schools open up in-person again - the Greyhound from Toronto to Kitchener was always packed on Sunday nights but the powers-that-be have consistently ignored any need for weekend service. It is not true that you can't get to Toronto on the Weekend. The #25 may not be as fast as the #30 to Bramalea, but there are several GO bus connections at Square One to Finch, Yorkdale, Scarborough Town Centre, Richmond Hill and beyond. Even taking the #30 during the week requires a transfer to the train or another bus.
The 25 takes much longer than the 30. So yes, while possible...it is not feasible. I can also take megabus to London from Toronto now (new route), but I would never do so because they decided to service the Flying J by the 401, so I'm not going to walk up the shoulder of a dangerous highway with my 19 month old daughter.
The 30 transfer to the train is annoying, but ultimately not totally inconvenient.
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