The car is in the shop today and Cambridge Hyundai's shuttle can only take me home (Doon South) rather than all the way to work (Phillip/Albert area). My experiences using the 200 iExpress from Hespeler/Pinebush to R&T Park have been hit and miss for travel times, so I thought that today I'd have the dealership drop me at home to try out the recently extended Rt 76 Bus Plus.
I often make fun of the 76 Bus Plus as a route that only runs "on Thursdays after tea" but I have to admit that it worked really well today. It got me to Conestoga College quickly, and while the plan was to hop the Rt 16 to Forest Glen to pick up the 201 iExpress, to my surprise there was a Rt 116 Express available that got me to Forest Glenn in no time flat. Total trip time, door to door from my house in the new construction boonies of Doon South to my office near Phillip and Albert was only 1 hour and 15 minutes versus a Google Transit predicted trip time of 1:37. That's only 5-10 minutes more than me biking! I can't wait to see what sort of travel times ION will bring to this trip (assuming there's a decent connection to it available).
Oh, and the 201 iExpress is way more express than the 200. It was sad that there were only 2 additional riders on it with me, but perhaps that's because my trip was basically off-peak, having boarded for the 8:55 a.m. departure.
I often make fun of the 76 Bus Plus as a route that only runs "on Thursdays after tea" but I have to admit that it worked really well today. It got me to Conestoga College quickly, and while the plan was to hop the Rt 16 to Forest Glen to pick up the 201 iExpress, to my surprise there was a Rt 116 Express available that got me to Forest Glenn in no time flat. Total trip time, door to door from my house in the new construction boonies of Doon South to my office near Phillip and Albert was only 1 hour and 15 minutes versus a Google Transit predicted trip time of 1:37. That's only 5-10 minutes more than me biking! I can't wait to see what sort of travel times ION will bring to this trip (assuming there's a decent connection to it available).
Oh, and the 201 iExpress is way more express than the 200. It was sad that there were only 2 additional riders on it with me, but perhaps that's because my trip was basically off-peak, having boarded for the 8:55 a.m. departure.
...K