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GO Transit: Service thread (including extensions)

crs1026 said:
The rule of thumb for hourly service is : Trains running hourly in both directions will need to pass each other every half hour.

As of today, there is effectively nowhere for trains to meet west of Bramalea.

So, basically - when a GO train departs westbound from Bramalea, it has to go all the way to Kitchener and then come all the way back before the following GO train can head west from Bramalea.

By timetable it's 1 hour 12 minutes from Bramalea to Kitchener. So, at bare minimum, and allowing even a small margin for turnback at Kitchener, in theory the best that Ml can do is run on headways of about 2.5 hours. That is only possible outside of peak hours - the peak service removes any possibility for that spacing during rush hours.
Click to expand...
Not entirely correct. There is one, Kitchener itself. Basically a train comes in makes its stop and then dwells at Kitchener for about an hour. In that time the next westbound train makes its way from Gtown to Kitchener. Then the first train departs westward until it gets to the single track, then goes eastward into the passing track north of the station and waits for the 2nd train to get into Kitchener. Once train #2 is in there, train 1 can depart eastward to Gtown. After that it meets train 3 in the two track area between there and Brampton. Train three then gets into Gtown shortly threeafter and then continues on to Kitchener where train 2 is waiting for it on that passing track after completing the same move train one did. Train one meanwhile has continued to Union and does a quick trunaround and presto! with that headways could be cut down in close to half to say around 1:30, maybe even 1:15 if the timing is very precise and you thrown in a forth train ready to go out of Union before the tried train gets in there, though that train would have a long dwell there as a result.

It's incredibly inefficient due to that long dwell at Kitchener but it's not like they haven't done that before at places like West Harbour or Unionville. It's a lot like that weird reversed move they have Niagara trains do at West Harbour, definitely not without precedent and now you have a semi usefull service.
 
SkylineHorizon said:
Not entirely correct. There is one, Kitchener itself. Basically a train comes in makes its stop and then dwells at Kitchener for about an hour.
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It's more complicated than that, as right now Kitchener has only a single platform. The earlier train would have to drop passengers, then continue down the mainline and reverse into a siding. The next train would have to do the same thing, with the first train ducking out, then reversing again to head to the platform. You could exploit the fact that Kitchener has GO storage sidings both west (2) and east (4) of the platform to simplify the dance a little bit, but it would still be awkward. I don't expect that they'd bother, and will just wait until all the passing tracks are in place.
 
^I’m not convinced CN would allow (actually, I’m pretty certain the answer is “no”) two-track meets anywhere between Silver and Bramalea on anything close to an hourly basis. That’s why at minimum ML needs a flyover near Georgetown and some passing capability before we can hope for hourly headways.

Having trains layover at Kitchener is not that much an advantage over just building in turnback time and having the same train double back without having an earlier train waiting to leave. The inability for trains to pass each other (and without impeding CN operations) is the big constraint.

- Paul
 
crs1026 said:
^I’m not convinced CN would allow (actually, I’m pretty certain the answer is “no”) two-track meets anywhere between Silver and Bramalea on anything close to an hourly basis. That’s why at minimum ML needs a flyover near Georgetown and some passing capability before we can hope for hourly headways.

Having trains layover at Kitchener is not that much an advantage over just building in turnback time and having the same train double back without having an earlier train waiting to leave. The inability for trains to pass each other (and without impeding CN operations) is the big constraint.

- Paul
Click to expand...
At the minimum they could probably do hourly to Bramalea on weekends...

L529 doesn't run on weekends
L559 usually will service on the north service track at Wice on Saturday
L549 runs after 9:30 pm shouldn't affect operations
L579 runs after 1:30 am again shouldn't affect things
L577 hasn't been a thing for years...
 
Krypto98 said:
At the minimum they could probably do hourly to Bramalea on weekends...
Click to expand...

GO should be good for hourly service all the way to Mount Pleasant, because the only intrusion onto CN's line is at Peel, and GO paid to double track that stretch.... so CN should only expect to run one train at a time from Brampton to Peel.

- Paul
 
KevinT said:
It's more complicated than that, as right now Kitchener has only a single platform. The earlier train would have to drop passengers, then continue down the mainline and reverse into a siding. The next train would have to do the same thing, with the first train ducking out, then reversing again to head to the platform. You could exploit the fact that Kitchener has GO storage sidings both west (2) and east (4) of the platform to simplify the dance a little bit, but it would still be awkward. I don't expect that they'd bother, and will just wait until all the passing tracks are in place.
Click to expand...
More or less what I mean, the first train would sit there for an hour until it was time to go then go west while the second train was 5 or so minutes out from Kitchener. First train would clear the switch change directions hence the few extra minutes for the crew to do so and then be sent into the passing track while the second train would be pulling into the station at this time when on schedule. There are signals & switches at both sides of the passing track which are clear of Kitchener station, plenty of room to go around the now stopped second train at Kitchener and pop out at the other end(all done with passengers going east already aboard).

But I'm sure Paul is right in that CN would balk at GO trains taking up two of their tracks at the same time. I swear it's really annoying how much power the freight companies have in this country. Even the US as piss poor as it is when it comes to passenger rail has better protections. i.e Amtrak automatic running rights and priority over freight(mandated by law) though I understand the latter is not necessarily enforced at least they can't be denied access ffs.
 
KevinT said:
It's more complicated than that, as right now Kitchener has only a single platform. The earlier train would have to drop passengers, then continue down the mainline and reverse into a siding. The next train would have to do the same thing, with the first train ducking out, then reversing again to head to the platform. You could exploit the fact that Kitchener has GO storage sidings both west (2) and east (4) of the platform to simplify the dance a little bit, but it would still be awkward. I don't expect that they'd bother, and will just wait until all the passing tracks are in place.
Click to expand...
None of this is necessary. There's a crossover at Lancaster street east of the station, which GO already uses in order to access Shirley Yard, which is on the north side of the tracks. From that switch eastward to the end of double track is 2.8 km, which is enough to schedule a meet with relatively little delay.

Switch at Lancaster Street
Capture1.JPG


Green segment is double-tracked, dots indicate switches.
Capture2.JPG


But this discussion is moot anyway because they are building passing tracks in Guelph and Breslau as we speak, which are both better located than this one.
 
It looks like there’s not much happening this January. As far as the bus service changes go, there’s only schedule adjustments, the usual seasonal reinstatement of Highway 407 and university (Mac, UW/WLU) runs, and a few cuts to buses, such as those that weren’t cut when the Kitchener Line trains were restored. There are a few minor cuts elsewhere, it’s very much a reallocation rather than an overall increase.

Bus Schedule Changes | Service Updates | GO Transit

Click here to see upcoming GO Bus schedule changes and stay in the know!
www.gotransit.com www.gotransit.com
 
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