nfitz
Superstar
I think you forgot about the Oshawa extension line station(s?) east of Oshawa - isn't there at least one for Bowmanville? I'm not sure it's possible for that many lines to stop at Front, especially the Lakeshore services. Renaming the Lakeshore lines by adding "Toronto" to them is problematic, given they are also subway stations for the Ontario line; at the same time the "East Harbour" and "West Harbour" names may create confusion. Isn't there supposed to be a Concord station between Downsview Park and Rutherford to transfer to 407 services; it's been on various plans for decades.The north mainline is definitely promising for medium-distance travel, but based on the penny-pinching rhetoric coming from Metrolinx's latest GO Expansion announcements it's safe to assume they will spend just enough on the line between Kitchener and Bramalea to accommodate the planned GO service, and not a penny more. There definitely won't be spare capacity available for Via.
Ideally Metrolinx and Via should be collaborating to create an effective passenger rail system in southern Ontario that improves both regional rail (GO) and intercity rail (Via), rather than ignoring improvements to the latter. But in this particular case I think it does make sense for GO to fully take the Toronto-Kitchener-London corridor over. Toronto-Kitchener express trains can be extended to London without any impact on capacity on the CN mainline between Bramalea and Georgetown, or the single-tracked GO line between Georgetown and Kitchener. Via could affordably expand capacity on the south mainline by adding second platforms at stations, enabling them to use the double track that already exists rather than being bottlenecked onto the single platforms at Ingersoll, Woodstock and Brantford stations. That would enable them to add a couple trains per day, with service via Brantford to both Sarnia and Windsor.
You've already seen the content of my article on the case for GO Transit taking an increased role in intercity rail in Ontario, but I'll link it here again for others' reference:
https://ontariotrafficman.wordpress.com/2024/05/26/the-case-for-regional-express-trains-in-ontario/
There's a lot of talk among the province and feds about a Milton RER service - perhaps there should be express here too. (and perhaps a Galt stop).
Personally I'd add a Lawrence East station on the Stouffville line. Maybe even one at Ellesmere one day if it continues to densify there.
No love for the Richmond Hill line! I have mixed opinions on that one ... maybe just convert it into an extension for Line 1 north of the 407.
