Transit Toronto

Read the daily “on schedule” posts to find news and other information that affects your daily commute. You’ll learn about public meetings, special events and construction projects that affect transit services today.

GO Transit is resuming its seasonal GO train service between Niagara Falls and Toronto Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and and holidays from Saturday, June 29 until Labour Day, Monday, September 2.

The trains operate Friday evenings and several times Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays, dropping off and picking up passengers at Union Station, Exhibition, Port Credit, Oakville and Burlington GO stations and St. Catharines and Niagara Falls VIA Rail stations.

GO is also again operating express buses carrying passengers between St. Catharines VIA Rail Station and downtown Niagara-on-the-Lake.

GO continues to operate buses along the 12 Niagara Falls / Burlington route seven days a week throughout the year. The buses meet trains operating along the 01 Lakeshore West line at Burlington GO Station.

GO Transit will again operate trains along the 65 Barrie line Saturdays, Sundays and holidays this summer, starting Saturday, June 29.

This year, it’s improving the service by also operating shuttle buses to and from Canada’s Wonderland. The buses meet trains operating in both directions at Rutherford GO Station.

Ontario Ministry of Transportation contractors continue to work on the project to upgrade Highway 427.

This week they’re closing the ramp from Dundas Street West to northbound Highway 427 from 8 p.m. tomorrow, Tuesday June 18 until 6 a.m. Wednesday, June 19 and continuing overnight nightly until 6 a.m. Friday, June 21. (Gibbs Road is also closed during these times.)

This affects MiWay buses operating along the 11 / 11A / 11B Westwood, 35/35A Eglinton, 57 Courtneypark MiLocal routes and the 109 Meadowvale MiExpress route. Although the TTC has not announced detours, closing the ramp also likely affects service along the 191 Highway 27 rocket and 192 Airport rocket routes.

Starting tonight Monday, June 17 at 8 p.m., City of Toronto and TTC contractors working on the project to upgrade the street and install streetcar tracks on Leslie Street start blocking traffic lanes.

They’re working to build new tracks to connect the future Leslie Barns streetcar maintenance and storage facility to the tracks on Queen Street East.

Tonight, a construction team is installing “temporary traffic protection” — concrete barriers — and signs along Leslie Street in the northbound curb lane between Commissioners Street and Lake Shore Boulevard East. During this work, they’ll maintain one northbound lane for through traffic and one lane each for northbound right and left turns onto Lake Shore East.

This week, from Monday, June 17 until Friday, June 21, a construction team will work on underground wiring and other communication utilities at the intersection of Leslie and Commissioners Streets. This work requires them to occupy the centre northbound and southbound lanes on Leslie Street, from just south of Commissioners Street to a point about 40 meters further south. They’ll also install signs and lighting for the safety of pedestrians, cyclists and motorists.

GO Transit is improving the platforms at Guelph Central GO Station starting after the morning rush hour tomorrow, Monday, June 17.

It’s placing the east half of the platform out of service until Friday, June 28 for paving. During this time, board and exit trains at the five westernmost coaches of the train.

Once crews have finished paving that area, GO will close off the west half of the platform from Tuesday, July 2 until Friday, July 12. During that time board and exit trains at the five easternmost coaches on the train. Crews will also pave the mini-platform will also overnight during the weekend starting Saturday, June 29; however, this should not have any impact on passengers service.

Tomorrow, Monday, June 17, GO Transit contractors start phase 2 of the renovations at Unionville GO Station.

This means that construction work shifts to the north side of the station and GO will reopen the south end, providing a new entrance to the station building, ticket sales and new waiting area.

GO expects to complete the entire project this summer.

In announcing its latest service changes, York Region Transit has also revealed that Viva buses start operating along the Highway 7 East rapidway — bus-only lanes in the centre of the roadway — starting Sunday, June 30.

In the meantime, Metrolinx and York Region contractors continue to work on the project.

Here’s what’s going on this week:

Since Durham Region Transit is starting its new bus rapid transit service, DRT Pulse, Saturday, June 29, GO Transit is making major changes to its bus service in Oshawa, Whitby, Ajax and Pickering the same day.

First, it’s canceling the current service along the 94 Oshawa / Yorkdale and 95 Oshawa / Finch routes.

Second, it’s introducing two new routes: the 92 Oshawa / Yorkdale route and the 98 Pickering / Finch express route.

Third, it’s increasing service along the 96 Oshawa / Finch express route, so that buses operate about every 30 minutes from about 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. seven days a week.

Fourth, it’s reorganizing bus stops in Pickering, affecting service along the 51 Pickering / York U route.

Fifth, it’s removing GO bus stops in Durham Region.

Sixth, it’s revising its fare policy for passengers traveling within Durham Region.

As part GO Transit’s ongoing work to improve **Burlington GO Station, crews are building a sheltered pedestrian walkway south of the station building.

As a result, starting Friday, June 14, GO is closing off a section of the north end of the parking lot closest to the station building, placing the motorcycle parking spaces out of service and relocating the barrier-free spaces to the area of the parking lot just south of the passenger drop-off and pick-up area — the “kiss ‘n’ ride”.

GO expects to finish the entire project at Burlington GO Station by March, 2014.

A TTC subway train containing H5 car 5796 waits at Downsview station on April 23, 2010 before starting back down the Spadina subway. Photo by G. Viloria.

Today, Friday, June 14, is the last day of operation for the TTC’s H5 subway trains.

The oldest train in the TTC fleet will make its farewell voyage from Wilson Station today, at noon.

According to Torontoist, a company in Lagos, Nigeria has bought some of the H5s for rail service in that city.

From the Transit Toronto archives, read: “The Chopper-Control Hawkers (H5 and H6 Series)” by James Bow and Robert Lubinski, here.

Here’s a video by T2P0 Films of an H5 making a trip last Friday, June 7.