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.

The Metrolinx board of directors will meet this Monday, May 27 to consider the agency’s final report to the Government of Ontario on ways to fund public transit in the Greater Toronto Area and Hamilton. The Board will recommend an “investment strategy” to support to build more than 400 kilometres (about 250 miles) of new transit projects, improve current transit services and build or improve roads and highways in the region.

The meeting of the board starts at 9:30 a.m. at an unusual location, the Bram and Bluma Appel Salon in the **Toronto Reference Library, 789 Yonge Street.

You can view the board’s agenda for the meeting here.

Getting there by public transit:

• the TTC’s 1 Yonge - University - Spadina and 2 Bloor - Danforth subways stop at Bloor - Yonge Station, one block south of the library. Walk north along the east side of Yonge.

The TTC project to modernize Pape Station started away back in September 2009. However, the project is drawing to a close and, later this year, contractors will disappear from the site and the new station will be finished.

Under the original construction schedule, the work would have continued over several months while the station remained fully operational. To speed things up though, TTC staff considered temporarily closing the station this spring, either over several weekends or for 12 days straight, ending the project sooner.

The TTC says that this temporary shutdown would enable its contractors to finish construction within the station by September. Continuing to work while the station remains open would mean construction of the main station wouldn’t finish until December. In either case, the second exit, a block away from the main station building at the east end of Lipton Avenue, will be finished by the end of 2013.

Last month, it surveyed its riders to find out how they would prefer it to proceed. It offered riders these options:

• Close the station for six consecutive weekends;
• Close the station for 12 days straight; or
• Don’t close the station (continue with current schedule).

The majority of people who responded to the survey wanted the TTC to close the station so that it could end the project sooner. More than 52 per cent of them also preferred closing the station for 12 days.

So, from Sunday, June 15 until Wednesday, June 26, the TTC will close the station to all subway trains and buses, affecting service along the 2 Bloor - Danforth subway line and the 25 Don Mills, 72 Pape and 81 Thorncliffe Park bus routes. (The closure is just 11 — not 12 — days.) Regular service resumes Thursday, June 27.

June is Seniors Month in Ontario, but some older residents of Niagara Region get to celebrate early.

This Monday, May 27, residents 65 years of age or older may ride Niagara Region Transit, Niagara Falls Transit, St. Catharines Transit Commission and Welland Transit buses free of fare.

Just show your valid senior’s card or other identification to the bus driver when you board to enjoy the free rides.

The City of Toronto is closing:

• Victoria Park Avenue between St. Bede’s Road and Conroy Avenue

Saturday, May 25 from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m., as work crews repair the water services.

The TTC is detouring buses operating along the 24 Victoria Park route to accommodate the work.

Metrolinx and York Region contractors continue to work on the project to build a rapidway — bus-only rapid transit lanes in the centre of the roadway — along Highway 7 East in Markham and Richmond Hill.

Here’s what’s going on this week:

A cultural festival, a parade, several road races and two walkathons to support charitable causes affect transit services this weekend.

The events take place in the Ancaster area of Hamilton, downtown Brampton, downtown Hamilton, the Lindsay area of Kawartha Lakes, Mississauga, the Port Weller area of St. Catharines and downtown Toronto.

Transit- and transportation-related sites are also a feature of the annual Doors Open Toronto, which also takes place this weekend.

The Region of Peel and the City of Mississauga are closing

• Airport Road (Regional Road 7) between American Drive and Bresler Drive

overnight late Friday evening and early Saturday morning to accommodate a construction project. (We’re not sure what the construction project is, but we think it’s likely for Metrolinx’ future Union Pearson Express rail service.)

Brampton Transit is detouring buses operating along the 115 Airport express route, GO Transit is detouring buses operating along the 34 Brampton / Pearson / North York route, MiWay is detouring buses operating along the 7 Airport miLocal route and the TTC is detouring buses operating along the 58 Malton route while the road is closed.

This weekend, from 8 p.m. Friday, May 24 until 4 a.m. Monday, May 27, contractors continue repairing the railway bridge over Highland Creek between Rouge Hill and Guildwood GO stations.

The work reduces train service to a single track through the construction area. This may delay GO Transit trains by as much as 15 minutes behind schedule, since GO shares the tracks with VIA Rail intercity passenger trains and Canadian National Railway freight trains.

According to InsideToronto.com, “the bridge across the mouth of Highland Creek is in the middle of a $5.9-million rehabilitation to extend its life and allow it to handle current train speeds and future rail traffic.”

Reporter Mike Adler explains that the structure, more than 100 years old, is getting improvements to its design, foundations and tracks. Trains have been slowing down at the crossing since construction started last fall.

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

Overnight nightly from 10 p.m. until 6 a.m., starting 10 p.m. tomorrow, Friday, May 24 and continuing until 6 a.m. Monday, May 27, they’re clsoing the southbound off-ramp from Highway 427 to Dundas Street West.

MiWay is detouring buses operating along the 11A Westwood - Darcel and 35 Eglinton routes, while the ramp is closed.

Although the TTC has not announced detours, construction at the ramp likely also affects service along the 191 Highway 27 rocket and 192 Airport rocket routes.

Several transit-related sites are open to the public Saturday, May 25 and Sunday, May 26 during Doors Open Toronto, the one weekend, once a year, when 150 buildings of architectural, historic, cultural and social significance open their doors to the public for a city-wide celebration.

The City of Toronto program allows visitors free access to look inside properties that are usually not open to the public.

The TTC is participating in the event at just one sites — Lower Bay Station — but other venues that have played significant roles in Toronto’s public transit and transportation history are also opening their doors.