Why GO Transit is Actually Great

I made this video in response to Not Just Bikes' video on GO Transit. Jason makes a lot of good points regarding North American commuter rail, and I wanted to expand on why I think GO's transformation is so great, and the fact that some of it is already here! Check out his video here if you haven't yet: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxWjtpzCIfA

I love this good-cop-bad-cop relationship you and Not Just Bikes are developing. It's awesome. One of you whips us Canadian transit lovers into a frothing rage, and then the other calms us down and gives us a reason for optimism. Both perspectives are great. Long may it continue!

Not Just Bikes vs. RMTransit: The Throwdown in Hogtown!

To be fair to freight, keeping it off roads and on rail for as much as possible is good for everyone

They're both right. "Not Just Bikes" was focused on the past and "RMTransit" is focused on the future.

It's also useful to understand that on several routes, GO uses trains during rush hours but switches to buses when the roads are not congested. So, what looks like only a few trips per day is actually all day service between the two. Where GO has to share rail lines, this is the best use of a limited resource.

Love to see these kind of “collabs” where you get two different angles on the same story. NJB highlights the current problems, but you provide a lot of future hope for the network! Excellent viewing from both of you.

Not just bikes asks why… rm transit explains why.

I really enjoyed how you and Jason have bookended a common theme, in this case commuter rail, and between you demonstrated the complexities involved in delivering complex projects and systems. Do it again!

NYC has pretty good transit... It does not pass a smell test though lol 😂

"crumpling is something you generally want to avoid". Thank you for the laugh.

Go train has really stepped up. A huge change will be linking the network in the suburbs to better local transit. I really feel like it's an underrated success of the last 10 years.

GO was always an important boost to mobility for me, growing up in Hamilton without a car. It made day, or even afternoon, trips to Toronto convenient, with all the museums and other amenities that opened up.

The addition of all day service and eventually 4 trains/hour on GO lines is the biggest step to making it usable for more people. I was so happy to see that effort is being made to make that happen and not just leave the trains "sitting all day" (as NJB lamented)

Toronto could be the model city for saving public transport in North America through the commuter rail -> RER transition

13:00 Makes me remember when I went to Toronto back in 2012 and I really liked my experience on GO. As a short guy, the seats have a big legroom and were way more comfortable than the trains we had here.

I just wanted to thank you for this. There is so much pessimism and negativity which often supersedes the helpful contributions of constructive criticism when it comes to transit in the GTHA. I’ve been lucky enough to travel in many parts of the world, and we don’t have it bad at all. If anything, in Toronto we have some of the best balance between car ownership and transit use which still provides comfortable alternatives to those who would like to choose. It is evident we are moving away from a car based society, but that takes time, and it’s not fair to expect everything to change in a year, to destroy every commuter parking lot and install bike lanes everywhere. Transit is more than just about moving people, it’s about moving the economy and providing the easiest and most convenient method of transport for those commuting into the city; not to appease the European transit mindset which many are currently far too eager to implement without being realistic.

Your turnaround is amazingly fast! It was great to get both sides of the issue on consecutive days while the arguments from NJB were still fresh.

GO is great for tourism and recreation. I've taken my bicycle on GO Trains both as part of longer journey or with the express purpose to go to a certain station and cycle back. The weekend GO Train service to Niagara Falls has two cars with bicycle racks on the bottom. There's no extra charge to take your bicycle along.

The first time I used GO for tourism specifically was two weeks ago to visit Unionville. It was a fun day trip but it sucked that I had to walk from the car-centric station and parking lot to the town centre even though the train passes through the centre. I wrote them later saying they should do weekend stops at the old central train station. I think GO should consider a bit more how it can reach different target riderships and/or work with BIAs near their stations to figure out needs as well as cross promote each other.