Entry #44 Conestoga College Referendum Vote Results

In this past week, the Region of Waterloo and Grand River Transit have proposed a Universal Bus Pass to the students of Conestoga College, if the U-Pass was passed, the price would be $245/year, which would be approximately $81.00 for 4 months verses the $227.00 (going up to $238.00) for 4 months. With this this would also bring a massive service frequency increase to the college:
Routes 10, 16, 61, 110, 116 would operate every 15 minutes during the AM and PM rush hours.
Route 111 would operate every 20 minutes
Routes 16, 61 would have extended service until approximately 10:30pm.
Route 61 would have 60 minute Saturday service from 10am to 6pm.
Route 10 would have 30 minute weekend service

The results of that referendum were the college was not in favour of the U-Pass. That means, three (3) years from now, the U-Pass would be proposed again and another referendum would be looked at. With the college rejecting the U-Pass, the proposed expansion and changes to routes 10, 16, 61, 110, 111, and 116 will not happen, I believe it is time to focus bus service expansion along Ottawa Street (205 Ottawa Street iXpress), the Waterloo Regional Airport (Routes 20 Victoria-Frederick, 23 Idlewood, 34 Bingemans), or even start some of the South West Kitchener changes for 2017. Next week council will decide what to do with the money they have to play with. I do hope council looks at the Ottawa Street express and bus service to the Airport. As Ottawa Street and the Airport are heavily under serviced, bus service wise, and I believe it is a good idea to start looking at it now to begin preparation for expansion service in those areas.

Entry #43: 2017 Service Changes

With the new bus service expansion at Conestoga College starting September 2016, this is because Waterloo Regional Council has approved the Conestoga College U-PASS. With the approval of the U-Pass comes major transit changes at the College:

Route 10
- Increase Frequency of AM and PM Peak service to 15 minutes
- Saturday and Sunday Service 30 minutes

Route 16
- Increase Frequency of AM and PM Peak service to 15 minutes
- Evening Service until Approximately 10:30pm

Route 61
- Increase Frequency of AM and PM Peak service to 15 minutes
- Evening Service until Approximately 10:30pm
- Saturday Service from Approximately 10am to 6pm

Route 110-116
- Increase Frequency of AM and PM Peak service to 15 minutes

Route 111
- Increase AM and PM peak period service from 40-45 minutes to 20 minutes.

203 Mid-Region iXpress 

- No change until 2017

These are some very crucial and important changes happening at the college. After this expansion comes the important expansion year, 2017, South West Kitchener and the beginning of the ION LRT. In 2017, South West Kitchener will look very different from what it looks like now. To get a better understanding, the following routes will be looked at

Route 3 Ottawa South, Route 7 Mainline, Route 8 University/Fairview Park, Route 10 Conestoga College, Route 11 Country Hills, Route 12 Fairview Park-Conestoga Mall, Route 16 Forest Glen-Conestoga College, Route 22 Laurentian West, Route 23 Idlewood, Route 27 Chicopee, Route 33 Huron, 201 iXpress , 203 iXpress and 205 iXpress. These routes will look very different and have a higher frequency service as well. The predictions I have for 2017 are:

Route 3 Ottawa South

- Increased frequency of service from 30 minutes to 15 minutes Monday to Friday

- Weekend service every 30 minutes

Route 7 Mainline

- Rationalized route 7 into 3 branches 7A via Wilson, 7B via Weber, 7C Conestoga Mall

- 7A/7B every 15 Minutes, 30 evening and Weekend

- 7C every 7.5 minutes Monday to Friday, 15 evening and weekend

Route 8 University-Fairview Park

- Removed route 8 from Franklin and introduced new service along Weber Street, Fourth Street and Connaught Street

- Increased evening and weekend service from 45 minutes to 30 minutes

Route 10 Conestoga College 

- Modified route 10 to service the Doon South neighbourhood.

- Route 10A will be via Pioneer, 10B via Doon South

- Increased route 10 to 15 minutes Monday to Friday, 30 minute evening and weekend

Route 11 Country Hills

- Modified route 11 to service Sunrise Centre from Forest Glen plaza. 

- Increased route 11 service to 15 minutes Monday to Friday, 30 minutes evening and weekends.

Route 12 Fairview Park-Conestoga Mall 

- Modified route 12 to service Fallowfield Drive neighbourhood and Block Line Road to Fairway.

- Increased route 12 frequency to 15 minutes Monday to Friday.

Route 16 Forest Glen-Conestoga College

- Modified route 16 to service Strasburg Road, Thomas Slee, New Dundee and Conestoga College Boulevard. 

- New weekend service to approximately 10:30pm. 

Route 22 Laurentian West

- Modified route 22 to service the Sunrise Centre and Fairview Park via Forest Glen Plaza

- Evening and Weekend service improved to 30 minutes

Route 23 Idlewood

- Modified route 23 into a two-way loop connecting Sims Estate, Lackner Boulevard, Franklin Street to Stanley Park Mall 

- New Sunday Service from 7:45am to approximately 11:00pm

- Evening to be extended to 11pm

Roue 27 Chicopee

- Modified route 27 to service Sims Estate and Fairway Road to the Waterloo Regional Airport. 

- 30 minute service Monday to Friday

- New midday summer service introduced. 

Route 33 Huron

- Modified route 33 to service The Boardwalk via the Huron Village, Fischer-Hallman, Huron Industrial Park, Fairview Park and Conestoga College. 

- Route 33 has new midday, evening and weekend service every 30 minutes. 

201 iXpress

- Extended route from Forest Glen plaza to Fairview Park via Block Line and Fairway Road

203 iXpress 

- Extended route from Sportsworld Crossing to Fairview Park via Conestoga College and the Huron Industrial Park

- Evening service increased from 30 minutes to 15 minutes.

- Saturday and Sunday Service increased from 60 minutes to 30 minutes. 

205 Ottawa Street iXpress

- New express route that connects Ottawa Street and Lackner Boulevard to the Sunrise Centre along the Ottawa Street corridor.

- 15 minute service Monday to Friday, 30 minute service on weekends. 

These are some of the predictions that would happen in 2017. I am not 100% sure which ones are true besides the 201-203 iXpress will be extended to Fairview. One option I would like to see is route 20 extended along Victoria Street to Lackner to Fairview Park via Franklin Street and Ottawa Street and route 23 gets combined with the 10. This is another option I would like to see. 

These are some of the options that might happen in 2017. I do not know all the changes, but the 201-203-205 iXpress are coming in 2017. The other routes, I do not know what is going to happen, these are just my ideas that might happen. We will see what the planners have for the fall of 2016. 

Until then, have a great evening and a great week everyone! 

Entry #42: Breslau: Extend Existing Bus service to the Waterloo Regional Airport and Future GO Station

I do hope everyone had a merry Christmas and a happy holidays, now it is the end for 2015, I hope everyone has a great year in 2016! Since this will be the last blog of 2015, I was looking at how to end it with a bang, and I found it. When I was using Google Maps, I wanted to see what Breslau had, neighbourhood wise and how big it was. I was very surprised to see how built up it is out there, also very surprised to see that there is no bus service to Breslau or the Waterloo Regional Airport. So, from now to sometime in 2016, my new project will be to transfer the bus routes at Stanley Park Mall, and focus them out the Breslau I will post in this some of the ideas I do have in mind for focusing on routes 20, 23, 27, 34, 204 Highland-Victoria iXpress and the 205 Ottawa Street iXpress. So here are the ideas I have for sending service to Breslau:

Route 20 Victoria-Frederick: Modify route 20 from Stanley Park Mall to Waterloo Regional Airport via Victoria Street, Centennial Road and Fountain Street. This would provide a direct link between the Boardwalk, Downtown Kitchener and Breslau.

Route 23 Idlewood (Option 1)
Modify route 23 to service the Heritage Park Neighbourhood, Sims Estate and Lackner Boulevard to Breslau. Route 23 would provide a Fairview Park-Stanley Park-Breslau connection. New Sunday service between Fairview Park and Breslau every 30 minutes. 30 Minutes via Zeller/Heritage Park and 30 minutes via Sims Estate/Lackner.

Route 23 Idlewood (Option 2)
Modify route 23 to service Franklin Street, Heritage Park Neighbourhood, Sims Estate and Lackner Boulevard to Breslau. Route 23 would provide a Fairview Park-Stanley Park-Breslau connection. New Sunday service between Fairview Park and Breslau every 30 minutes. 30 Minutes via Zeller/Heritage Park, 30 minutes via Sims Estate/Lackner, and 30 minutes via Franklin.

Route 27 Chicopee
Modify route 27 to two way Service along Morgan Avenue, Sims Estate, Fairway Road to the Waterloo Regional Airport. This would provide a direct link between Fairview Park and Breslau and the Chicopee Ski Hill. Service Monday to Sunday would be 30 minutes.

Route 34 Bingemans
Extend route 34 from Shirley Avenue to Breslau via Victoria Street and Woolwich Street. New service along King Street and Wellington Street. New midday, evening and weekend service introduced.

Route 204 Victoria-Highland iXpress
Extend route 204 along Victoria Street and Fountain Street to Waterloo Regional Airport. This would provide a direct link between the Boardwalk and Breslau via Highland Road, Downtown Kitchener, Victoria Street and the Waterloo Regional Airport.


Route 205 Ottawa Street iXpress
Extend route along Ottawa Street to Woolwich Street and Fountain Street to the Airport. This would provide a direct link between Mannheim, Sunrise Centre, Ottawa Street, Woolwich Street, and the Waterloo Regional Airport.

These are the main ideas I have for Breslau and the Waterloo Regional Airport. I will do my best and provide a map with the service for Breslau.

I hope everyone has had a great year in 2015, I wish the best for you all in 2016.

Happy New Years!

Entry #41

Conestoga College students, your wish for more GRT service is on the way!

In the proposed 2016 budget, service changes include routes 10, 16, 61, 110, 111, 116.

Proposed Changes for 2016

*Route 10
- Increase AM and PM peak-periods to 15 minutes
- 30 minute evening service
- 30 minute Saturday & Sunday service

*Route 16
- Increase AM and PM peak-periods to 15 minutes
- Introduce evening service to approximately 10:30pm

*Route 61
- Increase AM and PM peak-periods to 15 minutes
- Introduce evening service to approximately 10:30pm
- Introduce 60 minute Saturday service between 10am and 6pm.

*Route 110
- Increase  PM peak to 15 minutes

*Route 111
- Increase service to 20 minutes during the AM and PM peak periods.

*Route 116
- Increase service to 15 minutes during the AM and PM peak-periods.

New Hamburg-Baden BusPlus*
Hayward-Hanson BusPlus

NOTE: *XX have been confirmed for 2016 service changes, the Hayward-Hanson BusPlus is still in the proposal stage.

Entry #40

Crosstown bus routes are the new way of getting around

Since many cities and municipalities, including the Region of Waterloo are looking are developing and creating crosstown bus routes that can move people around cities quicker and more direct. But before I continue, let's look at what a crosstown route is. The definition of a crosstown route is a route that connects the north-south, east-west, north-west, south-east route that people can use to travel quickly to get from one end of the city to another. Focusing more within the Region of Waterloo, more crosstown bus routes are being developed to move people from one end of the region to another. The best examples of crosstown routes are routes 1 Queen-River, 5 Erb, 7 Mainline, 8 University-Fairview Park, 12 Conestoga Mall-Fairview Park, 20 Victoria-Frederick, 31 Columbia, 51 Hespeler Rd, 52 Fairview Park-Ainslie St. Terminal, 201 Fischer-Hallman iXpress, 202 University iXpress, 203 Maple Grove/Mid-Region iXpress, and the 204 Victoria St.-Highland Rd. iXpress. 

The main hub for the crosstown routes meeting are at the Boardwalk located at the border of Kitchener and Waterloo. Eventually, there will be more and more crosstown routes that will be the "missing link" between cities within the Region of Waterloo. Eventually, the entire regional bus network would look something similar to Toronto's bus network which has many crosstown bus routes. 

More and more municipalities should be reevaluating their bus network in order to make the transit system more attractive to riders and that would improve ridership. 

It also comes to my attention, GO transit is also looking at expanding and creating more hubs and routes within cities that could have potential ridership. More hubs should have a GO transit stop in which would provide out of town connections so people can save money and use public transit.

Entry #39

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving everyone, I hope everyone enjoyed their turkey dinner, stuffing and much more! On April 2, Canadian Prime Minister Steven Harper called an early election that would last 79 days. As of October 11 there have been 850,000 people have cast their ballot during the advanced polls. That is an increase from 2008 but 90%. When I went to cast my ballot yesterday at the advanced polls, the people there were incredibly surprised to see a youth vote. I told them it was my first vote in the Federal Election, and they were very happy. I am encouraging all people to go out and cast there ballot in this Canadian election. 

When I was walking home after I cast my ballot (it was Sunday schedule for the bus routes) I noticed at least 5 people waiting for route #23 Idlewood. Route 23 does not operate on a Sunday/Holiday schedule. After seeing that many people waiting for the 23 at that stop, I wondered hoe many other people were waiting for it along it's route. I can see in January that the 23 gets 30 min Sunday/Holiday service. The ridership demand is there for the 23, I would recommend the 23 get Sunday service that would provide that missing link between Stanley Park mall and Fairview Park. 

The last time I went on a run on the route 5 Erb (5 Erb to Bridgeport/5 Erb to The Boardwalk) the Bridgeport neighbourhood section of the 5 is incredibly busy. I'm surprised that the 5 does not service that neighbourhood on Sundays. Maybe in the near future the full route 5 would get Sunday service. But this route also gave me an idea to extend the 23 to the Waterloo Regional Airport via the Heritage Park neighbourhood, Victoria Street and Fountain Street. The Waterloo Regional airport does not have any service at all, maybe creating a hub at the Airport that would connect routes like the 23, and 52  which would provide connections to Fairview Park-Sportsworld-Ainslie Street terminal (route 52 via Cherry Blossom) and the Heritage Park neighbourhood-Stanley Park Mall-Fairview Park (route 23 Idlewood). Another idea that a friend of mine mentioned was build a hub at Bingemans Park. Have routes 20 Victoria-Frederick, 23 Idlewood and 34 Bingemans service Bingemans park, this would provide 3 local connections to Downtown, Fairview Park-Stanley Park, and various neighbourhoods. 

I like the idea of moving the Stanley Park mall hub to Bingemans Park, this would provide families, seniors and teens a way to get to Bingemans Park. 

Let me know your thoughts on that. Have a great day everyone! 

David

Blog Entry #38 Route 20 Victoria-Frederick BACK to Charles St. Terminal and Changes to Conestoga College Expresses

Today, GRT (Grand River Transit) made some amazing changes. I say amazing changes because the changes involve routes 20 Victoria-Frederick, 110 Fairview Park-Conestoga College Express and 116 Forest Glen-Conestoga College Express. To begin lets review the route 20 Victoria-Frederick:

Route 20 Victoria-Frederick - This route has former routes 15 Frederick, 19 Victoria South combined that creates a crosstown route that connects The Boardwalk and Stanley Park Mall via Downtown Kitchener and the Heritage Park neighbourhood along the Victoria Street and Frederick Street corridors, which is in fact an amazing route, but the main issue was route 20 was pulled from Charles St. terminal as a test to see how people would react and use the on-street stops along Victoria Street, Weber Street, and River Road as well as the Boardwalk and Stanley Park Mall terminals to make connections. The test for the 20 failed horribly. There were so many complaints it was unbelievable. I understand everything should get ready for ION LRT, but first the King-Victoria hub should have been built then that would make an easy transfer from Charles St. Terminal to the hub would be smooth. I still believe that route 20 should also be extended beyond the Stanley Park Mall into the Idlewood, Zeller Drive and Sims Estate neighbourhoods (thus replacing rt. 23 and having another Boardwalk-Fairview connection.)

Route 110 Fairview Park-Conestoga College Express and Route 116 Forest Glen-Conestoga College Express

With all respect to Conestoga College, it's growing and needs more bus service. Since, I understand that Conestoga will be getting their ONE cards with similar payments like the University students (Bus tuition within the card) then more service will be delivered. This means 203 iXpress would be extended to Fairview Park via Sportsworld, the College and Highway 401 and many new routes and current routes being redesigned. But since that's a bit far away, GRT looked at route 110 and increased the frequency during the PM peak hour from 30 minutes to 20 minutes with an extra trip to Fairview departing Conestoga College at 6:07pm.
The 116 changed departure times from 58-28 to 25 and 55.

I believe this is 'phase 1' of many to connect more and more people.

That's the blog for today, have a great day everyone,
David