Province Nearly Doubling Weekly GO Train Trips Along the Line
Steven Del Duca, Minister of Transportation, was at Aurora GO Station today with Chris Ballard, MPP for Newmarket-Aurora, to announce that starting January 2, 2018 the province is introducing new midday and evening weekday service between Union Station and Aurora GO Station. Combined with the existing service, travellers along this section of the Barrie GO line will now benefit from all-day train service, seven days a week.
The service improvements and enhancements along the Barrie GO line include:
- New hourly, two-way service between Union Station and Aurora GO Station during the midday and evenings, and extra morning, afternoon and late evening trips between Bradford GO Station and Union Station.
- Hourly weekend GO rail service starting December 30, 2017.
- All GO trains will serve the new Downsview Park GO Station, connecting to the TTC Line 1 subway extension to York Region.
- Timed GO bus connections providing customers north of Aurora GO Station convenient access to the new GO train services.
The province is also cutting the cost of commuting for people in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area. Starting in January 2018, adult, senior, youth and student commuters will pay a TTC fare of just $1.50 when they use a PRESTO card to transfer between GO Transit or the UP Express and the TTC.
Adding more GO service on the Barrie Line is part of the largest rail project in Canada as Ontario transforms GO from a commuter transit system to a regional rapid transit system. Weekly trips across the entire GO rail network will grow from about 1,500 when the program began in 2015 to nearly 6,000 by 2024-25, with more all-day and 15-minute service coming to the Barrie Line.
Creating more transit options for commuters and families is part of Ontario’s plan to create fairness and opportunity during this period of rapid economic change. The plan includes a higher minimum wage and better working conditions, free tuition for hundreds of thousands of students, easier access to affordable child care, and free prescription drugs for everyone under 25 through the biggest expansion of medicare in a generation.
Quick Facts
- Ontario is investing $21.3 billion to transform GO Transit from a commuter transit service to a regional rapid transit system. A total of 230 GO train trips will now operate every week along the Barrie GO line, nearly six times the 40 trips per week that were operated a decade ago.
- Since 2013, Ontario has built three new GO stations, renovated 10 existing GO stations, and added approximately 7,000 new GO station parking spots. The province has also purchased 264 new GO buses, 150 new GO train coaches, and 10 new GO train locomotives.
- Ontario is making the largest infrastructure investment in hospitals, schools, public transit, roads and bridges in the province’s history. To learn more about what’s happening in your community, go to Ontario.ca/BuildON.
Additional Resources
Quotes
“More GO service benefits everyone across the region. Our new GO train service, for example, will take drivers off the road and bring faster, more reliable, and more integrated travel options as our region grows. New fare discounts starting in January will provide additional benefits to transit riders – customers who use their PRESTO cards to connect between GO Transit or UP Express and the TTC will only pay $1.50 for the TTC portion of their trips.”
“This is fantastic news for GO train users in my riding and everyone across York Region. Drivers, commuters and casual transit users have been asking for increased service and more GO Transit options. We are delivering. Today’s announcement will help us all get where we need to go.”
“It is exciting to be offering more than 100 new GO Train trips running in both directions between Aurora and Toronto each week. These new trips mean more options for our customers and the opportunity for people to try our service because it meets their schedules. We have also created connections to the TTC’s new Line 1 subway extension at Downsview Park GO Station, and to GO buses that meet all new train service. We are committed to continue offering more service to keep our region moving faster.”
Phil Verster
“As one of the fastest-growing regions in Ontario, building better transit is one of the ways we are preparing for this growth. York Region’s population is expected to grow to 1.8 million by 2041 and today’s announcement is getting us one step closer to a two-way, all-day GO Train service.”
Wayne Emmerson
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