TORONTO — GO Transit is expanding service between Kitchener, Ontario, and Toronto, adding an additional round trip as of Jan. 7.
The additional trains — a morning train departing Kitchener at Kitchener at 5:40 p.m. and a return trip departing Toronto at 3:35 p.m. — increase daily service to five round trips.
The Ontario government had previously promised all-day service to Kitchener would begin by 2024. But in announcing the additional train, Ontario Transport Minister Jeff Yurek suggested such service could come sooner, Global News reported, quoting Yurek as saying, “I am hoping that we have a great announcement within 12 and 18 months with that will implement all-day, two-way transit.”
Earlier, GO Transit announced regular weekday round trips to Niagara Falls, Ont. — previously only served seasonally on weekends — would begin Jan. 7. [See “GO Transit to begin daily service to Niagara Falls in January,” Trains News Wire, Dec. 19, 2018.]
GO Transit is gradually filling the vacuum left by Via Rail’s pathetic service in southern Ontario. And yes, Mr. Landey, it has plenty of toilets.
Something’s wrong with the stated train times. 5:40 a.m. for the inbound, I presume?
DAVID – While not everyone rides end -to -end, these long-haul commuter runs amaze me. Toronto to Kitchener is a longer haul than some Metra trains I have ridden and I thought I’d grow old and die. (Route 59 Napierville to Chicago is about 35 miles – it takes forever on an all-stops local.) Toronto to Kitchener is 62.7 miles according to an old Official Guide I have. In contrast Chicago to Kenosha, a schlep and a half, is 51.6 miles. Boston to Worcester is 44.3 miles. I hope GO Transit has lots of express trains and lots of toilets.
They’re going to have a hard time fitting it in now that they’ve cancelled the “Missing Link” freight bypass that was meant to free up capacity.
What the release didn’t mention is that one of the evening trains has been switched to all stops from express, adding considerable travel time to an already long trip.