I’m probably going to ramble a bit in this post. When I watch railfans in Japan, it never fails to amaze me. I adore their public transportation system. I’m amazed at how they keep it easy by using trains of various designs to transport people throughout their cities. They are unconcerned with how fancy the stations seem, having many outdoor platforms of different sizes. They focus on getting people from point A to B. I’m not sure why it’s so difficult to get us to construct rail (both regional and local) in Canada, especially in the Greater Toronto Area, where there are so many corridors. We could simply take some tracks, put them in place, and get people going. I realize it isn’t that easy, but ultimately, people want to know that they can get to work and home safely and efficiently.

GO Transit & Metrolinx

With their expansion plans, GO Transit has done an outstanding job. Of course, owing to COVID-19 and the current pandemic, we’ve shifted a lot. This hasn’t deterred Metrolinx, the agency in charge of transit planning. Prior to the pandemic, trains ran every 15 to 30 minutes on some corridors. However at the moment train service is still focused on Union Station and Toronto. Everything goes downtown, then spreads outwards like a spider web. We must seriously consider linking various communities and areas in the GTA. We always think, “It’s too expensive.” Why isn’t there a rail line connecting Durham and Markham? Or maybe from Mississauga to Toronto’s midtown district? Who’s to say that a service isn’t necessary? It doesn’t have to be extravagant.

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Written by Manny James

“Stop thinking about the cost; instead, we should increase our rail investment and expand. We need to get out of this car focused world and simplify things.”

Japan Train