As you may have read in Metro today, the TTC got a cheque
for $62.3 million from the provincial government yesterday. The money is
welcome, but it had already been promised by former Premier Ernie Eves for
specific expenditures, and won’t help avert the looming fare hike in 2004.
Mayor David Miller told In Transit “We’re delighted to get it. It’s a good
sign that the (government of Premier Dalton) McGuinty gave us the cheque,
but of course it has nothing to do with any of the funding pressures for
next year.”
This is the last installment of In Transit until the New
Year, so here are some highlights of special transit service available in
the GTA over the next week or so.
Today, Christmas Eve, the TTC will start its afternoon peak
period service at 12 noon. Rush hour schedules will apply to buses,
streetcars and the subway until 5 p.m. this afternoon.
Tomorrow, Christmas Day, the system will run as if it were a
Sunday -- the subway and most routes start service at 9 a.m.
On Friday, Boxing Day, the TTC runs Saturday service.
On Wednesday, New Year's Eve, afternoon peak period service
again runs from from 12 noon to 5 p.m. That night, bus and streetcar
routes that normally have late-evening service will continue to run until
3:00 a.m. Blue Night routes will have extra service until 4:00 a.m. Subway
trains on all lines will run up to 45 minutes later than normal. On New
Year's Day, it’s once again like Sunday with service starting at 9 a.m.
Get details at 416-393-4636 (INFO), but note that operators won’t be
available. December 25, 26, or January 1. Also try www.ttc.ca.
GO Transit will run a little differently on Christmas Eve
and New Year's Eve as the afternoon rush-hour is moved up and certain
regular rush-hour departures are cancelled. Some service is extended well
into the night on New Year's Eve. GO will run Sunday service on January 1
and regular weekday service on January 2.
Several GTA transit operators will offer free service on
Dec. 31, including Mississauga Transit which has bus trips leaving
Islington subway station as late as 3:30. Brampton Transit is also free
New Year's Eve as is York Region Transit, Ajax-Pickering Transit and
Oshawa Transit. The following do not have free service for partiers:
Whitby Transit, Oakville Transit, Burlington Transit and the Hamilton
Street Railway. Thanks to James Bow for his research.
Two weeks ago, I was scratching my head about how to get
holiday service information on the TTC’s website, www.ttc.ca. It turns out
that the details were indeed on the site, but they were not prominent. My
complaints may have been a bit premature, but nonetheless the TTC gave the
holiday details a higher profile sooner than they had planned, says chief
marketing officer Bob Hughes. He says the busy internet portal will reach
almost 5 million “user sessions” this year, and constructive criticism is
welcome.
In fact, staff are going to take a good look at the site next
year to see how it can be improved. He was concerned when I told him that
my computer gives error messages before launching the www.ttc.ca home
page, and that others have told me of similar difficulties. While very few
complaints have come in about such a problem, Hughes wants to know if
anyone else has had trouble using the site.
So readers, here’s your chance to provide your input. If you
use the Internet, take a visit to your local transit website and tell me
about your experience. Describe what you would do to make it better. I’ll
send the responses to the appropriate authorities and possibly include
them in a future column. If you don’t have access to the Internet, call up
your favorite transit provider and tell me how user-friendly their phone
service is. In this age of technological convergence, how else can the TTC
(or GO Transit, or MT or YRT...) deliver the information you need?
Don’t forget to send the New Year’s Transit Resolutions you
want our elected officials to undertake. E-mail transit@eddrass.com or fax
to 416-322-7016. Include your name, address and phone number.