CREATING CONNECTIONS IN THE CITY OF WATERLOO GORD TROUGHTON, DIRECTOR, CORRIDOR INFRASTRUCTURE METROLINX ERIN MOROZ, DIRECTOR, COMMUNICATIONS AND COMMUNITY RELATIONS METROLINX METROLINX PRESENTATION TO WATERLOO COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE SEPTEMBER -11-2017
CONGESTION COSTS OUR ECONOMY Residents could spend 109 minutes per day in traffic
GO EXPANSION PROGRAM
METROLINX: REGION BUILDER PLAN BUILD OPERATE 4
KITCHENER LINE OVERVIEW 101 km, Union to Kitchener 79% Metrolinx owned GO Train service began in 1974 12 stations, potentially increasing to 16 Connections with Grand River Transit, Guelph Transit, Brampton Transit, MiWay, TTC & UP Express TODAY 5 million annual boardings 85 rush hour trips per week 65 midday trips per week; no evening or weekend trips Diesel service WITH RER* 18 million annual boardings ~4 times the rush hour trips Hundreds of new midday, evening & weekend trips Electric or mixed electric & diesel** service * - Figures subject to refinement as they do not reflect 2016 expansion of scope ** - Electrification of all GO services is target; conditional on completion of freight bypass 5
KITCHENER GO RAIL SERVICE Kitchener GO Train service has doubled 2011 TODAY
KITCHENER GO BUS SERVICE 2016: Three new bus routes including express service from Kitchener with timed connections to and from trains at Bramalea GO station providing all-day two-way service Monday to Friday. MORE GO IN WATERLOO REGION 7
RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE IN KITCHENER/WATERLOO 8
KITCHENER CORRIDOR PROGRAM OVERVIEW Infrastructure Build: Additional track from Union Station to Mt. Pleasant GO Station New stations: Liberty Village, St. Clair West, Mount Dennis, and Breslau Station modifications/parking expansion Hwy 401/409 Rail Tunnel Strachan Avenue Grade Separation Signal improvements Bridge structure modifications Layovers at Georgetown, Shirley Avenue, Heritage Road Improved rail crossings West Toronto Railpath Extension Customer experience improvements 9
NEW FREIGHT BYPASS 10
BUILDING A NEW CORRIDOR Building a new corridor is complex and as outlined in initial feasibility work will require: Up to 35 new bridges for road and water crossings including significant crossings of 401, 410 Modification and/or relocation of up to 17 hydro towers and as much as 3.4 km of major gas line relocations Construction of 60 km of new track, new train signal system Construction of a new rail/rail grade separation where Kitchener line will cross the bypass corridor Noise and vibration mitigation as required for adjacent properties Property impacts Next Steps: Continue negotiations with CN, to progress from the Agreement in Principle (AiP) to a full agreement Initiate an Environmental Assessment (EA), including public and stakeholder engagement Continue planning and design to identify route alignment and address potential concerns. 11
ELECTRIFICATION Metrolinx can only proceed with electrification on owned corridors Electrification requires traction power substations, switching stations, paralleling stations, overhead contact systems, and various safety modifications EA underway now to plan and design the required infrastructure for electric service on the Kitchener line between Bramalea and Highway 427 in Toronto. This EA is on track to be complete by the end of 2017 The Kitchener line west of Bramalea can be electrified only once the new freight bypass is built 12
NEW TRACK & NEW STATIONS 13
NEW TRACK AND NEW STATIONS New Track Kitchener Corridor An additional track from Union Station to Mt. Pleasant GO Station to support 15-minute service between Union and Bramalea GO Station 30 km freight bypass between Bramalea and Milton (30 km x 2 tracks) 2 nd 52 km track between Georgetown and Kitchener New Stations Liberty Village St. Clair West Mount Dennis Breslau 14
BRESLAU GO STATION Plans for a new station at Breslau near Greenhouse Rd. Identified in a previous EA. Good opportunity to attract new riders from a wide catchment Will support adjacent transitoriented development Will provide limited impact to existing passengers Township of Woolwich plans an EA for a grade separation. Working with Waterloo Region staff and Township staff as we advance the station design 15
KING-VICTORIA TRANSIT HUB Working with Waterloo Region on its King-Victoria Transit Hub project Kitchener GO station will shift west to co-locate with the ION LRT, Grand River Transit, and VIA services Details of GO Bus and Rail facilities, including walking and cycling access, are in development with the Region MORE GO IN WATERLOO REGION 16
WATERLOO ION LRT/GO BUS CONNECTION Creating connections with Waterloo ION LRT. Project led by Waterloo Region, Metrolinx has been asked to contribute funding for 3 bus bays and 2 bus layover spaces at the University of Waterloo LRT stop. Working with Waterloo Region on funding arrangement and updated work schedule. MORE GO IN WATERLOO REGION 17
SHIRLEY AVENUE TRAIN LAYOVER Shirley Avenue Train Layover complete and fully operational Used to store trains overnight for efficient deployment during morning commute MORE GO IN WATERLOO REGION 18
KITCHENER GO BUS FACILITY Scope Indoor storage for 20 buses Can accommodate both singleand double-decker buses Indoor fuelling lane and equipment, underground tank system Indoor bus wash bay Admin and staff support areas Milestone Schedule Design Completion October 2015 Procurement Construction November 2015-March 2016 April 2016-February 2018 In-Service February 2018 MORE GO IN WATERLOO REGION 19
NOISE Noise is a key concern among residents in communities throughout the network Metrolinx will work with the City of Waterloo on modelling proposed areas of noise mitigation That work will commence during the EA for the freight bypass 20
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT 21
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT April 6 2017: MPP Daiene Vernile s transit townhall update on RER projects in KW April 24 2017: Mx Board Member Carl Zehr presentation to Rotary Club of Kitchener Moving forward: Planning on-the-ground engagement in post-secondary institutions in Waterloo Region and the University of Guelph. Community Relations Specialist for Kitchener corridor: Laura Durie Laura.Durie@metrolinx.com 416-202-3467 22
HOW WE ARE GOING TO WORK WITH YOU Metrolinx recognizes that with new infrastructure and construction comes impacts to the community that must be worked through with residents and their elected officials. A regional Municipal and Community regional tour is currently underway that creates an annual schedule for getting to every municipal council and for providing a comprehensive narrative for residents of each municipality that details what this program will look like locally. We are working with municipal partners to schedule local consultations on new stations We are developing a community charter which will commit the organization to building the regional transportation system in a way that is respectful of the communities it touches. This is in addition to the standard community relations support that we have traditionally provided on the ground on projects like Georgetown South and the Eglinton Crosstown. 23
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: PROJECT CYCLE Introduce the project to municipal partners & community and ask for initial feedback Formal consultation period included in the TPAP Work with residents to establish why the project is needed and proposed approach Planning & Feasibility Environmental Assessment (only applies to new infrastructure ) Construction Design & Procurement Focus on minimizing impact to residents, keeping the community informed and managing/being responsive to issues as they arise. Work with municipal partners/community to inform the details of the project, address design concerns and build momentum. 24
REQUIREMENTS FOR THE BYPASS CORRIDOR Preliminary planning and design work is underway at the same time negotiations with CN move forward. Remaining work cannot begin until an agreement is secured. Phases Technical and feasibility studies Planning studies Design studies Project Planning Community engagement Community impact and mitigation Environmental assessment Permit and approvals Durations (*some can be done in parallel) 2-3 years (approx.) 3 years (approx.) Procurement Construction Commissioning 4 years (approx.) Community impact and engagement Ongoing MORE GO IN WATERLOO REGION 26
GO BUS SERVICES TO/FROM KITCHENER/WATERLOO GO Transit currently operates a number of express GO bus services connecting Kitchener/ Waterloo Region with the Greater Toronto Area. These include: Route 30: Kitchener Bramalea GO: an express service that operates all day Monday Friday, running between Downtown Kitchener and Bramalea GO station via Hwys 401/407. The service provides timed connections to/from Kitchener line GO train & bus services at Bramalea GO, which operate between Bramalea and Toronto s Union station during off-peak & counter-peak periods. (During peak periods, direct GO train service is available between Kitchener and Toronto s Union Station). Connections can also be made at Bramalea to other GO routes serving Brampton, York Region, York University and North York Route 25: U of Waterloo Mississauga - Express Services: Are provided daily, with additional express trips operated on Thursday s, Fridays, Saturday s and Sundays, connecting the University of Waterloo and Wilfred Laurier University with Mississauga s Square One Connections can be made at Square One to other GO bus routes serving various Toronto-area destinations such as Downtown Toronto, North York, Pearson Airport & the Airport Corporate Centre Area, Brampton, York Region and Hamilton. Daily local service is also provided between U of Waterloo and Mississauga Square One with stops at Wilfred Laurier University, Downtown Kitchener, Cambridge, Guelph, Milton and Western Mississauga. Route 25F: University of Waterloo York University Express: An express service that operates on Fridays & Sundays, between the University of Waterloo and York University via Hwy.407, with stops at Wilfred Laurier University, Hwy.407 & Hurontario Street in Mississauga, and Bramalea GO in Brampton. Connections to other GO routes can be made at Bramalea GO or York University, serving multiple destinations in York Region, Durham Region, North York, Scarborough as well as Downtown Toronto. MORE GO IN WATERLOO REGION 27
WATERLOO CUSTOMER BASE For Q1 2017/18, approximately 58,000 total weekday boardings originating in Waterloo, 14,000 on weekends Also in Q1, there were 6700 unique PRESTO customers with home stations (or bus stops) in Waterloo Majority of the PRESTO customers (96%) are infrequent riders making less than 10 trips per month PRESTO use is higher during the weekdays than the weekend primarily due to commuters The top origin stop in terms of boardings is the University of Waterloo stop on both weekdays (422 average daily boardings) and weekends (365 average daily boardings) The most common destinations are Square One, Union Station and Milton ~80% of trips are direct without transfers MORE GO IN WATERLOO REGION 28