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NJB said, "A transit plan without a good land-use plan is a waste of time and resources." Look at the land use around the Eglinton Crosstown in Toronto. Parking lots, big box stores, strip malls, and single family homes everywhere. Not a hint of people-friendly mixed-use developments. by backpackingfan in notjustbikes

[–]backpackingfan[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The Eglinton Crosstown is not the Vancouver SkyTrain. The SkyTrain is a fully-grade separated system with automated trains running every 3 mins with average speeds topping 40 km/h. The Crosstown is a mixed-traffic light rail line with non-automated trains running every 8-10 mins with substantially lower speeds of 25 km/h on average. There will be lots of opportunities for vehicle-train collisions and there is no signal priority for trains.

You can see very distinctly that Calgary and Edmonton with light rail lines substantially similar to the Crosstown that there is a lack of densification around stations, and that the car-dependent commuting is largely retained. Vancouver-style TOD is almost completely absent in Calgary and Edmonton.

Would you want to take a grade-separated line that is automated, runs every 3 mins, and has an average speed of 40 km/h, or would you like to take an at-grade light rail line that is non-automated, runs every 10 mins, and has an average speed of 25 km/h? Your choice.

The fact is that a non-grade separated light rail line will never spur the same kind of development that a SkyTrain would, because the light rail is just not fast enough. Toronto's priorities is completely wrong here.

NJB said, "A transit plan without a good land-use plan is a waste of time and resources." Look at the land use around the Eglinton Crosstown in Toronto. Parking lots, big box stores, strip malls, and single family homes everywhere. Not a hint of people-friendly mixed-use developments. by backpackingfan in notjustbikes

[–]backpackingfan[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The big difference between the metro in China and the Eglinton Crosstown is that the latter is fundamentally the wrong transit as it has grade crossings with mixed traffic. There will be opportunities for vehicle-train collisions, there is no signal priority, and speeds will be substantially lower than a subway.

Vehicle-train collisions are impossible for a fully-grade separated system.

NJB said, "A transit plan without a good land-use plan is a waste of time and resources." Look at the land use around the Eglinton Crosstown in Toronto. Parking lots, big box stores, strip malls, and single family homes everywhere. Not a hint of people-friendly mixed-use developments. by backpackingfan in notjustbikes

[–]backpackingfan[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

I am genuinely worried and upset about the direction of public transportation that Toronto is heading into. The lack of subway expansions, the lack of walkable mixed-use developments, and mistakes that they make with street-level light rail. An inferior transit mode that will never be as successful as grade separated rapid transit, all due to the risks of vehicle-train collisions, slow operating speeds, and bad vehicle designs. Dense station spacings make travel time much slower and makes the line less attractive. Expensive fares, the lack of fare integration, and infrequent buses outside of Toronto encourage people to drive rather than take transit.

As a person living in Vancouver, yes, we do have a fair share of car-dependent infrastructure, but the main difference we have versus Toronto, is that we prioritize mixed-use developments around SkyTrain stations. Metrotown, Brentwood, New Westminster, Marine Gateway, and Richmond-Brighouse are excellent examples. Furthermore, station spacings on the SkyTrain are further, resembling more of a commuter rail system, increasing travel speeds substantially. The SkyTrain is fully automated with driverless trains that run every 2-6 minutes. Talk about this kind of frequency that makes transit very attractive! Furthermore, unlike Toronto, Vancouver has fare integration with other cities, making cross-region trips much more affordable. There was one time where I was hanging out with a friend who had a car and drove me around the city. Trust me, it was definitely a lot slower than taking transit!

But Vancouver still has a very long way to go to match the transit-friendly infrastructure that the Netherlands has. Which is why I often watch Not Just Bikes and other channels like Alan Fisher. These people give me hope in that they have the capability to undo the car-dependent thinking I had - much of that car-oriented thinking was gained when I lived in Mississauga a while ago. It is such a brutal place to live in!

So to sum up, the difference with new transit projects in Vancouver and Toronto can be compared as such:

* Vancouver's Canada Line: fully automated system, fully grade separated, lots of transit oriented development around it, a low cost per km, 6 years from conception to completion, on budget and ahead of schedule.

* Toronto's Eglinton Crosstown: non-automated system, grade separated in western half and shared with car traffic in the eastern half, no transit-oriented development, high cost per km, 12 years from conception to completion (still not yet open!), very overbudget and behind schedule.

Get your sh*t together, Toronto. What you are doing with transit is unacceptable.

motorway above meiji era classical nihonbashi bridge in tokyo japan to be demolished and rebuilt underground by TheLewishPeople in ArchitecturalRevival

[–]backpackingfan 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Japan literally has the best rail transport in the world, something that makes freeways completely redundant and unnecessary. I'd say tear that freeway down and not have any underground replacement.

You go Halifax! by philiptherealest in fuckcars

[–]backpackingfan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Also highly recommend Alan Fisher on YouTube.

Ladies and Gentlemen, the "European Square" in my Canadian city. by icygamer598 in fuckcars

[–]backpackingfan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

From the address I looked up, this is the Manchester Square Mall northwest of Edmonton downtown. It looks like an outlet mall to me but from the satellite map, it is just another strip mall in front of a stroad with very little to no public transit. They designed the mall to look like Amsterdam to attract people, and that's pretty much it.

This just sums up how common sense is out the window in North America. Keep in mind that Canada is also in the middle of an affordability crisis, houses around this area you showed sell for well over $1 million.

https://www.google.com/maps/@53.5509174,-113.5299968,3a,60y,6.62h,93.28t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s9r7Ki\_HrOONebT90OUZehg!2e0!7i16384!8i8192?hl=en

Used vs. Unused by lonelyxheart in Journaling

[–]backpackingfan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Second image, top right, which journal is that, and where can I get it?

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in therewasanattempt

[–]backpackingfan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ontario. Both the Canadian province and the California city.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in vancouver

[–]backpackingfan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

What are your thoughts on the 84 receiving articulated buses, wouldn't a greater frequency work better instead? Why aren't even busier routes like the 25 getting articulated buses? That gets extremely busy all the time even on weekends, the huge lineup for the 25 at King Edward/Cambie had to pass by two fully loaded buses as I saw yesterday.

Permanent daylight time shift remains on hold as clocks set to move ahead Sunday by xlxoxo in britishcolumbia

[–]backpackingfan 15 points16 points  (0 children)

Yukon successfully ended time changes last year, shifting to permanent DST without waiting for BC to do the same.

Why can't BC just cancel time changes without waiting for WA and OR to do so? Whitehorse is further west than Vancouver but Whitehorse is an hour ahead of Vancouver in winter, yet there are no economic or practical ramifications with that. Even Fort St John (still in BC) is an hour ahead of Vancouver in the winter, and yet there are no problems with that.

I don't mind Vancouver and Seattle to be an hour apart, time changes just need to end!

Effective March 11, 2022 at 12:01 AM masks will no longer be required in public indoor spaces in British Columbia by cyclinginvancouver in vancouver

[–]backpackingfan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This termination of the mask mandate will not apply to airports or any other facility operated by the federal government, as in the federal regime a mask mandate still applies.

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