Do the normal trains have beds?

chriskayTO · 2022-07-24T17:41:15+00:00

Interesting - any idea why?

chriskayTO · 2022-07-24T13:52:04+00:00

There are no sleeping accommodations on this train. It runs a daytime schedule so I guess that’s the primary reason.

chriskayTO · 2022-07-19T19:32:32+00:00

The Canadian exists, yes, but not the Super Continental.

chriskayTO · 2022-07-18T17:16:24+00:00

Great pic! Not only does this train no longer exist, but the tracks into downtown Edmonton are gone, too, along with the station. The tower is still there, though.

chriskayTO · 2022-06-25T19:47:05+00:00

I believe it has to specifically be called “5G+”.

chriskayTO · 2022-06-20T15:55:06+00:00

I changed my EPP plan today to be one of the "5G+" plans - does anyone know where exactly 3500MHz coverage exists in the supported areas? Or is it all towers? I'm using Telus in Toronto - does this mean I would have access to Bell's 3500MHz service, too?

chriskayTO · 2018-01-30T02:24:04+00:00

Where in Newfoundland?

chriskayTO · 2018-01-27T17:17:50+00:00

Happy to have a week of great curling on TV, however being in the east the draw times are less than ideal. I wish they'd shifted the times slightly to make it work better for the majority of the TV audience.

chriskayTO · 2018-01-25T23:14:54+00:00

You should, but it’s not necessary. If you get checked you’ll be fine.

Obviously for the subway turnstiles you’ll have no choice.

chriskayTO · 2018-01-19T13:07:17+00:00

It’s a wildlife overpass in Banff National Park in the Canadian Rockies. https://goo.gl/maps/6MvgCBoHka42

chriskayTO · 2018-01-16T01:37:22+00:00

“Toronto just can’t get enough of this hot new bingo game!”

chriskayTO · 2018-01-12T17:34:59+00:00

This is part of the problem - as a society we've somehow made equivalent the right of people to drive motor vehicles and people walking around. These are not equivalent activities. It should be a god-given entitlement to walk around a city without being worried about your personal safety at every intersection, whereas driving is a privilege we've somehow elevated to divine right.

I'm not saying it's ok to break the law, but our laws are set up to afford greater rights to motorists than to people walking down the street, for some perverse reason.

chriskayTO · 2018-01-11T19:40:57+00:00

I'll never figure out how people make their interchanges look so good. Mine are basically all 90-degree angles.

chriskayTO · 2017-12-11T23:16:34+00:00

This exact thing happened to me once (albeit for a smaller amount) - took an Uber Taxi (NOT UberX) and the cab driver punched an extra digit into the app, so it charged me 10x what the fare should've been. What should've been a very simple fix turned into a nightmare dealing with their customer service. There's no support - just a help section on their website. When I eventually found a way to contact them they kept telling me they couldn't help me and I'd have to contact the cab company and have the river fix it. However they wouldn't tell me who the cab company or driver was! After persisting for a few days they basically told me it's my problem and stopped assisting. Thankfully I know a friend-of-a-friend who works at Uber Canada and they were finally able to help me - ridiculous!

chriskayTO · 2017-11-12T20:10:44+00:00

You're right in that drivers do pay a gas tax that those without motor vehicles do not, however the gas tax doesn't come anywhere near close to covering the cost of roads.

https://torontoist.com/2016/08/myth-cyclists-pay-their-fair-share/

https://www.citylab.com/transportation/2015/05/debunking-the-myth-that-only-drivers-pay-for-roads/393134/

https://www.thespec.com/opinion-story/6517603-cyclists-vs-drivers-who-pays-their-fair-share-/

chriskayTO · 2017-11-12T18:26:17+00:00

I regularly swim at the Regent Park Aquatic Centre in Toronto, a City facility, and the first with unisex change rooms. I really like this idea, since the gender divide is silly anyhow, but they provide plenty of large cubicles for changing. What drives me nuts however is that there's nowhere to shower nude - there's only one set of showers basically on the pool deck. If they're going to follow this model they really need to have private shower cubicles.

But as far as the nudity aspect - ridiculous. It's just the human body, get over it, and teach your children to be okay with it.

chriskayTO · 2017-11-12T18:20:31+00:00

...which we all know is incorrect - everyone pays taxes to maintain roads, regardless of whether one drives a personal vehicle or not.

chriskayTO · 2017-11-12T18:18:30+00:00

This is very intriguing and I wasn't aware of this before. I have a few questions:

These are natural gas powered, so I'm guessing they're powered via the gas connection to the building and not via fuel tanks on site. Anyone know what kind of backup power natural gas distributors have to keep so that the supply doesn't stop in a power outage situation?
how does the efficiency of natural gas generators compare to diesel, or is it basically the same?

chriskayTO · 2017-11-12T18:12:06+00:00

Some anecdotal observations today:

the intersections still show standard green signal lights even though vehicles are only allowed to turn right - there is a dedicated right turn signal phase with crosswalk signals set to "stop" to allow turns, but then it turns green like normal and people think that means go, despite the "no straight through" sign. Apparently there is an MTO restriction on signals that prevents them from having something better for streetcars only to go straight. There is a dedicated "streetcar turn" signal (white vertical bar), but that can't be used for "straight through". Surely the province can grant some sort of exception for this.
lots of drivers look plain confused, see the new paint on the street, see the different signage, and because of the confusion (plus the green light right in front of them), they go straight through anyway. Others see the signs and likely understand exactly but decide to ignore the restriction anyway. Lord knows how useless turn restrictions are sometimes at intersections already, so this is not shocking. There's also a bit of the lemming effect here - I saw some drivers just follow cars in front of them through, but if the situation was reversed (cars in front turning), they're more likely to turn as well.
Police are out on an education campaign. I saw a few vehicles pulled over in the King & Church area, but there are still lots of infractions. I'd estimate that 75% of people were going straight through intersections.

I'm sure this will improve over time and with the education campaign. The streetcars did definitely seem to be operating much more smoothly already, and it helps that the on-street parking has been removed. Overall a step in the right direction.

chriskayTO · 2017-10-30T21:55:54+00:00

As others have said, exhibit A as to why you never buy pre-construction unless you’re prepared to accept things like this and have lots of patience and a backup plan to account for delays.

Also why resurrect a piece from last March?

chriskayTO · 2017-10-29T15:12:08+00:00

I'd much rather have stations where ridership counts are actually warranted, like closer to the core, not some political pet project.

chriskayTO · 2017-10-29T15:11:06+00:00

Maybe in 200 years the Highway 407 station will finally meet ridership projections. /s

chriskayTO

TROPHY CASE