Quote:
Originally Posted by Truenorth00
What you're missing is the fact that this is not working for VIA today. It's why they sell out every express train. Most riders want that speed.
What you're also missing is the unless you're willing to slow service, an added stop means reduced service at another stop. So what stop are you willing to cut service for, to provide service to Ajax? And how do their respective catchments line up? You willing to cut service to Oshawa (166 000) to serve Ajax (122 000)? And do you actually believe that cut in service will net more overall ridership? Or do you just not care about ridership and think VIA is a social service?
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I never suggested that service be cut. In fact I said repeatedly that as the status quo stands for VIA, there is essentially nothing you can do (the only exception would be if a proper station was constructed at Pearson in which case you could almost certainly justify making some changes to service that location).
If you want to get to people out of cars and into trains, in Canada, a suburban nation, its going to take more than just making intercity rail better, but ultimately the same. Cars are awesome and people love them. And even if gas goes up people can downsize, or buy an EV. People aren't going to flock to intercity rail travel out of altruism or some desire to just simply do something that is better for the environment. Rail service needs to be awesome. HFR might be a step forward, and since you need to start somewhere, its as good a place as any. But its not exciting. Nobody is going to look at that plan and say "Wow! Now that is something that I would switch from travelling by car for!"
To go back to my original analogy, it is painted bike lines. It makes things better for those who already bike, it might attract a few new people. But it isn't the tipping point. And so far there has been absolutely nothing that has been proposed that has made me think "Now that is how you start to convert a suburban nation into one that sees intercity rail as being valuable!". I get that people love rail and want to see more of it built. But if you want to get public funds for it, then get people excited about it (in the sense that you just need to make sure most people wont fly off the handle over the suggestion of spending money on intercity rail) and propose something that non-rail travellers will see value in. Yes, freight is the problem and makes the current system useless. But why don't people care that the current system is useless? Why has public transit investment been able to make a comeback, but intercity rail is totally ignored by people?
Like the whole MOOSE commuter rail debate, that's pretty much it for what I have to say about this. I still hope HFR happens, but even if it does, which I feel is likely, it is unlikely to flip intercity rail on its head. To do that is going to take something more, something kind of radical, and a willingness to question everything about what an intercity rail network in a suburban nation should look like to create a sea change of people moving those longer distance trips from car to train.
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