Charles St GRT terminal redevelopment

[danbrotherston]

The fifth bay is inaccessible, because of the GO transit platform extension, there is no way to leave that bay without driving on Gaukel which is closed.

I don't think you're going to get a line of cars two wide, it would completely block the roadway meaning it would be impossible for any vehicle to leave if there was a situation. There are two bays, and the suggestion is that one would be used for the first step, the second for the second step, as I understand is happening at Glasgow, which again comes back to room for 20-25 cars.  Maybe their operation has been streamlined and they could have 40-50 cars.

Forgot about the extension, my bad. But while the two lines (in one bay) wouldn't allow anyone to exit rapidly, the same is true at 137 today once you are lining up. Or at a Tim Hortons drive-through. Or any highway on/off-ramp at a rush hour. I think that's a reasonable compromise.

Or they could reopen the last 10m of Gaukel for exiting traffic. Not ideal, but it would address the capacity concerns.

I realize we're a car centric city in a Tims centric country, but I don't know of any Tims drivethrough which holds 50 cars...if there was an emergency, it would be a quick thing to get out. At 137, are there curbs blocking in the cars in the lanes? I feel like they could have a car exit if necessary. With curbs and walls, it would be physically impossible.  And yes, I occasionally do feel claustrophobic in highway traffic jams, but there's little you can do there, I've only twice ended up on the shoulder with an emergency.

I'd be quite frustrated if Gaukel was re-opened.

In any case, based on descriptions, I think the 20 (or 40) car storage would be enough, provided they manage it as well as has been described, but suffices to say, I don't particularly trust people in cars to behave well in general.

[jamincan]

There's still room for cars to access others bays from the last bay even without using Gaukel. I'm assuming people aren't driving a bus through the testing centre.

[danbrotherston]

There's still room for cars to access others bays from the last bay even without using Gaukel. I'm assuming people aren't driving a bus through the testing centre.

Not sure what you're saying here. I am literally looking at it out my window right now.  Unlike all the other bays, the last bay has an extended platform so that the curbs go all the way to the concrete jersey barriers along Gaukel. A driver could drive in, but they would have to reverse out the same way they came in...not really suitable for a lineup.

[jamincan]

It's been awhile since I've been on Gaukel since the closure, but it sounds like the barriers are deeper in from the property edge than I remembered. Also, now that I think about it more, even if they were along the edge of the sidewalk, the barrier itself would take enough space from between the sidewalk and the platform that there wouldn't be room for vehicles.

[clasher]

With the weather turning I wouldn't mind if they re-opened Gaukel partially.

[danbrotherston]

With the weather turning I wouldn't mind if they re-opened Gaukel partially.

What is the value in doing so?

[ac3r]

Yeah...why reopen Gaukel? It's completely useless as a road. It serves much more function for pedestrians. Victoria Park is always popular in winter, so I imagine it'll be attractive for people wanting to go to the park.

[panamaniac]

What was the paln for the Gaukel closure? Temporary for the good weather, temporary for the duration of the pandemic, or temporary pending a permanent closure?

[Square]

What was the paln for the Gaukel closure?  Temporary for the good weather, temporary for the duration of the pandemic, or temporary pending a permanent closure?

IIRC, the old road closure said that the road should have opened about 2 weeks ago and permantly close in the spring 2021.  (The road is still closed tho)

[dtkvictim]

What was the paln for the Gaukel closure?  Temporary for the good weather, temporary for the duration of the pandemic, or temporary pending a permanent closure?

IIRC, the old road closure said that the road should have opened about 2 weeks ago and permantly close in the spring 2021.  (The road is still closed tho)

According to the Engage page, phase 1 (Joseph to Charles) was supposed to be done this summer. IIRC the current Gaukel setup went in at the same time as Ontario St (now removed), presumably as part of the pandemic response. Given that it certainly still looks temporary, and that phase 1 isn't checked off on Engage, the phase 1 work is still yet to happen? But it sounds like the permanent closure was supposed to happen this past summer.

[panamaniac]

I don’t think we’ve seen a design for the pedestrianized street yet, have we?

[tomh009]

Yeah...why reopen Gaukel? It's completely useless as a road. It serves much more function for pedestrians. Victoria Park is always popular in winter, so I imagine it'll be attractive for people wanting to go to the park.

I don't think there is any plan for that.

[tomh009]

I realize we're a car centric city in a Tims centric country, but I don't know of any Tims drivethrough which holds 50 cars...if there was an emergency, it would be a quick thing to get out. At 137, are there curbs blocking in the cars in the lanes? I feel like they could have a car exit if necessary. With curbs and walls, it would be physically impossible.  And yes, I occasionally do feel claustrophobic in highway traffic jams, but there's little you can do there, I've only twice ended up on the shoulder with an emergency.

At 137, there is no easy way to get out of the line-up. Maybe by driving over the curbs in an SUV? You are similarly stuck in a line for a long time when crossing the US border by car (in a non-COVID year), or lining up for a ferry, or waiting to exit a large parking garage, or ...

I think this urgent need to drive away from the testing line-up should be a very rare occurrence. If you personally feel uncomfortable with it, the walk-in method might be a better option.

[danbrotherston]

I realize we're a car centric city in a Tims centric country, but I don't know of any Tims drivethrough which holds 50 cars...if there was an emergency, it would be a quick thing to get out. At 137, are there curbs blocking in the cars in the lanes? I feel like they could have a car exit if necessary. With curbs and walls, it would be physically impossible.  And yes, I occasionally do feel claustrophobic in highway traffic jams, but there's little you can do there, I've only twice ended up on the shoulder with an emergency.

At 137, there is no easy way to get out of the line-up. Maybe by driving over the curbs in an SUV? You are similarly stuck in a line for a long time when crossing the US border by car (in a non-COVID year), or lining up for a ferry, or waiting to exit a large parking garage, or ...

I think this urgent need to drive away from the testing line-up should be a very rare occurrence. If you personally feel uncomfortable with it, the walk-in method might be a better option.

I really don't think you are correct here, most lineups, maybe not for fairy boats, but certainly the border crossings I've been too, would easily have the space to pull someone out of line. Putting two lanes of cars in the space of six meters with one side a vertical wall and the other an undulating curb would greatly surprise me.

That being said, it appears that it is only constrained to 6 meters under the overpass which is the entrance to the tent anyway...so who knows.

[tomh009]

You've never experienced one of these US customs plazas, with 5-10 lines of cars, each with 10-20 cars in it?



I really don't see this as a major issue. But we can just agree to disagree on this point.