Grand River Transit

[DHLawrence]

Once GO and LRT arrive, I can see it having more redevelopment potential than operational. Bus routes through here can easily be rerouted to the GO station as is done in Burlington and Oakville. In my opinion intercity buses should have a station closer to the 401 - get them all under one roof.

[tomh009]

Fairview would be a logical place for intercity, being the connecting point of LRT and aBRT, and also reasonably close to the 401.

[KevinL]

Fairview would be a logical place for intercity, being the connecting point of LRT and aBRT, and also reasonably close to the 401.

The GO and Greyound points are already far enough from central Galt, I doubt Cambridge would want to see them leave town.

[tomh009]

Fairview would be a logical place for intercity, being the connecting point of LRT and aBRT, and also reasonably close to the 401.

The GO and Greyound points are already far enough from central Galt, I doubt Cambridge would want to see them leave town.

Politics and logic don't always see eye to eye!  But with aBRT connecting Cambridge to Fairview, I really don't think it would be a huge loss for Cambridge.

[DHLawrence]

Why take a bus all the way up to Fairview just to take another bus back? Is pulling off the 401 into Cambridge really that much of an inconvenience? Even if we do amalgamate in the future there's still a precedent for multiple intercity bus stations in the city - Toronto has two downtown (soon to be one when Toronto Coach Terminal closes), Scarborough, and Yorkdale.

[tomh009]

I think Toronto is still a wee bit bigger than Waterloo Region.

A single well-connected intercity bus station would likely have higher frequency of service to Toronto (and other points outside the region), and be easily reachable from all three cities. I'm not sure what you mean by "take a bus all the way up to Fairview just to take another bus back" though.

[DHLawrence]

You said "But with aBRT connecting Cambridge to Fairview, I really don't think it would be a huge loss for Cambridge." Do you honestly expect someone to take BRT to Fairview just to take an intercity bus right past Cambridge? Why should we be inconvenienced so people in Kitchener can save ten minutes?

[timio]

Drove down Ira Needles and Highland last night and didn't see any pads poured for the 204 iXpress stops. Pads have been poured along Victoria at the other end of town.

[tomh009]

You said "But with aBRT connecting Cambridge to Fairview, I really don't think it would be a huge loss for Cambridge." Do you honestly expect someone to take BRT to Fairview just to take an intercity bus right past Cambridge? Why should we be inconvenienced so people in Kitchener can save ten minutes?

Because it would allow Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge residents all to reach the depot on a single ride on rapid transit.  And have a single intercity bus depot for increased efficiency.

But if Cambridge is more important than the rest of the region, please ignore the above.

[DHLawrence]

I still don't see what's wrong with keeping two bus stations, one in Kitchener (mostly likely King and Victoria) and one in Cambridge (now Galt, eventually closer to the highway I hope). Is having a bus station in Cambridge that offensive?

It's not about being "more important" - it's about the ridiculousness of riding a bus for nearly an hour just to double back on the route they already took when the could just go to a bus stop close to the 401 and closer to home in half that time. Hardly anyone lives directly on the aBRT route; they have to take their own local routes to the nearest aBRT route first. Why make it less convenient to catch a bus than it already is? Moving the nearest intercity bus station to another town is hardly going to encourage ridership.

[notmyfriends]

I tend to agree. While the area might not have the population of Toronto, it is a 40km drive from Monsignor Doyle to Sir John A MacDonald which is roughly the same as Square One to Scarborough Town Centre. Two bus stations seems to make sense, especially if the one in Cambridge is moved to align with, say, the Eagle and Hespeler LRT stop. Buses going straight through to London only stop there, others stop downtown/uptown.

[mpd618]

I still don't see what's wrong with keeping two bus stations, one in Kitchener (mostly likely King and Victoria) and one in Cambridge (now Galt, eventually closer to the highway I hope). Is having a bus station in Cambridge that offensive?

It's not about being "more important" - it's about the ridiculousness of riding a bus for nearly an hour just to double back on the route they already took when the could just go to a bus stop close to the 401 and closer to home in half that time. Hardly anyone lives directly on the aBRT route; they have to take their own local routes to the nearest aBRT route first. Why make it less convenient to catch a bus than it already is? Moving the nearest intercity bus station to another town is hardly going to encourage ridership.

I agree with this, and honestly I think the idea of moving the Kitchener intercity bus terminal to Fairview is a bit like moving it to another town. Downtown transit terminals are where it's at, and also allow make the most sense when (not if) trains are again in the picture.

[Spokes]

Drove down Ira Needles and Highland last night and didn't see any pads poured for the 204 iXpress stops.  Pads have been poured along Victoria at the other end of town.

There are a number of signs up along ira needles indicating "future stops"

[chutten]

Drove down Ira Needles and Highland last night and didn't see any pads poured for the 204 iXpress stops.  Pads have been poured along Victoria at the other end of town.

There are a number of signs up along ira needles indicating "future stops"

There's also one for the 200 on Parside at Northfield. Future stop for the fall service change on the 7th. Obviously getting people used to the idea of having a rapid transit stop up there.

[Smore]

the Bingemans Ctr Dr stops are also marked, but seem exceedingly close together.