Metrolinx to ramp up GO Transit service starting Sept. 5
Metrolinx says it will be increasing service starting Sept. 5 to meet the expected demand from the return to school and the workplace as the province starts to bounce back from the first wave of COVID-19.
In an announcement Monday, Metrolinx says the schedule adjustments are the largest shift to service in GO Transit's history. Metrolinx spokesperson Anne Marie Aikins told the Star she thinks it will take a long time before customers become completely comfortable" with riding transit due to COVID-19, but that people are gradually coming back.
All train lines and most bus routes will be affected, says Metrolinx, but riders will have to wait an additional week for weekend service to return on the Barrie line. Service there will resume Sept. 12, so that crews can squeeze in one more weekend of construction on the line.
Metrolinx says GO is resuming some train service all week on the Lakeshore East and West lines to ensure customers have service every 15 to 30 minutes during rush hour, and hourly or better midday, evenings and weekends.
Two morning eastbound trips from West Harbour GO to Union Station and two afternoon westbound trips from Union Station back to West Harbour GO will be reintroduced as well. GO is also resuming some rush hour service on all lines - including Milton, Barrie, Kitchener, Stouffville, Richmond Hill - to make sure customers have hourly or better service during peak periods."
Additionally, GO is bringing back weekend train service along the Stouffville line. The list of bus services adjusted is long, so Metrolinx is urging people to check out the updated schedule online to ensure customers are up to date.
Metrolinx is also reminding people that customers returning to GO Transit will be required to wear non-medical face coverings on vehicles and inside stations. There's also new way-finding to help riders navigate safely, and seat dividers on many vehicles.
Aikins said a little less than 90 per cent of riders are wearing masks, adding that health kiosks and hand sanitizer are now widely available to riders.
Ted Fraser is a Halifax-based breaking news reporter for the Star. Follow him on Twitter: @ted_fraser