jedwinmok.com
Transport Planner & Researcher
https://youtu.be/vAygH6SZg28?si=fXwloOQPhGbbudOW
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Cheers Shawn
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Cheers man
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Undefined and ever-changing scope is the curse of way too many Canadian transit projects.
This is a problem of political meddling but also of supposedly arms-length agencies that don't feel they have the legitimacy or support to make decisions that might make someone unhappy. So they delay them.
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This crisis should be a rallying cry. Chow faces a 2026 election - RapidTO could be her legacy. Ford needs a win on transport - he could force GO RER through. Carney needs to deliver on “build, baby, build.”
The public must demand they meet the moment. All it takes is to stop being afraid. /END
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It’s up to high-level politicians & bureaucrats to “provide cover for transformative change.”
Otherwise, low-level staff operate in a culture of fear - fear of backlash from the public, fear of making bad decisions, fear of blowing the budget. They need vision, expertise, & leadership. 20/
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This just shows that Toronto’s planning establishment is fundamentally incapable of understanding what makes their transportation network successful.
As long as that's the case, we will NEVER deliver the projects necessary for the city’s success. In some ways, Not Just Bikes was right. 19/
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The most appalling display was this recent interview with former mayor David Miller et al - spewing revisionist history and nonsense, calling for the cancellation of Ontario Line’s western leg to Exhibition - arguably the most important piece of the 3 pillars. 18/
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Thus, our spineless politicians are willing to let a few cranky old NIMBYs torpedo RapidTO.
Our institutions’ parochial attitude & incompetence chase away world-class talent from Europe.
Our bureaucrats’ collective fear & risk-aversion mean that we resort back to the status quo for comfort. 17/
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Yet not one authority - not politicians, executives, nor institutions, realized how important they were. Not one authority lifted a finger to clear away the barriers to get the projects through for society's collective benefit.
In our collective incompetence and mediocrity, we’ve failed. 16/
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Much of the province’s $80B+ transit expansion plan relied on these 3 pillars to be effective.
The city’s massive development sites needed the 3 pillars to provide adequate transportation capacity.
The future of Canada’s largest city and economic powerhouse - was staked on these 3 pillars. 15/
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Now onto GO Expansion - enough has been said about this terrible tragedy.
This project would’ve served as the backbone of our network, bringing suburban cities like Oakville, Brampton, & Markham closer to downtown than the city’s inner neighbourhoods. That dream has largely been de-scoped. 14/
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We’re now hearing rumors that Transportation Services, in their collective fear, will recommend further abandoning the RapidTO plan on Bathurst, North of Bloor. Councillor Saxe wants to delay the project until AFTER the election.
A tremendous disservice to the people of Toronto. Shame! 13/
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And because of a few loud NIMBYs, Toronto’s spineless municipal politicians (Perruzza, Nunziata, and Pasternak) have now effectively killed the Jane RapidTO project, starving their wards of better transit service.
This is all while they concern-troll the community with excuses. 12/
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To date, only one corridor has been built, with the rest being stonewalled by countless political delays and endless rounds of community consultation. Remember - this is for a project that consists ENTIRELY of RED PAINT!
If you're wondering why soft costs are so high even for simple projects... 11/
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Unfortunately, as we know, two pillars - RapidTO and GO Expansion - are currently in a sorry state.
RapidTO originally consisted of 5 initial corridors - Jane, Dufferin, Bathurst, Steeles, and Eglinton East - which by my rough math would’ve served more than 272,000 RIDERS PER DAY. 10/
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This is a common misunderstanding about the project: OL provides network relief precisely because it makes 2nd order connections to the bus network through GO - not just because it connects to the existing subway at Pape!
Our 3 pillars MUST work together to deliver the new transport paradigm. 9/
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Our third pillar, Ontario Line, serves as the final piece of the puzzle, tying the network together.
This world-class, fully-automated metro is meant as a last-mile distributor - most critically making connections to the GO network at East Harbour and Exhibition. This also relieves Union. 8/
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Our second pillar, GO Expansion, takes advantage of trunk-feeder travel patterns & increased service from RapidTO to provide relief for the subway system. Here’s the trick:
By establishing a radial network of frequent express rail lines, GO can intercept bus riders BEFORE they reach the subway. 7/
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By rolling out bus lanes quickly with cheap RED PAINT, these corridors instantly gain better service - higher frequency, reliability, capacity, & speed.
The first iteration on Eglinton East has been a smashing success - delivering nearly ALL the benefits of the $4 BILLION EELRT for $4 MILLION. 6/
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Our first pillar, RapidTO, capitalizes on this. Toronto’s wasteland suburbs have many of the highest ridership bus lines on the continent - busier than frequent bus lines in central Manhattan!
Currently, packed suburban busses are stuck in traffic, giving way to a small minority in cars! 5/
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With fare integration - that number is growing, with more riders transferring from the GO network.
This is why Toronto’s subway has been successful despite being small; although the vast majority of riders DON’T live on the subway, they DO live on a frequent bus that takes them to a station! 4/
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Take the Yonge subway - the city’s most important transit artery.
Many people think that its crowding comes from all the dense development along the line - this is FALSE.
The vast majority of trips on the subway - 77% - come from Toronto’s world-class grid of connecting local busses. 3/
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Today, congestion is crippling NA’s fastest growing city - its rail network is far beyond capacity, surface transit is constantly stuck in traffic, and roads are too dangerous for active transportation.
ALL 3 pillars above are CRITICAL to solving this crisis. For example: 2/
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Agreed 100%
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If there’s any time to crash out it’s now
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Holy I watched like 100000 shorts on this. How was the matcha