Today at 9:57 AM
Lakeshore East Passengers: The signal malfunction east of Whitby causing the delays to your commute this morning has been resolved. All trains will now operate as scheduled. Thank you for your patience, and we apologize for the inconvenience.
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So many questions ...
Oshawa GO attendants shouted announcements it was a switch problem.
GO blasted out text alerts it was a signal malfunction.
I swear. I'm still convinced all of this is made up because someone was late for work and didn't do their job. Such as turn on a button.
I want pictures of the broken doo-hookey and how do we know the problem is truly resolved?
At least our CSA made an announcement to check the gotransit.com website to see if our morning trips were eligible for the Service Guarantee.
Remember this?
Yeah, I haven't forgotten.
Seriously though, fill out a claim. Someone has to spin the wheel.
All of this is made up? Yah ok there, next you'll be saying GO is delaying trains just for the fun of it or to simply piss people off. Nevermind the fact that delays actually cost them money. So who cares what the reason is, fact is it's obviously not in their best interest to be late but sometimes s*** happens.
ReplyDeleteOh my god, did you read?
ReplyDeleteWhich was it? Signal or switch?
You're hell bent on putting words in my mouth but you also proved a point I tried to make to you earlier today.
When I move to the side of the passenger, the one of popular opinion that GO Transit does intentionally screw up service, you lose your shit.
When I move to the side where I ask passengers to understand these things do happen and are really out of my control (like overcrowded platforms) you accuse me of not advocating for the frustrations and concerns of passengers.
That's the last comment I am publishing of yours, ever. And I do hope that one day I can rain down on you in such way that you will understand the grief you cause me on a daily basis.
You've proved to me that you can't figure out what side you are on and I'm tired of figuring out how to be your friend or be kind to you or get you to try to be fair with me.
So go get your own fucking blog. Later.
HA! I got both announcements of switch and signal on our train :) I did check and can confirm that the 653 from Whitby qualified both yesterday and today.Yesterday at Ajax a very upset fellow proceeded to loudly proclaim that "this guy" cut him off from getting his seat. Just barged in front of him and look he won't even acknowledge - to look over at the acused and realize under his noise cancelling headphones he was completing unaware of the guy losing his s&*# a few steps behind him. Oh my Go Trainers, can WE all just get along. I made 3 lovely new friends this am.
ReplyDeleteThe signals and the switches go hand in hand. If the RTC (who controls how the trains are routed) cannot confirm on his panel that a switch is doing what it is supposed to do then the signal goes to stop....trains can't pass. If the problem persists then the RTC will authorize the train to pass the stop signal and, in many cases, a member of the crew will have to climb down, manually line the switch or switches (which can be a few depending on where the problem is and how many tracks are involved) and then the train can only proceed at 15mph to the next signal (sometimes up to 2 miles away). This can happen to several trains in a row which then causes a backup. If the problem is east of Whitby then there are 2 tracks and you can only get so many trains in and out of there which leads to cancellations as the trains will all be following each other which slows everyone down as the signals that the following trains get will be more restrictive. Sorry about the long winded reply....my original point is that whether one person calls it a switch problem and another calls it a signal problem...it's usually the same thing with the same result.
ReplyDeleteWhat I really appreciate are those of you who take the time to hand me my ass on a plate with fact.
ReplyDeleteI'm always humbled by this. I really don't know the ins and outs of rail operations so I turn to humour. Thank you so much for taking the time to explain why we get information that sounds conflicting but is actually hand in hand.
Ugh, what a nightmare this morning was. After sitting on the train for about half an hour and hearing over and over that there is a signal problem at Thickson, departure time uncertain, our CSA finally announces that we will be going straight to Union station express (NO STOPS!!! *hands clap*). Five minutes later he proceeds to tell us that the train is cancelled and we have to get off. I apologize for not thinking to snap a picture of our faces after that announcement, but as you can imagine they looked something like this ---> [O_O]
ReplyDeleteYesterday was my last day taking the GO Train. Timing is everything :D
ReplyDeleteGreat hand in hand explanation wonder wher he works. Also why would the take you off the train if you were express to Union??? only the shorts stops should have detrained at the next station.
ReplyDeleteMaybe "worder where he works" can help?
ReplyDeleteSorry Anon @ 7:30.....I can't shed any light on why the passengers went from being on an express train to being on a cancelled train. Those decisions are made by GO Transit's operations Center and they are then passed on to the train crews and are subject to change which is often a touchy subject as passengers can get conflicting information while the details are being sorted out. It can be like a terribly frustrating game of broken telephone but the goal seems to be to have the affected trains being in a position to resume their normal schedule as soon as possible which sometimes involves them being turned into express trains or being pulled out of the rotation altogether so they don't gum up the works by being where they are not supposed to be when they are not supposed to be there. Unfortunately that isn't the part of the operation that I'm involved in so I'm not much help there. Glad I could take some of the mystery out of the switch/signal situation CJ...
ReplyDeleteLove it when the operators and other staff chime in!
ReplyDeleteWhether a switch or signal problem (whatever they want to call it), why does it keep happening? Can the experts not come up with a way that will eliminate the same problem over and over, day after day?
ReplyDeleteAnother shake-my-head moment during Tuesday morning's fiasco--the guy making the announcements on the train at Ajax astutely acknowledged that the train would be more crowded than usual and could passengers please remove their bags and feet from empty seats so all can sit. Empty seasts??? Really??? Does he have any idea how many commuters ride the train each and every morning and there are no seats available--even on a 'good' day? Seriously.
I have seen on the LSE a packed train and a person with her suitcase beside her on the seat. So yes, it does happen and it's well documented, especially on this site.
ReplyDeleteThere are passengers who don't give a fuck. Surely you've met them?
I have a question C.J. for people who use Presto and get a refund for a late train. If you ride enough to get the discount back to the cost of a pass, is the amount you are refunded equal to the cost of a regular trip or the cost of the discounted trip. The Presto site says trip 36 is 83.68% off. Say I am going from Bowmanville to Union, regular Presto fare $9.99 for first 25 trips but only $1.35 for trip 36. If I normally make 36 trips a month but get a refund because the train is late and only make 35 trips that month do I get $9.99 back or $1.35 at the end of the month? If it is only $1.35 then the on time guarantee is pretty crappy and doesn't cost GO that much.
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure my refund for today is $1.23
ReplyDeleteRefunds do not decrease your number of rides in a month. You should be refunded what you paid for the trip getting the refund. So if you paid $1.35 for ride 36, and you're seeking a refund for ride 36, you should get $1.35 back.
ReplyDeleteAccording to the conditions set out on the GO Transit website:
"Customers will be credited the fare paid for the eligible delayed trip. PRESTO card holders in their 35+ trip discount periods will receive the reduced fare paid as credit."
"Customers will be credited the fare paid for the eligible delayed trip. PRESTO card holders in their 35+ trip discount periods will receive the reduced fare paid as credit."
ReplyDeleteSo if trip one in the month is late I get $9.99 back. When I get to trip 36 which now is the 35th trip that I pay for do I pay $1.23 for it or does it now cost $9.99 because trip one was wiped out? If this refund is to be meaningful then it should be a full fare refund regardless of which trip it is and you maximum coast for the month should be reduced by the full fare all the time. Then the pledge is meaningful. What they have now is a piece of crap if it doesn't do this. If your 41st trip is late you get a refund of $0.00? great!
Trip 36 is still Trip 36. Doesn't matter that Trip 1 was refunded. If you look at your ride history, your count doesn't go down. And yes, if Trip 41 is late and you paid $0.00, then you get nothing back. May not be fair but dems da rules.
ReplyDeleteI just received this email from GO Transit stating that the 7:59 train from Whitby to Union on April 29 "is not eligible because it's arrival at your destination was delayed by less than 15 minutes." Are they high?! I know that since it's the end of the month, I'm technically arguing over $1, but I'm seriously questioning the collective sanity of GO transit right now if they think that 1 hour is less than 15 minutes.
ReplyDeleteSame here and I am fighting them for the $1.23.
DeleteSame here and I am fighting them for the $1.23.
Delete