Where are you GOing this Thanksgiving?

Special to This Crazy Train

by Ian Cognito

Thanksgiving is fast approaching, and GO Transit wants to help plan our weekend getaway.  To where?  Wine country — Niagara.

Thanksgiving long weekend is coming up—and it’s your last chance for a wine country getaway this year. Our seasonal Niagara trains run Oct 9, to Oct 12. gotransit.com/getaway
Posted by GO Transit on Thursday, October 8, 2015

After reading TCT’s coverage of GO’s service in Niagara this summer and knowing students will be heading home to Mom with their bags crammed full of laundry, I don’t want to be in this neck of the woods when the “fun” starts midmorning on Friday.  So, I’m thinking I should make plans now to get out of town on Thursday.  But to where?

Flicking a dart at the GO Transit system map pinned to the bulletin board across the room, the pointed projectile picked a point precisely between Guelph and Kitchener.  OK.  How do I get to either of those places?  Let’s fire up that Triplinx Trip Planner; I’d never used it before.

It seems straightforward. Supply a starting locale, a destination, the date of travel, and a preferred departure or arrival time.  We’re presented with the results of the planning search, namely, the trip closest to our preferred travel time (as well as two other trip times), the details of the trips, and a map.  Cool.

The itinerary for both Guelph and K/W trips travel Route 12 to the Burlington carpool lot, and transfer to a Route 47 bus to Erin Mills Transitway.  I hope that location has a washroom, because after two hours on the road, I know my Tim Horton’s coffee will be “working its magic”.  At Erin Mills Transitway, one transfers to a Route 29 bus for Guelph, or a Route 25 bus for K/W.  Now, what’s the difference in fares for my candidate destinations?

Next stop, GO Transit's fare calculator.  Let’s start the trip at 420 & Stanley in Niagara Falls.  The cost of a single ride adult ticket to Guelph Central GO Station is $27.25, and the same to University of Waterloo is $22.65.  WTH?!  Let’s look at a map of Routes 25 and 29 from Erin Mills Transitway.  Just as I thought — passengers to Guelph pay $4.60 more for a shorter trip!

Isn’t the price of a GO Transit trip a function of the distance travelled and whether the passenger is an adult, student, senior, or child?  Yep, it says so right on the Fare Information page.  GO Transit, you got some ‘splainin’ to do!

That settles it.  I’m staying put for Thanksgiving.  Where are you GOing this weekend?