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Thursday, February 7, 2013

This morning's pedestrian fatality affecting LSW, Kitchener and LSE passengers

A pedestrian incident this morning involving a 5:35 a.m. LSW train that happened east of Appleby GO station, west of the rail crossing at Burloak Drive, is causing commuter chaos for many passengers. A pedestrian was struck just before 6am.

GO shut down service, then reinstated service, but also provided shuttle service for early morning LSW passengers.

What I found interesting is that at 7 am, I received an email from GO Transit saying the 7:53 am LSE train was cancelled. Then at 7:42 am, I received another email saying the 7:53 am LSE train was reinstated. I took the 7am out of Oshawa. I got in to Union on time. Most LSW/LSE/Kitchener trains are running but some were an hour behind schedule or remained cancelled.

According to a few train friends who texted me, the debacle with the 7:53 am train resulted in a total shit show of inconvenience for them as they decided to drive to work, presuming further trains would be cancelled and the 8:25 am train would be delayed. As of 9 am, one friend is still on the 401, near Victoria Park, after having entered the highway at Harmony Road in Oshawa at 7:15 am.

STOP TEXTING ME WHILE DRIVING, YOU DONKEY.

Here's the lineup for ONE Lakeshore West shuttle bus to Union. You can see it, waaay off in the distance. 
Photo by @JoHages

This is what it must have looked like when it arrived at Union.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Bottom photo nailed it.

Devon said...

Bottom photo is also what it looked like on the first train to go East on the LSW line. My usual train commences in Oakville and ends at Union, and it's normally a fairly peaceful train with people always standing.

Because Go Transit cancelled EVERY train before that, it was the first train to go to Union. Everybody and their mother who normally takes express trains from Oakville and Clarkson piled onto out train. Getting on in Port Credit was a nightmare. It reminded me a lot of riding the subway on new years eve.

Anonymous said...

Why can't they seem to get theird shit together with the email alerts? Collect yourself, organize your thoughts and then send out alerts and email notifications...

MATT said...

I think I have to double check my alerts. GO Transit seems to alert me of Union-Oshawa trains in the AM, and Oshawa-Union trains in the PM, when I really need those alerts the other way around. I had no idea that my usual Pickering-Union 07:45 was cancelled, because the earlier Oshawa-Union express was converted to an all-stops train, and showed up at Guildwood when I expected a train to arrive. What I did not expect was that it was standing-room-only-sardine-city. I knew something was amiss, and had to check the service updates on using my phone to find out what happened.

CSA even announced at the end of the trip that passengers who boarded at Oshawa would qualify for the rebate.

deepfish said...

Was at Oakville at 6:15 this AM and the ticket taker was making regular announcements that buses were available to take people to Square One where they could transfer to buses for Union. Most of th ecrowd waiting in the station were non plussed. But just before my regular 6:25 bus left she must have misspoken in her announcement cuz a horde of people started racing down the platform just as we were pulling out. The train-regulars pushed up against the door, their faces filled with a quaint and innocent hope. "You going direct to Union?"
"Nope - going to Square One and then Finch."
I have tasted the despair of the train ride only bourgeousie of Oakville in their sudden crestfallen looks.
Tastes like chicken.

Anonymous said...

My next question was, what was this deceased individual doing on the tracks. Was he trepassing, didn't obey signals or whatever. If this deceased individual was on the tracks illegally, then let Darwin's natural selection deal with them

Christina said...

I get on at Bronte. All trains were originating at Oakville. I choose to wait at home for a while and head to the station at 9am. A train was coming at 9:22 and another at 9:27. People were calm and parking lot half empty b/c people drove to Oakville.

A girl went up to a CSR and lost her shit. Why are the trains late? Why is the train not express? There is another train coming right after! Blah blah blah. Then a omplaint about the trains being late every single day (not true). She left oakville to come to Bronte because it "anarchy".

I was going to punch her. Instead, I commented very loudly "well it's obvious it is not a member of your family lying dead on the tracks."

Some people's children.