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Friday, February 20, 2015

Update on the 90A

Since October there had been some serious #gobusprobs on Route 90A. After years of reliable service during the 618 to 713 travel window, buses began to run seven to 15 minutes behind schedule almost every single morning.

In the Fall, this wasn't as irritating as it became once temperatures dropped. When the board switched in January and a new driver arrived, many of us on the bus hoped normal service would resume.

Nope.

After a dreadful start to February where many of us were left stranded in the cold 12 to 15 minutes past the scheduled arrival time, and missing sometimes two train connections, I quite simply lost my shit.

I went looking for answers and asked my husband to drive me to the station as I could no longer rely on GO Transit's bus service. This meant my husband would be 20 minutes late for work. In Winter this isn't a cause for drama since his work slows down, but come Spring, the option of being driven to the station disappears.

Taking an earlier bus is off the table. I already get up at 5:30. I'm not sacrificing any more sleep. Leaving later is out. I like leaving the office at 4:30 so I can be home by 6:30. I should not have to alter my routine, or, as many people suggested, buy my own car when I live 2 km south of regional bus service. We live where we live because of the bus. We have no desire to take on the expense of a second car just to drive the same route as a bus. That's just stupid. I know there are people in my town who do drive to the station but I don't have the same after work responsibilities they may have.

My husband works in town. He does daycare pick up and makes dinner. I don't need to be somewhere right at 6pm. So bussing works for us.

Anyway, now that I've defended my decision to be a GO bus customer, this morning I arrived at the station as the same time as my GO bus (7:05). I have the car because my husband is away on an ice fishing trip and I'm on day care drop off and pick up duty. But since last Thursday, he's driven me to the station.

I asked my fellow bus mates, as we tapped our Presto cards, if the bus was running on time just today or all week? Turns out it's a new driver and he's been on time at all the scheduled arrival times for each stop every day this week.

I know that many of us feel GO Transit only claims to listen to its customers but I want to believe that their customer and social media representatives really do care, and they do their best to fight the beast that is a provincial transit agency.

I've made sure to thank those who looked into this matter. Those of us who have stood in the cold waiting for a bus know how much we rely on a schedule, especially in these frigid temperatures.

39 comments:

Anonymous said...

Aw man. I dunno. I'd hate to think that driver got in trouble. Perhaps you could have worked it out with the driver first? I'd hate to think someone lost their job over this.

Anonymous said...

If I recall correctly she did try and work it out with the driver and was met with unpleasantness. Maybe you could post your prior rants as a link CJ

Bicky said...

So let me get this straight. You drove to the GO station this morning?

REMINDER: Do NOT get on the bus when you come home tonight!!!!

On the topic at hand, I hope the bus runs closer to the time it's supposed to. I can understand the odd day if roads are bad or traffic is pooched.

Skin Man said...

I don't think someone would get fired for a single mistake....maybe if (s)he had many similar mistakes that would be appropriate....that is a pretty good job for those with no commercial skills.

C.J. Smith said...

GO Transit is a business. The GO Bus is a service provided by this business that is funded by a province we all pay taxes to.

I don't ride the bus or train for free. I pay for the service and in return I expect the service I am promised as written in the Gospel that is known as the Bus Schedule.

The drivers aren't driving the bus for free. They are being paid to do the job they were carefully selected for. If they can't run a bus on time, it's his or her responsibility to address this with their supervisor and not wait til a crowd of angry bus passengers take matters into their own hands.

These drivers were spoken to by passengers on many occasions. Neither of the two drivers in question cared to bring the concerns to management = fail.

I don't know how long this new driver will be on the route for but he managed to stay on time on a route where two drivers could not. What's he doing that's different?

Ali Gator said...

I'd be very surprised if the driver was fired. I suspect disciplinary action was brought against the driver, which means you may see them again one morning. )-:

C.J. Smith said...

I'd be happy to see them again and am confident they would have figured out how to be on time.

C.J. Smith said...

@Bicky

I set up a reminder on my phone to tell me to walk to the car at the time the train pulls in. Yep, the autopilot is *that* strong.

Anonymous said...

I think it's ridiculous you have to defend your decision to take the GO bus to the station. There are thousands of people parked at several GO Station lots right now who know damn well they could take the bus but choose not to because they view bus service as beneath them.

I know this because I am one of them. I live right off of Central Park Blvd near Bond Street in Oshawa. I can see the GO bus stop my front door. Hell, I could wait for the bus in my porch but I choose to drive because I don't want to be at the mercy of a bus schedule. Plus I want to get my coffee and such.

So kudos for you for doing something my lazy ass won't do even if it will save me boat loads of dough. What it won't save me is time seeing as it's only 7 minutes for me to get to the station where it's double that for the bus.

C.J. Smith said...

You can see the GO bus coming from your porch?! Shit. That would be like a lottery win to me.

I appreciate your honesty. It took me four years before I realized I could take a bus to and from the station and survive.

Anonymous said...

Don't get me wrong. I'm tempted to try it because getting out of the station is nuts and you probably get home before I do but I figure I'm paying for the car I might as well drive it.

Nora1968 said...

So let me get this straight: Anonymous is worried that the bus driver who (a) isn't meeting the service levels proscribed by the schedule created by his employer and (b) giving attitude to the customers who are - very reasonably - calling him on it might get fired? I want to work wherever Anonymous works, where apparently the standards for performance are so low that you can consistently NOT DO YOUR JOB with no expectation of losing said job.

P.S. I agree with the other "Anonymous", CJ - can't imagine why you would ever feel that you need to justify the choices you make re: transportation to anyone. No one's business but your own, it seems to me.

Squiggles said...

Anon: I believe you. It took me several years and for a car to die before I started taking the bus to the station.

In the end, it was one of the best decisions. Unless it is really icy and I have to zombie-shuffle from the stop to my front door, I get home a good 15 mins sooner than if I drove. It doesn't sound like much, but that time does add up. Plus, at 70cents a ride, it was cheaper than driving. And I wasn't stopping and picking up dinner on the way home every night.

@ CJ: As for the GO situation, you almost should have said something sooner! I am thinking it is the way the driver is driving that is taking longer:maybe overly cautious?

This past fall, I actually put in a complaint to the DRT because my morning bus was consistantly 5 mins early. The one morning I lost it because it was 10 mins early. They looked into it and swapped the drivers out. Not a problem since.

I would expect GO to do something similar. Maybe switch the driver to a different route or time of day? II doubt they would have fired him/her unless there were other issues.

Here's hoping the schedule stays normal for the rest of the year.

Anonymous said...

Well then I don't feel so bad. Unfortunately I do need a car for the typical grocery getting etc. And I've always financed and then traded in. I've never paid a car and just owned it until it fell apart but I really like my Honda so maybe I will keep it and maybe I will try the bus. But when you're paying $420 a month you really feel you should be driving the thing.

Anonymous said...

Anon who lives near central park and bond, you can also take the 405 Central Park bus. It makes a very brief stop at the OC and then continues on to the Go Station. I take the 7 am bus from Adelaide and CP and I get the 728 train every morning. The only time that route is not on time is due to traffic (like when the 401 was closed because of the accident a couple weeks ago).

FRED said...

No one should ever have to justify the things they do to save a dollar. Just sayin' ... What kind of society have we become that we have to defend taking public transportation???

I've got guys in my office who live near the Langstaff GO Station who drive and follow the sheep down the Don Valley Parking lot leaving at stupid o'clock in the morning every single day to prove they're better than those of us who take the GO train. These same shmucks walk in at 9:30/10 am and blame traffic as they pour their coffee while some of us have been at work since 8:30. These same assholes then fuck off at 4pm so they can beat traffic.

Yep, totally better than public transit.

Anonymous said...

But is the GO Bus more comfortable than the DRT bus? Green limo vs ghetto sled (to quote CJ). I do see the DRT bus and always wondered where it went. Thanks for letting me know.

Squiggles said...

I have taken the GO Bus a couple of times and yes, it is more comfortable. But there isn't one that takes me to the station. However, the 900 Pulse, which only runs along Highway 2, is nice. Seats like the GO bus, but stops more frequently. The only downside: it doesn't stop at any GO stations.

Then again, $3 or more for GO bus vs 70 cents? I will pay the 70 cents. I am not on it long enough to enjoy the more comfortable seats.

Krystal said...

I took the GO bus once. Just to try it. I really did feel like I was doing what poor people do.
I know. I know. I'm burning in hell. Who's coming with?

C.J. Smith said...

Anyone who can afford GO Transit's fares from the City of Clarington (or Oshawa) to city of Toronto are definitely not poor. The monthly fare total is almost three times the cost of a TTC Metropass. We wouldn't live this far east if we were poor. Trust me.

FRED said...

^ Suddenly it's not so cold with all this BURN.

You know, I'm sick and tired of people assuming it's only poor white trash who live in Oshawa or east of it. Seriously. Who wants to pay over a million dollars to live in a 900 square foot semi shoebox of a home in any of Toronto's trendy neighbourhoods? The very same people who think they are too rich for the suburbs.

You're not rich. Just ignorant.

Priti P. said...

I live in North Oshawa, on the Courtice border, in a home I paid $519,000 for because we couldn't afford a house of the same size in Richmond Hill for my large family, along with my elderly parents. It would have been $800,000 plus for the square footage/4 bathrooms we need and no way in hell would I shove seven people into a three bedroom/1 bathroom, downtown Toronto semi-detached house with NO PARKING, or garage or DRIVEWAY for $900,000 or more.

The only thing that really sucks is the property taxes. We were assessed at $6900 for 2015. It suuuuuuuucksssssssss. But my parents help out financially and with childcare which my husband and I are so grateful for. I used to live in a condo on King Street before I got married. It was awesome to be so close to work but I lived in a 425 square foot closet. I wanted a big house with a big backyard and those expansive Forest Hill or Rosedale or Baby Point houses are not affordable. So the suburbs are where went.

Please stop referring to Oshawa people or those who ride the bus as poor.

Anonymous said...

Priti, if you paid $519K for your house and its assessed at $690,000, then appeal your assessment.

C.J. Smith said...

Nope, Priti's taxes sound about right. The average property tax in Oshawa is $4200 on a home valued at $270,000 (as of 2008). Oshawa has one of the highest tax rates in Ontario and Durham Region is one of the most expensive places to live with respect to property taxes. Plus, in Durham, unlike Toronto, we pay a portion to the city or town (Clarington, Oshawa, Ajax or Pickering, Uxbridge, etc.) and then a portion to the Region.

My house in Courtice, valued at $324,000 by MPAC, results in an annual property tax of $3668.00. We moved to Courtice to escape Oshawa's ever-rising tax rates in 2007. My former Oshawa home (a 3-bed & 2-bath semi and 1079 square feet) sold again in 2012 for $209,000 and the taxes were $3790.00.

Anonymous said...

Ahh, so Priti meant she paid $6,900 in taxes. Gotcha.

But holy crap that's a lot of taxes!

M. said...

Priti, I'm at $5800 up near Windfield Farms. My neighbours listed their house for $609,900 before Christmas and have dropped the price since. It's a HUGE house. Bigger than mine. I know what they paid for it and it wasn't anywhere near what they're asking now.
http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?PropertyId=15148125

Anonymous said...

Busy day on the blog I see. Amazing what gets people talking.

John said...

Long time reader/first time caller etc ...

Okay, I've held my tongue but I have to say. I know comments are moderated but doesn't anyone else feel the perception or tone is skewed because CJ has ultimate say on what gets through her filters?

I know you talk about trolls and hate mail CJ but honestly, no one else has been negative about how you handled this situation. I feel you handled it splendidly and fairly but I really would like to hear the objections. I don't care about the count. Let them through.

Anonymous said...

Trailers cost half a mill in Oshawa? Is that with wheels or without?

C.J. Smith said...

Oh, definitely with wheels. So we can run you over.

Anonymous said...

It's quite obvious CJ doesn't have a job. that expects her to actually "work".

Anonymous said...

Oshawa is a dump. You can buy just as large half a million dollars houses in Toronto. You just need to look beyond Rosedale or downtown. You'll pay less in taxes too.

Kevin said...

You can buy a house in Toronto for $229,000 if you're willing to live in a dump.

Squiggles said...

@Kevin, you can but either you are in an undesirable neighbourhood (I looked about 7 years ago and when I saw 3 different people arrested in the span of 2 hrs, I declined). Or the house needs to be taken back to the studs.

It is why I headed east. That and why commute into the sun both ways (like those poor LSW people).

Squiggles said...

Oh, and a couple months ago a group of people getting off at Rouge Hill but from Toronto were making fun of me because I enforced the Quiet Zone.

Apparently "only people from Oshawa" want to ride the train in peace.

Anonymous said...

I'm tired of people feeling like they can't ask people to behave without fear of bullying or harassment. If you want to talk, sit downstairs!!!

Peter said...

And I dislike it that people act like the Quiet Zone is the Dead Zone.

Anonymous said...

I thought this was a story about a late bus.

Rhonda said...

@priti
is your husband's name Sanjay? if it is, small world. We should carpool to the station.