“A Better Way to Go!”

“Public transit is the backbone of livable cities. Better transit means less congestion, faster commutes, more convenience, higher productivity and lower emissions. Simply put: public transit builds better lives.” — Federation of Canadian Municipalities

The number of commuters has experienced an exponential growth since the 1990s, with more people relying on public transit on a daily basis. While the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) crosses “official city borders,” as more than 1.7 million customers use their services on a regular weekday, residents of cities or towns outside of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) have a much different experience.

Only about an hour and a half north of Toronto, the Town of Bradford West Gwillimbury (BWG) provides bus service — marketed as “a Better Way to Go!” — for residents who can choose from the following routes:

1. Route 1: Cross-Town (Monday-Friday schedule & Saturday schedule)
2. Route 2A: Around Town Clockwise (Monday-Friday schedule & Saturday schedule)
3. Route 2B: Around Town Counter-Clockwise (Monday-Friday schedule)

While the bus service is underused and the routes counterintuitive, something interesting to note is the service that this municipality offers to commuters using the GO train. The GO Transit Barrie line, which extended north up to the Allandale Waterfront GO Station in 2012, includes a stop at the Bradford GO Station, allowing Bradford residents to commute to Newmarket, Aurora, Vaughan and Toronto. The transit service that the municipality offers for commuters to the GO Station highlights the gaps of the bus routes mentioned above.

GO Train Network Map | Credit Urban Toronto, Go Transit

To fill these gaps, the town provides a shared-ride shuttle service for GO Transit commuters, which is delivered by Town Taxi, a local company that has reached a fare-sharing agreement with Metrolinx and the Town of BWG. This service is offered to GO Transit customers connecting to and from the Bradford GO Station between BWG Transit bus stops and the station during morning and evening rush hours. The rules are simple:

1. Book your spot through calling Town Taxi by 8pm the night before;
2. Provide them with your train time. You can even pre-book up to a week’s rides;
3. A taxi with the BWG Transit logo will come for pick up at the bus stop on the agreed time;
4. Pay the driver $3 (cash) or show a valid PRESTO card for a free ride.

This agreement between a local company, the Town of BWG and Metrolinx is quite interesting as it demonstrates how the Town of BWG is filling a gap in its municipal transit system without altering its bus routes.

Future GO System Map | BlogTO

But how sustainable is this solution in the long-run as the Barrie line continues to extend north as projected in the map above? While more regional train lines extend, should other towns implement similar services to the Town of BWG or focus on investing and ameliorating their municipal transit services to truly offer residents a “Better Way to Go”?