Major service and timetable changes coming on GO Transit on Tuesday, Metrolinks said

“We really want to remind our customers to go ahead and check their schedules before the door closes on Tuesday morning. That’s because, in addition to re-adding the entire service to our network, we also basically hit the reset our timetable,” Metrolinks spokeswoman Matt Levelin said this week.

“Even if you’ve been taking GO since the whole epidemic or March, you’ll notice that your train times are changing a little. It also affects about every GO customer.”

Service changes are listed GO Transit Website.

Metrolinks said it is now making changes as ridership increases. Some are returning to their offices, and thousands of students are returning to school.

“We really want to make sure we can provide the right level of service for our customers. We monitor our ridership levels very closely throughout the entire Pandemic and make those adjustments as needed,” Llewellyn said.

“This is the next step to make sure we are there to meet the demand. We want to make sure that people have the right options because we know there is a lot of uncertainty right now and we want to make sure that you do not really have to think.”

98% compliant with mandatory face covering procedure

MetroLinks has made several changes to its buses and trains since the pandemic struck Ontario in March to keep passengers safe. These changes include mandatory face shields, plastic dividers between seats and stickers or “directional way finding” to encourage customers to walk in the same direction.

He said 98 per cent of riders comply with the mandatory face covering policy.

Scheduling changes are here:

• In Lockshore West, Metrolinks is reintroducing 15 to 30 minute train services during peak hours, and an hour or more on afternoons, evenings and weekends. All trains continue to make all stops. The change means MetroLinks runs 71 trips each week. Currently there are 26 more trips per day compared to the service. This equates to 60 percent of pre-Kovid-19 service, which is 119 per week.

• On Lake Shore East, Metrolinks is reintroducing 15 to 30 minute train services during peak hours, and an hour or more on afternoons, evenings and weekends. All trains continue to make all stops. It runs 66 trips each week, with an additional 21 trips currently compared to the service. The figure is still 51.2 percent in pre-Kovid-19 service, up from 129 per week.

• At Milton Line, Metrolinks is adding two more trips, eight trips each week, to bring the service to 50 percent of its pre-Kovid-19 levels.

• On Kitchener Line, MetroLinks is adding five more trips to bring services to 35 trips each week. This is 81 per cent of the pre-Kovid-19 service, which is 43 trips per week.

• On the way to Barry, Metrolinks will resume most train services, giving customers access to train services throughout the day. It runs 29 trips each week, with an additional 12 trips currently compared to the service. This number is 81 percent of its pre-Kovid-19 service, which is 36 per week. On weekends, Barry Line has 29 trips, from 25 before the epidemic. Barry moved the train service to the bus in the summer to allow construction on the line.

• On the Stauffville route, 94 per cent of the pre-Kovid-19 train service will be restored as 20 trips are added to this route. There are now 32 trips per week, up from 34 before COVID-19. Over the weekend, it makes up 94 percent of the 30 weekend trips per day or 32 offered before the epidemic. During the summer, trains did not run as construction work took over the line.

• And on the Richmond Hill route, morning and afternoon train travel will resume to give customers between 30 and 45 minutes at the morning peak. MetroLinks runs eight trips each week, currently with an additional two trips from service. This figure is 67 percent of its pre-Kovid-19 service, which is 12 per week.