37 Islington

 Hey friends! Today we're looking at route 37 Islington! This route operates with two branches:

• 37A Islington: Islington Stn to Woodbine and Humberwood via Rexdale Blvd
• 37B Islington: Islington Stn to Steeles

In addition, the 37B branch is duplicated by the 937 Islington Express. Let's get into it!

The Route

I will focus first on the 37B branch, because it's actually the major branch. Buses leave Islington Station via Bloor, and head straight up Islington, before turning onto Steeles to enter Islington/Steeles Loop. Between Bloor and Dundas, the built form is mainly apartments, but these front onto Cordova and Mabelle. From Dundas all the way to Dixon, Islington is entirely low-density, single-family homes. At Dixon, and until Bergamot, the route is mixed, with some apartment towers, townhomes, and single-family homes, as well as some industry just off of Islington. The apartment towers are replaced with lower-rise apartments beyond Bergamot, but the route is relatively the same until the Humber River, with the area just north of it being single-family homes and a small commercial area near Albion. Just south of Finch are two more apartment buildings, with a few more north of Finch. Beyond Milady, the route is single-family homes and a few townhomes. 

The 37A diverges at Bergamot, and travels northwest on Rexdale, counter-clockwise on Queens Plate, through Woodbine Racetrack, northwest on Rexdale again, and north on Humberwood, before ending at Humberwood Loop, just south of Morning Star. Along Bergamot is apartment buildings and townhomes. The long stretch on Rexdale and Queens Plate is entirely industrial, excluding a newer development and the Woodbine Mall beyond Highway 27. As mentioned, it serves Woodbine Racetrack, before heading up Humberwood, which is all single-family homes, besides two large condo towers.

Sights to See

• Tom Riley Park
• Montgomery's Inn
• Alex Marchetti Park
• West Humber Trail
• Humber River Recreation Trail
• Woodbine Mall and Fantasy Fair
• Woodbine Racetrack

Subway Connections

• Islington

Frequency and Ridership

On weekdays, during peak periods, 37A and 37B service is not blended. During morning peak, 37A service is every 25', and 37B every 14', combining to every 8'58. During afternoon peak, 37A service is every 23'30, and 37B service is 16'40, combining to 9'45. These combined headways are averages, and so buses travelling together are not uncommon. Off-peak service blends. Midday service is 22'40 on each branch, combining to 11'20, early evening is every 23' combining to every 11'30, and late evening is every 30', combining to every 15'. 

Weekend service is not as simple, and is rarely blended. I feel like it might get confusing fast, so I used bullet points to make it easier. First, Saturdays:

• Early Morning
• A: 24'
• B: 25'
• Combined: 12'15
• Morning
• A: 13'
• B: 16'
• Combined: 7'10
• Afternoon
• A: 14'
• B: 14'
• Combined: 7'
• Early Evening
• A: 20'
• B: 25'
• Combined: 11'07
• Late Evening
• A: 20'
• B: 30'
• Combined: 12'

On Sundays, the frequencies are as follows:

• Morning
• A: 13'
• B: 25'
• Combined: 8'33
• Afternoon
• A: 12'
• B: 20'
• Combined: 7'30
• Early Evening
• A: 20'
• B: 30'
• Combined: 12'
• Late Evening
• A: 30'
• B: 30'
• Combined: 15'

In terms of ridership, weekday ridership is 13,100, Saturday is 11,700, and Sunday is 9,300. This might be kind of low for a mainline route with two diverging branches, and I kind of agree, but the small difference between weekday and Saturday ridership is really interesting to me. To note, 2,500 people a weekday use the 937 express service, which only runs during peaks.

Thoughts

This is probably the north-south Etobicoke route I use the most, especially when heading to Mississauga as I can transfer to MiWay at Bergamot and Islington. I have only a few comments. Firstly, I hate the loop at Islington and Steeles. Buses have to turn left without signals onto a very busy road, and immediately get into the right lane to turn onto Islington. This can lead to significant delays. I would suggest that the city of Vaughan build a one-way outlet from Friuli Court out to Steeles. This way, the 37B and 937 can use Islington, Friuli and Steeles to loop more safely.

My second comment relates to the 37A. It is one of the interesting services that is more frequent on weekends than on weekdays. I assume this is due to traffic to the Racetrack and the Woodbine Mall. I wonder if operating some service between Islington/Bergamot and Humberwood would be worthwhile, to help relieve crowds. Originally, when service was established on Rexdale Blvd, this was the arrangement. This branch reminds me of the 43B Kennedy via Progress: an east-west service branching from a north-south route.

Future

The 37A branch will be extended to Humber College Station when Line 6 opens, replacing the 36 Finch West bus along Humberline. This creates an odd situation where you transfer to the 37A at Humber College Station, but the 37B and 937 transfer at Rowntree Mills Station. 

The only other change I see is temporary, and it is when the TTC rebuilds Islington Station. Obviously, as the terminal would be closed, this route will have to be altered. I can see it being interlined with the 110 Islington South route, allowing for through trips as far as Lake Shore or Long Branch.