Rethinking GO Transit: East Greater Golden Horseshoe

 Hi pals!

Recently, I have been giving a lot of thought to the GO bus network. While we are seeing significant investments to the GO train network, the bus network has largely stagnated. There are missing services, and GO has reduced the amount of services that connect communities to train stations.

This blog post is (probably) the first in a multi-part series outlining what I think the GO bus network should look like. The focus of this post is the east Greater Golden Horseshoe, so basically anything east of Oshawa GO. This builds on my thoughts from a previous blog post from a few years ago. I will also add some thoughts on Durham Region Transit service out this way, as it contributes to the overall network.

History and Current Network

Generally, transit service in the east Greater Golden Horseshoe has been poor. For many years, two GO bus routes operated from Oshawa GO. The 90 provided local service along Highway 2 in Oshawa and Bowmanville on route to Newcastle, with a fare agreement with DRT. The 91 also ran peak-directionally, provided express service to Newcastle via Bowmanville, bypassing the Oshawa portion. GO bus 88, which served a number of park-and-ride lots on Highway 115 while heading to Peterborough was introduced in 2009. Additionally, a DRT route, number 504, served Newcastle and Orono, but the dates of when this route operated are not clear.

In 2020, Durham Region Transit took over the Highway 2 local service, creating the 902 route between Oshawa GO and Simpson Avenue in Bowmanville. The 88 was rerouted to provide local service in Bowmanville, and the 91 was replaced by a new 88A branch.

In 2022, a commuter connect service from Port Hope and Cobourg, in Northumberland County, to Oshawa GO was introduced. It was cancelled in 2024.

In April 2023, the 88A was cancelled, marking the end of fixed GO service to Newcastle. Much of the peak service on the 88 was modified to the 88B, serving some new park-and-ride lots, slowing down those travelling to Peterborough. The 88B attempts to replicate the future GO train extension, with stops at Ritson, Courtice, and Bowmanville. In September 2023, the 88C was added at select times, providing express trips that operate from Oshawa GO to Trent U, stopping only at Peterborough Bus Terminal. DRT also added the 507 route at this time, providing service between Bowmanville, Newcastle, and Orono during peak periods only. Some trips are interlined with the 902, removing the need to transfer in Bowmanville.

The current network is the 88, with 88B service during peaks and 88C at select times, assisted by DRT's 902 and 507 routes. When GO's Lakeshore East line is extended to Bowmanville in a few dozen decades, there will be modifications to these routes. There is not one map to show all service (and I don't feel like making one, haha).

A schematic of existing GO service offerings.

Map of existing DRT service in Bowmanville.

Map of existing DRT service in Newcastle and Orono.

The Issues

The current arrangement of service is not popular. The 88 is slow due to the service through Bowmanville, as well as the park-and-ride lots along the 115 that have few riders a day. This is made worse with the 88B during peaks. The schedule is not very frequent, and the 88C doesn't operate enough to be worthwhile. Given demand to and from Trent University, the route is often full of luggage, slowing boarding and offloading times.

Service to Newcastle is limited to peak periods, Lindsay is the largest town in Ontario without transit to another, and Cobourg and Port Hope are entirely in the VIA Rail service area.

To summarize the above, the existing network is inadequate, and underserves the population of the east Greater Golden Horseshoe.

My Proposal 

My proposal considers the current network, and where demand exists. The aim to create a network that encourages transit use, and does not only make trips heading to and from Oshawa GO easy to use.

Infrastructural Requirements

The one infrastructural change is the Highway 2 at Highway 115 Park-and-Ride, or as I will refer to it, the Newcastle P&R. This terminal has two platforms presently. With the improved network, I propose it to be expanded to eight platforms, plus layover space, as this will be the principal transfer point east of Oshawa GO. It is also at a convenient location, near where Highway 401 meets Highway 115.

GO Route 88

Route 88 will no longer serve Bowmanville, and will operate via Highway 401 direct to Newcastle P&R. Beyond Newcastle P&R, the route is unchanged. Service will be improved to operate hourly. The 88B branch will be cancelled. The 88C branch will be improved to operate hourly at busy times, with trips scheduled half-an-hour after the regular 88. This creates a 30-minute service when service is needed the most.

Service in Bowmanville will be replaced by the 86, and the 88B will be replaced by the 85.

Map of GO route 88.

Map of GO route 88, zoomed in to show service within Peterborough.

GO Route 86

This route will replace 88 service in Bowmanville. The buses will operate as the 88s currently do, serving Bowmanville Park-and-Ride and local stops on Highway 2, but it will terminate at Newcastle P&R. Passengers from Bowmanville who wish to travel to Peterborough will be required to transfer here. Schedules on both the 86 and the 88, which operate hourly, will be coordinated to facilitate the transfer, but DRT's 902 is also available to make this trip.

Map of GO route 86.

GO Route 85

GO Route 85 will replace the 88B, replicating the future GO train extension. Buses will operate during peak periods only, from Oshawa GO to Bowmanville P&R with stops at First/Front P&R (Ritson GO), and Courtice/Baseline P&R (Courtice GO). 

I really wrangled with this one. The ridership will be low - who is dropping their car off ten minutes from Oshawa GO just to add an extra transfer? Bowmanville P&R would be served better by the 86, which would run direct to Oshawa GO. Courtice/Baseline P&R has limited demand, and while there may be some walk-ins at First/Front P&R, I am sure they could be counted on one hand. However, the park-and-ride lots are there, and the infrastructure should be used. This route would operate three westbound trips in the AM peak, and three eastbound trips in the PM peak.

Map of GO route 85.

GO Route 87

This totally new service will finally connect Lindsay to somewhere else! This bus will operate the same routing as the 88 as far as the Highway 35/Highway 115 P&R, where it will diverge by travelling north on Highway 35. It would stop at Drum/John in Pontypool, as well as at the Elevator Rd/Highway 35 (Manvers) P&R. In Lindsay, it would serve three major destinations - Fleming College Frost Campus, Ross Memorial Hospital, and Downtown Lindsay Terminal at Victoria and Kent.

This route would operate at all hours, every two hours.

Map of GO route 87.

Map of GO route 87, zoomed in to show service within Lindsay.

GO Route 89

GO Route 89 will bring the commuter connect service to Port Hope and Cobourg back. Buses will operate direct from Oshawa GO to Newcastle P&R via Highway 401. They will provide a local service in Newcastle, then travel direct to Port Hope, with stops at the Toronto Rd/Highway 401 P&R and in downtown Port Hope. In Cobourg, buses stop at Northumberland Hills Hospital, in downtown Cobourg, and at the VIA Station, terminating at the Baltimore Rd/Highway 401 P&R (in Hamilton Township). This brings Northumberland County onto the GO network. This route would operate every two hours.

The goal of this route is to connect Cobourg and Port Hope to the rest of the GO Network - it is not supposed to replace existing transit systems in the two towns. This is why they have limited stopping locations in the towns.

My initial thinking was to have a branch of route 86 replace the 89 during evenings, but I felt this would kill a lot of demand from Northumberland County due to a much slower trip to Oshawa.

Map of GO route 89 (sorry about the labels, they're so finicky).

Map of GO route 89, zoomed in to show service within Northumberland County.

DRT Route 902

Route 902 would be extended from Simpson Avenue to Newcastle P&R. While this extension is very rural with limited ridership demand, the intent is to make connections in Newcastle. Service would be improved during the daytime to every 15 minutes between Oshawa GO and Newcastle P&R. Evening service through Bowmanville would continue to be every 30 minutes, as the 902B to Trulls, in Courtice, will operate. The role of this route is to provide connections into Oshawa, whereas GO's 86 route aims to connect Bowmanville to the broader GTHA.

Map of DRT route 902 (I know green is a bad colour to use here but that is DRT's colour!)

DRT Route 507

Route 507 will be cut back to Newcastle P&R, with minor routing changes in Newcastle. The route will run hourly at all hours.

Map of DRT route 507.

GO Route 53

In my previous blog post, I proposed a new GO bus route from Trent U to Highway 407 Station via Highway 407. The route would serve a number of park-and-ride lots and terminals along the way. I have assigned this route number 53, and it would operate every two hours, at all hours. This route will offer a different destination for Peterborough passengers that effectively bypasses much of Durham and Toronto. It would also provide additional service along the 407 corridor currently provided by GO's 54 and 56 routes.

The Entire Plan, Zoomed Out

As you can see from the network map above, the new eastern Greater Golden Horseshoe is well served by both GO buses and DRT routes. By transferring at Newcastle P&R, at a strategic location where two highways meet, passengers can make trips between Bowmanville, Oshawa, Lindsay, Peterborough, Cobourg, Orono, and Port Hope. This system would encourage transit use in the area, including use to destinations that are not within the City of Toronto.

Not Included

My one major gap is that the 507 and 88 pass each other in Orono, but there is no way to make the transfer. A park-and-ride lot at Concession 6 Road would make this possible, but I decided against this as the amount of people travelling from Orono to Peterborough on a daily basis is less than 5. The transfer can still be made at Newcastle P&R, albeit with a bit of backtracking. I think this arrangement is sufficient.

Conclusion

Obviously, the above is a significant change. It will require a lot of funding, and a lot of public education to increase ridership. Having said that, building a strong network with many connections that allow for people to travel not just towards Oshawa, but between towns and cities, encourages transit usage outside the core.