Mississauga Transitway

The Mississauga Transitway is a bus-only roadway under construction in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, spanning most of the city from Winston Churchill Boulevard to the junction of Highways 401 and 427 in the city of Toronto. Proposed in the 1970s, the plan has evolved over time. In the 1990s, a serious proposal intended to build a transitway from Ridgeway Road at the very western edge of the city, to the westernmost station of Toronto's proposed Eglinton West subway.^[1] After this line was cancelled, the proposal was revised to its current state. Construction started in November 2010 with completion scheduled for late fall 2012.^[2][3]

Route

Mississauga Bus Rapid Transit

Legend Legend Legend MiWay Stop Only MiWay and GO Transit Stop Future Transitway and Stop routing of BRT branches or connecting rapid transit GO Train / VIA Rail connections Highway 403 HOV lanes and bus bypass shoulders Subway / LRT connection bus terminal connection airport connection park-and-ride facilities available GO buses to Yorkdale, York Mills, and Finch GO buses to York University and Richmond Hill Centre Eglinton–Scarborough Crosstown line to McCowan Road 107 to Pearson Airport, Malton, and Humber College 109 and GO buses to Kipling Station Crosstown LRT to Pearson Airport Renforth Orbitor Spectrum Etobicoke Creek Etobicoke Creek Tahoe 105 to Bramalea City Centre 105 to Dixie Outlet Mall Dixie Little Etobicoke Creek Tomken Cawthra Central Parkway 103 to Shoppers World, Züm to Sandalwood (pre-LRT) 103 to Port Credit Cooksville Creek Hurontario LRT to Downtown Brampton Hurontario LRT to Port Credit Rathburn at City Centre (reserved for LRT connection) GO and MiWay bus terminals Rathburn at Station Gate Hurontario LRT to Port Credit Creditview (Phase 2) Credit River GO buses to Streetsville 110 to South Common, UTM and Clarkson 109 to Erin Mills TC and Meadowvale TC Erin Mills Winston Churchill GO buses to Guelph GO buses to Oakville, Burlington and Hamilton Ridgeway (Phase 2)

The plan now calls for a dedicated transitway from Winston Churchill Boulevard to Erin Mills Parkway, where the buses would then use dedicated shoulder lanes on Highway 403 to reach the City Centre terminal. From there, a dedicated transitway would parallel Highway 403 to Cawthra Road, and then follow Eastgate Parkway to Eglinton Avenue East, and Eglinton to just west of Renforth Drive.

The transitway would likely be served in a manner similar to Ottawa's Transitway, using a mix of express routes and local routes. Because the transitway is not planned to run near any of Mississauga Transit's secondary terminals(terminals other than Square One), it is likely that branch routes would also travel in mixed traffic to reach their destinations, like current routes 109 and 110.

MiWay

MiWay currently operates three routes along the corridor:

Route	Year	Terminus		Stops	Running Time	Service Span and Average Frequency										Connecting Services
						AM Rush		Midday		PM Rush		Evening		Weekends
107 Malton	2010	City Centre Transit Terminal	Westwood Mall Bus Terminal	16	43	17		-		17		-		-		BT, GO, MiWay, TTC, Züm
109 Meadowvale	2008	Meadowvale Town Centre Bus Terminal	Islington Subway Station	17	64 - 67	35(NB) 17.5(SB)		-		17.5(NB) 38(SB)		-		-		GO, MiWay, TTC, Züm
110 University	2007	City Centre Transit Terminal	Clarkson GO Station	9	35 - 40	15	15	17	34	15	15	28	28	28	28	GO, MiWay, OT, Züm
	2010		University of Toronto Mississauga (short turn)	4	23		-		34		-		-		-

107 Malton

Route 107 connects the City Centre Transit Terminal with the Airport Corporate Centre, Toronto Pearson Airport (YYZ) and the community of Malton via the Westwood Mall terminal. It is planned to be extended to Humber College's North Campus. It used to run along Highway 403 but was diverted to Rathburn Road due to the anticipated delays brought by the construction of the transitway. Using Eastgate Parkway, part of the eventual transitway, and stopping outside of the physical airport at one of its "People Mover" stations (the Viscount LINK Station), it completes the route in just 43 minutes; therefore, it provides a much faster trip than the existing routes 7 Airport or 18 Explorer, which achieve it in 70 minutes. Route 107 currently operates every 17 minutes, on average, in both directions during rush hours only.

109 Meadowvale

Route 109 runs between the Meadowvale Town Centre terminal in northwest Mississauga, the Erin Mills Town Centre Bus Terminal in western Mississauga serving the growing Erin Mills community, the City Centre Transit Terminal, the Airport Corporate Centre, and the Islington Subway Station, a major terminal in Toronto.

The route used to bypass the City Centre Transit Terminal, completing the route in just 58 minutes. As of July 2011, by serving the City Centre Transit Terminal, it increased to 64-67 minutes, but it still provides a much faster trip than 89 Meadowvale-Subway, which currently does it in 75 minutes by traveling along local streets such as Creditview Road and Eglinton Avenue. However, with the additional stop at the City Centre Terminal, it also provides a quicker option to Meadowvale Town Centre with a 30-minute travel time, 15-20 minutes quicker than routes 9 Meadowvale and 10 Bristol. The route operates both ways during rush hours only, every 17.5 minutes towards the subway in the morning and from the subway in the afternoon, and every 35-38 minutes in the reverse peak direction.

110 University

Route 110 was the first of the 100-series routes to be created. It connects the City Centre Transit Terminal to U of T's Mississauga campus, the South Common Mall terminal in the west end, Sheridan Centre and Clarkson GO station, both located in the southwest part of the city. It provides a faster trip to UTM than former route 24, and a faster trip to South Common than former express route 206 by using Highway 403, part of the eventual transitway route. Route 110 provides full service 7 days a week.

GO Transit

GO Transit currently operates five routes along this corridor:

19 Oakville - Highway 403

Route 19 runs between Oakville GO Station and Finch GO Bus Terminal. Along the way, it serves Square One, Yorkdale and York Mills bus terminals. This route also connects to four TTC subway stations, all of which are in Yonge-University-Spadina line: Yorkdale, York Mills, Sheppard-Yonge and Finch. This route provides service during weekdays only (excluding holidays), but with all branches combined (19, 19A, 19B, 19C), it has a frequency as high as 10 minutes at Square One during peak hours. All of Route 19's branches will run through the transitway.

29 Guelph - Highway 403

Route 29 runs between University of Guelph and Cooksville GO Station. It also stops at Aberfoyle Park and Ride in Puslinch and Square One Bus Terminal. This route is also planned to be extended further inbound to Kipling Station^[4]. Route 29 provides service during weekdays ans Sundays. It runs hourly during peak hours, every two hours during midday and evening, and every three hours during Sundays. Route 29 also provides extra service during Fridays.

45 Streetsville - Highway 407

Route 45 runs between Streetsville GO Station and York University, stopping at Square One Bus Terminal. Meanwhile, route 45A provides extra service between Square One and York University during the academic year. During weekdays, routes 45 and 45A have a frequency of as high as 5 minutes at the peak direction and 30-35 minutes in the reverse peak direction. Both branches will run through the transitway.

46 Oakville - Highway 407

Route 46 runs between Oakville GO Station and York University, stopping at Square One Bus Terminal and Bramalea GO Station. This route runs every 25-35 minutes during rush hours, 30 minutes during midday, and hourly during evenings. Route 46A provides extra service between Square One and Sheridan College's Trafalgar Campus during the academic year. Both branches will run through the transitway.

47 Hamilton - Highway 407

Route 47 runs between Hamilton GO Centre and York University, stopping at Square One Bus Terminal and Bramalea GO Station. This route branch runs every 30-35 minutes during rush hours and 30 minutes during midday and evenings. Among all of the variants of route 47, only routes 47, 47A, 47B, and 47G will serve the transitway. Route 47A provides extra local service between Bramalea GO Station and McMaster University via Square One. Meanwhile, Route 47B provides extra express service between Square One and McMaster University. Route 47G provides hourly weekend service between McMaster University and Yorkdale via Square One. Route 47 provides service year-round, while its branches only run during the academic year. This route is also proposed to have a branch that serves Kipling Station^[4].

Expansion

The current plan cites possible expansion opportunities such as heading west into Oakville via Highway 403 or Highway 407, as well as heading to Pearson International Airport (YYZ) in the east. It may also be extended to reach the proposed multimodal transit terminal at Kipling station on the TTC's Bloor-Danforth subway line via Highway 427 and Dundas Street West.

Proposed Routes

By the opening day,^[4] several possible routes are being planned to run along it:

• The BRT spine route, from Winston Churchill to Kipling Station (to be numbered as Route 100),
• Along the Lisgar and Churchill Meadows communities, from Meadowvale Town Centre to Kipling Station via Winston Churchill Station,
• Along Britannia, Creditview, and Rathburn Roads, from Meadowvale Town Centre to Kipling Station via City Centre, which currently form a part of Route 89,
• Along Mavis Road and Highway 401 from Financial Drive to Kipling Station via City Centre, which currently form a part of Route 82,
• Along Dixie Road from Drew Road to Kipling Station, via Dixie Station, and
• Along Hurontario Street from Shoppers World to Kipling Station via City Centre.

However, there have since been new route proposals that could alter the original service plan.

• Brampton Transit's Route 502 Züm Main is proposed to go all the way to Square One in preparation for LRT.
• In its most recent budgets, Mississauga Transit proposes Route 105 Dixie-Bramalea Express to run between Dixie Outlet Mall and Bramalea City Centre, pending senior government funding.^[5]
• Oakville Transit could serve Mississauga City Centre by one of the branches of the proposed Dundas BRT, using Trafalgar Road and Highway 407^[6].

Future Phases

In future phases, the transitway is expected to be extended westward to Ridgeway Drive, where a station will be constructed. Also, the western section of the transitway, from Confederation to Erin Mills is expected to have a separated right-of-way, therefore gaining a Creditview Station. However, it is not known how the station would connect to the nearby Erindale GO Station. In the City Centre, the platforms along Rathburn Road between Hurontario Street and Living Arts Drive will be shared with the Hurontario-Main Street LRT. The BRT will use the inner side of the platforms, while the LRT will use the outer side because the LRT vehicles will have doors on the left side, while the BRT buses won't. Also, a Centre View Drive station has been protected for future use since it will connect to a possible branch of the proposed Hurontario light rail.^[4]

Stations

The BRT stations would consist of platforms, pedestrian walkways, Kiss & Ride areas and Park & Ride lots. All stations will be wheelchair-accessible () and will have heated waiting areas, similar to Züm^[7].

The following is a list of proposed stations in Phase 1, from west to east^[8] :

Station	GO Transit Stop	Park and Ride	Kiss and Ride	Bus Access	Notes
Winston Churchill	X	335 spaces	X	X
Erin Mills	X	335 spaces	X	X	connection to City Centre via Highway 403's HOV lane and bus bypass shoulders
City Centre	X	210 spaces		X	inter-regional transit terminal connection to Züm Main connection to future Hurontario-Main Street LRT
Central Parkway			X
Cawthra		60 spaces	X
Tomken			X
Dixie	X	170 spaces	X	X
Tahoe					originally Fieldgate [9]
Etobicoke Creek					originally Fieldgate North [9]
Spectrum
Orbitor
Renforth	X			X	airport gateway connection to Kipling Stn via Hwy 427 connection to Eglinton-Scarborough Crosstown line

The Renforth station, to be located one block west at Commerce Blvd, is currently planned to feature an indirect multimodal interchange with the TTC's proposed Eglinton-Scarborough Crosstown line. The interchange will feature a full-service below grade BRT station, but only at-grade median surface stop for the LRT, requiring transferring passengers to cross Commerce Blvd and descend a set of stairs to access the BRT.^[10]

There will be local and express services, with some buses stopping at all stations, and others stopping only at selected major stations.^[8]

Buses

The transitway would use a mix of standard and articulated buses travelling at 80 km/h. The transit corridor will be shared by GO Transit and MiExpress buses for inter-regional and inter-city travel, respectively.

Funding

The project will be funded as part of the Government of Ontario's MoveOntario 2020 plan, with both the federal and provincial governments contributing up to a total of $173 million.^[11]

References

1. ^ "The Mississauga Transitway". Transit Toronto. 2006-11-10. http://transit.toronto.on.ca/gotransit/2109.shtml. Retrieved 2008-04-26. 
2. ^ Rapid - Mississauga Bus Rapid Transit News. 3. Mississauga. Fall 2009. http://www.mississauga.ca/file/COM/BRTnewsletterFall09.pdf. Retrieved 2009-11-08. 
3. ^ http://www.mississauga.com/news/article/905575--city-breaks-ground-on-brt-station
4. ^ ^{a b c d} Rathburn Road Transit Priority Measures: Environmental Project Report. Mississauga. April 2010. http://www5.mississauga.ca/brt/rathburn/april2010/7644_FINALEPR_Apr052010.pdf. Retrieved 2010-04-13. 
5. ^ http://www.mississauga.ca/file/COM/DpttnCBC9Nov2009MississaugaTransit.pdf
6. ^ http://securet.oakville.ca/eams/view.aspx?cabinet=published_meetings&fileid=114656
7. ^ http://www.mississauga.ca/portal/miway/brtstations
8. ^ ^{a b} Rapid - Mississauga Bus Rapid Transit News. 1. Mississauga. Spring 2008. http://www.mississauga.ca/file/COM/BRTSpring08Newsletter.pdf. Retrieved 2009-11-08. 
9. ^ ^{a b} http://transit.toronto.on.ca/gotransit/2109.shtml
10. ^ http://www.toronto.ca/involved/projects/eglinton_crosstown_lrt/pdf/2009-11-20_display_panels_part1.pdf
11. ^ "Mississauga Receives Federal Funding for Bus Rapid Transit Program". City of Mississauga press release. 2007-03-06. http://www.mississauga.ca/portal/home?paf_gear_id=9700020&itemId=90200082. Retrieved 2008-04-26.