Will Mulock GO station bring 15-minute service to Newmarket?

Yorkregion.com
July 1, 2016
By Chris Simon and Lisa Queen

A newly announced GO train station on Mulock Drive brings new ammunition in the fight to extend 15-minute commuter rail service to Newmarket, Regional Councillor John Taylor says.

Last year, the provincial government announced it will dramatically improve GO train service in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area and into Simcoe County during the next decade.

However, while there will be trains running every 15 minutes on the Barrie line from Toronto’s Union Station to Aurora, they will only run every 30 minutes in peak times and every hour in non-peak times from Newmarket north.

But a new Mulock station announced Friday morning by Transportation Minister Steven Del Duca, on the front lawn of the town hall, opens the door to extending 15-minute service up to Mulock, Taylor said, adding the new station will boost transit and economic development in town.

“Looking forward to having the conversation about 15-minute service at Mulock. I did ask Metrolinx previously at council meetings that I would assume 15-minute service hadn’t been analyzed at Mulock because the station didn’t exist and wasn’t a reality,” he said.

“I said I would assume if the station occurred, then the analysis would have to take place and I was told that was a fair statement. So, I hope we can look at an analysis about whether extending the 15-minute service from Aurora to Mulock station would be appropriate and would make sense.”

Newmarket deserves 15-minute service, Taylor said.

“Of course, our thoughts and our feelings on it and our position on it is, as we are a designated urban growth centre with a major regional hospital and Viva rapid transit, it would make a great deal of sense to have 15-minute service to Newmarket,” he said.

“So, I look forward to having that discussion and seeing what the analysis looks like in the future.”

While proponents of extending trains every 15 minutes to Newmarket have been strongly advocating for the enhanced service, Del Duca said he isn’t making any promises.

“I’m not in a position to provide any additional updates with respect to where we can stop 15-minute service at this point in time. But Metrolinx is always looking at ways to make sure we maximize and optimize the investments we are making,” he said.

“We’re not saying no, we’re not saying yes. It still requires additional analysis.”

When asked about the recent sale of the former Magna plant at 402 Mulock Dr., which is located beside the existing GO rail tracks and has long been rumoured as a site for any potential station, Newmarket Mayor Tony Van Bynen noted the property was purchased by a “private enterprise”.

However, he would not rule out the site for a potential station.

“I wouldn’t necessarily say so,” Van Bynen said. “There are a number of options that could be considered. It could be part of a redevelopment complex. We need to remember that this is part of a five to 10-year project. There are a lot of options that could be considered. Long-term plans need some decisions today.”

GO will undertake an analysis to determine the best location for a station, taking into account feasibility of grade separation, town CAO Bob Shelton said.

Newmarket council also passed recommendations related to the GO station Monday night. The town will ask Metrolinx to look at all-day, 15-minute service up to the Mulock station.

Council also wants staff to identify any issues related to the construction of the station, including the need for a secondary plan for the area and the construction of a GO bus station on-site. That report will be presented to council members later this year.

“The idea of having the GO bus and train together in one location, now is the time to do it,” Taylor said.

“Conceptually, that makes sense to me. But we need a much more thorough analysis from people far better than I am at this area.”

The Mulock station was one of three stations on the Barrie line Del Duca announced at Friday’s media conference.

The others are on Kirby Road near Keele Street in Vaughan and in Innisfil.

Del Duca could not say when the stations will be built or how much they will cost, adding that information will flow out publically in coming weeks.

The new stations will come as welcome news to commuters, he said.

“These new stations will help to connect transit and improve transportation options right across the region and improve access to service and help us build ridership,” he said.

“We are giving commuters another reason to leave their cars behind and take transit, which is so fundamental to our economy, to our quality of life and to our fight against climate change.”

Newmarket Mayor Tony Van Bynen applauded the new Mulock station.

“Investing in Newmarket’s infrastructure is crucial to our overall growth and future success. The new Mulock GO train station is a vital component of our work to renew and grow Newmarket for the betterment of our residents and surrounding communities,” he said.

While the Mulock station will be built in Newmarket, it will benefit Aurora because many of the commuters catching the GO train in Aurora come from Newmarket, Mayor Geoff Dawe said.
“I think a station (at Mulock), properly positioned, properly designed, will take a substantial amount of pressure off the Aurora station,” he said.

“I know there are a number of people from Newmarket who come down to our station because it’s easier access than the Newmarket station (at the Tannery at Davis Drive), so I think that will go a long way to relieving the pressure on our station.”

The Newmarket Chamber of Commerce, which runs the Smart Commute Centre York program, is pleased to see a GO station come to Mulock, president Debra Scott said.

The station will make it easier for commuters to get to and from Newmarket and help employers who rely on workers from outside the town, she said.

“This is exciting news and we’re very, very supportive of what’s happening,” she said.

“I think as we see all of these major improvements, including this new stop and the proposed two-way, all-day, seven-day-a-week GO (train) service, it’s going to allow residents to really look at alternative forms of transportation. People seem to have a bit of a behaviour block when it comes to leaving their car at home…The GO train is going to allow people to make alternate choices. It is about behaviour change. We can’t look to government to continue to pave over greenspaces.”

The station, in addition to other transit and transportation improvements taking place, are an economic boon for Newmarket, Scott said.

“Any time you have transit stops, additional stops, coming to Newmarket, it certainly will improve the economy because it allows people to make different decisions when they are looking for employment as well,” she said.