GO Transit is a regional
public transit system serving the Greater
Golden Horseshoe
The Golden Horseshoe is a secondary region of Southern Ontario, Canada, which lies at the western end of Lake Ontario, with outer boundaries stretching south to Lake Erie and north to Lake Scugog, Lake Simcoe and Georgian Bay of Lake Huron. The ...
region of
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
, Canada. With its hub at
Union Station
A union station (also known as a union terminal, a joint station in Europe, and a joint-use station in Japan) is a railway station at which the tracks and facilities are shared by two or more separate railway companies, allowing passengers to ...
in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...
, GO Transit's green-and-white
trains
In rail transport, a train (from Old French , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles that run along a railway track and transport people or freight. Trains are typically pulled or pushed by locomotives (often k ...
and
buses
A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for ...
serve a population of more than seven million across an area over stretching from
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
in the west to
Peterborough
Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire until ...
in the east, and from
Barrie
Barrie is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada, about north of Toronto. The city is within Simcoe County and located along the shores of Kempenfelt Bay, the western arm of Lake Simcoe. Although physically in Simcoe County, Barrie is politically i ...
in the north to
Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls () is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the border between the province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York in the United States. The largest of the three is Horseshoe Fall ...
in the south. In , the system had a ridership of . GO Transit operates
diesel-powered double-decker trains and
coach buses, on routes that connect with all local and some long-distance inter-city transit services in its service area.
GO Transit began regular passenger service on May 23, 1967, as a part of the
Ontario Ministry of Transportation. Since then, it has grown from a single train line to seven lines, and expanded to include complementary bus service.
GO Transit has been constituted in a variety of public-sector configurations. Today, it is an operating division of
Metrolinx
Metrolinx is a Crown agency of the Government of Ontario that manages and integrates road and public transport in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA), which comprises much of Ontario's Golden Horseshoe region. Headquartered at Union ...
, a
provincial Crown agency with overall responsibility for integrative
transportation planning
Transportation planning is the process of defining future policies, goals, investments, and spatial planning designs to prepare for future needs to move people and goods to destinations. As practiced today, it is a collaborative process that ...
within the
Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area
The Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) is a contiguous urban region that is composed of some of the largest cities and metropolitan areas by population in the Canadian province of Ontario. The GTHA consists of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA ...
and is projected to grow dramatically with electrification, increased frequency and new stations through the
GO Expansion
GO Expansion, previously known as GO Regional Express Rail (RER), is a project to improve GO Transit train service by adding all-day, two-way service to the inner portions of the Barrie line, Kitchener line and the Stouffville line, and by in ...
, which is scheduled to be completed in phases through 2025-2032.
History
Early days
Cities in and around the
Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area
The Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) is a contiguous urban region that is composed of some of the largest cities and metropolitan areas by population in the Canadian province of Ontario. The GTHA consists of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA ...
(GTHA) expanded greatly during the 1950s, influenced by growth in immigration and industrialization. Much of the existing commuter service was provided by the
Canadian National Railway
The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I railroad, Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern United States, M ...
(CN), which faced mounting pressure to expand its service beyond the Lakeshore trains it ran between
Hamilton in the west and Danforth in the east, to Toronto; however, CN lacked the financial and physical capital to do this. Real improved commuter service was not considered until the 1962 Metropolitan Toronto and Region Transportation Study, which examined land use and traffic in the newly created
Metropolitan Toronto
The Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto was an Regional municipality, upper-tier level of municipal government in Ontario, Canada, from 1953 to 1998. It was made up of the Old Toronto, old city of Toronto and numerous townships, towns and vill ...
. The idea of GO Transit was created out of fear of becoming lost in years of planning; it was "approached as a test, but recognized to be a permanent service". In May 1965, the government of Ontario granted permission to proceed with the launch of Canada's first specially-designed commuter rail service, at a cost of (CA$ in dollars).
Creation, growth and recession
Government of Ontario Transit (later shortened to "GO Transit") started as a three-year long experiment on May 23, 1967, running single-deck trains powered by diesel locomotives in
push-pull configuration
An aircraft constructed with a push-pull configuration has a combination of forward-mounted tractor (pull) propellers, and backward-mounted ( pusher) propellers.
Historical
The earliest known examples of "push-pull" engined-layout aircraft inc ...
on a single rail line along
Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York. The Canada–United States border sp ...
's shoreline.
[Garcia et al.: Lakeshore corridor] GO Train service ran throughout the day from
Oakville to
Pickering Pickering may refer to:
Places Antarctica
* Pickering Nunataks, Alexander Island
Australia
* Pickering, South Australia, the original name (1872–1940) of the town of Wool Bay
* Pickering Brook, Western Australia, Australia
Canada
* Pic ...
with limited rush hour train service to Hamilton. The experiment proved to be extremely popular; GO Transit carried its first million riders during its first four months, and averaged 15,000 per day soon after. This line, now divided as the
Lakeshore East and
Lakeshore West line
Lakeshore West is one of the seven train lines of the GO Transit system in the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada. It extends from Union Station in Toronto to Hamilton, with occasional trips extending to St. Catharines and Niagara Falls.
H ...
s, is the keystone corridor of GO Transit.
Expansion of rail service continued in the 1970s and 1980s, aimed at developing ridership in with the introduction of the Georgetown (now
Kitchener Kitchener may refer to:
People
* Earl Kitchener, a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom
** Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener (1850–1916), British Field Marshal and 1st Earl Kitchener
** Henry Kitchener, 2nd Earl Kitchener (1846–1937) ...
) line in 1974 and the Richmond Hill line in 1978.
[Garcia et al.: Georgetown corridor][Garcia et al.: Regional Transit Routes] The Milton GO Train line opened in 1981, followed by the Bradford (now
Barrie
Barrie is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada, about north of Toronto. The city is within Simcoe County and located along the shores of Kempenfelt Bay, the western arm of Lake Simcoe. Although physically in Simcoe County, Barrie is politically i ...
) and
Stouffville lines a year later, establishing GO Transit's present-day service of seven rail corridors.
Other than establishing new rail corridors, GO Transit introduced the
Bombardier BiLevel Coach
The Bombardier BiLevel Coach is a bilevel passenger railcar currently built by Alstom and previously by Bombardier, Hawker Siddeley Canada, the Canadian Car and Foundry (Can Car), and the UTDC. Used by North American commuter rail operato ...
es in 1979, in order to increase the number of passengers carried per train. These unique rail cars were developed in partnership with
Bombardier Transportation
Bombardier Transportation was a Canadian-German rolling stock and rail transport manufacturer, headquartered in Berlin, Germany.
It was one of the world's largest companies in the rail vehicle and equipment manufacturing and servicing indus ...
.
Also in 1979, the former Bay Street GO concourse at Union Station was built to accommodate these additional passengers. GO Bus service began on September 8, 1970, extending the original Lakeshore line to Hamilton and Oshawa, as well as providing service north to Newmarket and Barrie. It eventually became a full-fledged network in its own right after 1989, feeding rail service and serving communities beyond the reach of existing trains.
Near the end of 1982, Ontario Minister of Transportation and Communications
James W. Snow announced the launch of
GO-ALRT (Advanced Light Rail Transit), an interregional
light rail transit program providing (1980 dollars) of infrastructure.
[Garcia et al.: GO ALRT] Although this plan was not implemented, certain key objectives from it were established in other ways: additional stations were built, all-day service to
Whitby
Whitby is a seaside town, port and civil parish in the Scarborough borough of North Yorkshire, England. Situated on the east coast of Yorkshire at the mouth of the River Esk, Whitby has a maritime, mineral and tourist heritage. Its East Clif ...
and
Burlington was established and networks of buses and trains interconnected the network.
GO extended limited rush hour train service on the Bradford, Georgetown and both Lakeshore lines and began offering off-peak service on the Milton line in 1990. Train service was also extended to Burlington on the Lakeshore West line in 1992.
[Garcia et al.: Bradford corridor] In a series of cost-cutting measures, then–
Ontario Premier Bob Rae
Robert Keith Rae (born August 2, 1948) is a Canadian diplomat and former politician who is the current Canadian Ambassador to the United Nations since 2020. He previously served as the 21st premier of Ontario from 1990 to 1995, leader of the ...
announced a "temporary" reduction in spending on services, causing all of the expansions of the 1990s to be reduced or eliminated.
Reconfiguration and revival

All day train service was restored from Burlington to Whitby, and peak service was finally brought to Oshawa in 2000. A large initiative to expand the GO Transit network, under the ''GO Transit Rail Improvement Plan'', or ''
GO TRIP'', started in the mid-2000s.
$1billion was invested in multiple rail and bus projects, making it the largest commuter rail project in Canadian history. This was later dwarfed by a further slate of new GO infrastructure proposed in
MoveOntario 2020
MoveOntario 2020 was a 2007 plan proposed by the Government of Ontario that would fund 52 rapid-transit projects throughout the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area in Ontario, Canada. It was succeeded by The Big Move and GO Transit's Go 2020.
Histo ...
, the provincial transit plan announced by Premier
Dalton McGuinty
Dalton James Patrick McGuinty Jr. (born July 19, 1955) is a former Canadian politician who served as the 24th premier of Ontario from 2003 to 2013. He was the first Liberal leader to win two majority governments since Mitchell Hepburn nea ...
in the leadup to the
2007 provincial election. With re-investment in regional transit, GO experienced growth in its train network: all day service was restored to Oshawa in 2006 and
Aldershot
Aldershot () is a town in Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme northeast corner of the county, southwest of London. The area is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Alde ...
in 2007; service was expanded to
Barrie South in 2007, to
Lincolnville in 2008 and to
Kitchener Kitchener may refer to:
People
* Earl Kitchener, a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom
** Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener (1850–1916), British Field Marshal and 1st Earl Kitchener
** Henry Kitchener, 2nd Earl Kitchener (1846–1937) ...
in 2011;
and an excursion train now operates on summer weekends to
Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls () is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the border between the province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York in the United States. The largest of the three is Horseshoe Fall ...
. This service was later expanded to all year round.
GO Transit also went through three major reconfigurations. In January 1997, the province announced it would transfer funding responsibility for GO Transit to GTHA municipalities. The Greater Toronto Services Board, composed of regional municipality chairs, city mayors and municipal councillors, was created as a municipal agency in January 1999, and GO Transit became an arm of this agency in August 1999. However, then-Premier
Mike Harris
Michael Deane Harris (born January 23, 1945) is a Canadian retired politician who served as the 22nd premier of Ontario from 1995 to 2002 and leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (PC Party) from 1990 to 2002. During his time ...
announced the province would re-assume funding responsibility for GO Transit two years later, and this was completed with the abolition of the Greater Toronto Services Board on January 1, 2002. The Greater Toronto Transportation Authority was created in 2006, with the responsibilities of co-ordinating, planning, financing and developing integrated transit in the GTHA. This agency was merged with GO Transit in 2009 under the name Metrolinx. GO Transit continued as an operating division alongside two other major initiatives: the
Union Pearson Express
The Union Pearson Express (UP Express or UPX) is an airport rail link connecting Union Station (Toronto), Union Station in Downtown Toronto to Toronto Pearson International Airport. The UP Express began operation on 6 June 2015, in time for the ...
and
Presto card
The Presto card (stylized as PRESTO) is a contactless smart card automated fare collection system used on participating public transit systems in the province of Ontario, Canada, specifically in Greater Toronto, Hamilton, and Ottawa. Presto ...
.
Future
As part of the
2011 provincial election,
Premier
Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier.
A premier will normally be a head of govern ...
Dalton McGuinty
Dalton James Patrick McGuinty Jr. (born July 19, 1955) is a former Canadian politician who served as the 24th premier of Ontario from 2003 to 2013. He was the first Liberal leader to win two majority governments since Mitchell Hepburn nea ...
made a campaign pledge to provide two-way, full-day train service on all corridors. Metrolinx continues to plan for this service expansion, which is now known as
Regional Express Rail, in likeness to the
service of a similar name in
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
. Part of Metrolinx's
Big Move regional transportation plan, it is estimated to cost and serve 30million additional riders by 2031.
Other possible future rail service extensions identified in GO Transit's 2020 plan include
Niagara Region
The Regional Municipality of Niagara, also colloquially known as the Niagara Region or Region of Niagara, is a regional municipality comprising twelve municipalities of Southern Ontario, Canada. The regional seat is in Thorold. It is the southe ...
,
Bolton
Bolton (, locally ) is a large town in Greater Manchester in North West England, formerly a part of Lancashire. A former mill town, Bolton has been a production centre for textiles since Flemish weavers settled in the area in the 14th ce ...
,
Brantford
Brantford ( 2021 population: 104,688) is a city in Ontario, Canada, founded on the Grand River in Southwestern Ontario. It is surrounded by Brant County, but is politically separate with a municipal government of its own that is fully independ ...
,
Peterborough
Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire until ...
and
Uxbridge
Uxbridge () is a suburban town in west London and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon. Situated west-northwest of Charing Cross, it is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Uxb ...
.
Metrolinx also announced plans in January 2011 to
electrify the Lakeshore West, Lakeshore East and Kitchener rail lines, as well as the
Union Pearson Express
The Union Pearson Express (UP Express or UPX) is an airport rail link connecting Union Station (Toronto), Union Station in Downtown Toronto to Toronto Pearson International Airport. The UP Express began operation on 6 June 2015, in time for the ...
.
In 2021, Metrolinx announced a pilot service to
London, Ontario
London (pronounced ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River, approximat ...
, with one train towards Toronto in the morning and one train returning to London in the evening. At this time, the Presto card cannot be used for such trips and riders must pre-purchase digital tickets in advance.
Improvements are being made to
Union Station
A union station (also known as a union terminal, a joint station in Europe, and a joint-use station in Japan) is a railway station at which the tracks and facilities are shared by two or more separate railway companies, allowing passengers to ...
, which is the busiest passenger transportation facility in Canada, and is expected to have its current passenger traffic double in the next 10 to 15 years.
Improvements underway include a new roof and glass atrium covering the platforms and railway tracks, new passenger concourses, additional staircases and vertical access points and general visual improvements to the station.
Other longer term options such as a second downtown station and/or connections to a future
Relief Subway Line are also being studied to meet future demand.
GO Transit is currently undergoing the
GO Expansion
GO Expansion, previously known as GO Regional Express Rail (RER), is a project to improve GO Transit train service by adding all-day, two-way service to the inner portions of the Barrie line, Kitchener line and the Stouffville line, and by in ...
,
a project to improve
GO Transit
GO Transit is a regional public transit system serving the Greater Golden Horseshoe region of Ontario, Canada. With its hub at Union Station in Toronto, GO Transit's green-and-white trains and buses serve a population of more than seven millio ...
train service by adding all-day, two-way service to the inner portions of the
Barrie line
Barrie is one of the seven train lines of the GO Transit system in the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada. It extends from Union Station in Toronto in a generally northward direction to Barrie, and includes ten stations along its route. ...
,
Kitchener line
Kitchener is one of the seven train lines of the GO Transit system in the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada. It extends westward from Union Station in Toronto to Kitchener, though most trains originate and terminate in Brampton in off-peak h ...
and the
Stouffville line
The Stouffville line is one of the seven train lines of the GO Transit system in the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada. Its southern terminus is Union Station in Toronto, and its northern terminus is (formerly "Lincolnville") in Whitchurc ...
, and by increasing frequency of train service on various lines to every 15 minutes or better on five of the corridors, with several new stations being built both within
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...
and throughout the
GTHA
The Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) is a contiguous urban region that is composed of some of the largest cities and metropolitan areas by population in the Canadian province of Ontario. The GTHA consists of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA ...
. This will be achieved with the electrification of at least part of the
Lakeshore East line
Lakeshore East is one of the seven commuter rail lines of GO Transit in the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada. It extends from Union Station in Toronto to in Durham Region. Buses from Oshawa connect to communities further east in Newc ...
,
Lakeshore West line
Lakeshore West is one of the seven train lines of the GO Transit system in the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada. It extends from Union Station in Toronto to Hamilton, with occasional trips extending to St. Catharines and Niagara Falls.
H ...
, Barrie line, Kitchener line and Stouffville line.
GO Transit will increase the number of train trips per week from 1,500 (as of 2015) to about 2,200 by 2020 and expand to 10,500 weekly trips upon completion. Most of the extra trips will be in off-peak hours and on weekends. The expanded services, new infrastructure and electrification is projected to roll out in phases between 2025 and 2030. The 10-year regional express rail plan will cost $13.5 billion
and will require of new track, including new bridges and tunnels.
Service
Service area

GO Transit primarily serves the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area–the cities of
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...
and
Hamilton and the surrounding regions of
Halton,
Peel
Peel or Peeling may refer to:
Places Australia
* Peel (Western Australia)
* Peel Island, Queensland
*Peel, New South Wales
* Peel River (New South Wales)
Canada
* Peel Parish, New Brunswick
* Peel, New Brunswick, an unincorporated communi ...
,
York
York is a cathedral city with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many hist ...
and
Durham Durham most commonly refers to:
*Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham
*County Durham, an English county
* Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States
*Durham, North Carolina, a city in N ...
. GO Transit's lines extend into the nearby
Niagara and
Waterloo Regions, the cities of
Brantford
Brantford ( 2021 population: 104,688) is a city in Ontario, Canada, founded on the Grand River in Southwestern Ontario. It is surrounded by Brant County, but is politically separate with a municipal government of its own that is fully independ ...
and
Peterborough
Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire until ...
, and
Simcoe Simcoe may refer to:
Geography Canada
* Simcoe, Ontario, a town in southwestern Ontario, near Lake Erie, Canada
* Simcoe County, a county in central Ontario, Canada
* Lake Simcoe, a lake in central Ontario, Canada
* Simcoe North, a federal and pr ...
,
Dufferin and
Wellington
Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by m ...
counties
—an area largely coextensive with the Greater Golden Horseshoe. Under the provincial charter, GO Transit is permitted to serve cities elsewhere in Ontario, but has no plans of doing so.
In total, GO trains and buses serve a population of 7million in an area radiating in places more than from downtown Toronto. Present extrema are
Brantford
Brantford ( 2021 population: 104,688) is a city in Ontario, Canada, founded on the Grand River in Southwestern Ontario. It is surrounded by Brant County, but is politically separate with a municipal government of its own that is fully independ ...
and
Kitchener Kitchener may refer to:
People
* Earl Kitchener, a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom
** Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener (1850–1916), British Field Marshal and 1st Earl Kitchener
** Henry Kitchener, 2nd Earl Kitchener (1846–1937) ...
to the west;
Orangeville, Barrie and
Beaverton to the north;
Peterborough
Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire until ...
and
Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to:
*Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England
*Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England
*Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...
to the east; and
Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls () is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the border between the province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York in the United States. The largest of the three is Horseshoe Fall ...
to the south.
The GO system map shows seven train lines (or corridors), all departing from Toronto's
Union Station
A union station (also known as a union terminal, a joint station in Europe, and a joint-use station in Japan) is a railway station at which the tracks and facilities are shared by two or more separate railway companies, allowing passengers to ...
and mostly named respectively after the outer terminus of train service:
:
Lakeshore West (to
Hamilton and
Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls () is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the border between the province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York in the United States. The largest of the three is Horseshoe Fall ...
, with buses to
Brantford
Brantford ( 2021 population: 104,688) is a city in Ontario, Canada, founded on the Grand River in Southwestern Ontario. It is surrounded by Brant County, but is politically separate with a municipal government of its own that is fully independ ...
)
:
Lakeshore East (to
Oshawa
Oshawa ( , also ; 2021 population 175,383; CMA 415,311) is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the Lake Ontario shoreline. It lies in Southern Ontario, approximately east of Downtown Toronto. It is commonly viewed as the eastern anchor of the ...
, with buses to
Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to:
*Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England
*Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England
*Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...
and
Peterborough
Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire until ...
)
:
Milton
:
Kitchener Kitchener may refer to:
People
* Earl Kitchener, a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom
** Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener (1850–1916), British Field Marshal and 1st Earl Kitchener
** Henry Kitchener, 2nd Earl Kitchener (1846–1937) ...
:
Barrie
Barrie is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada, about north of Toronto. The city is within Simcoe County and located along the shores of Kempenfelt Bay, the western arm of Lake Simcoe. Although physically in Simcoe County, Barrie is politically i ...
:
Richmond Hill (to
Oak Ridges)
:
Stouffville (to
Lincolnville, with buses to
Uxbridge
Uxbridge () is a suburban town in west London and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon. Situated west-northwest of Charing Cross, it is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Uxb ...
)
Although colours are assigned in a consistent fashion to each line in all official media, in colloquial parlance lines are only ever referred to by their names. Buses are numbered in blocks of 10, corresponding to the nearest train line, with the 40s and 50s reserved for express services along the
407 ETR
King's Highway 407, commonly referred to as Highway 407 and colloquially as the "four-oh-seven", is a tolled 400-series highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. Comprising a privately leased segment as well as a publicly owned segment, the ...
corridor which does not have a corresponding train line.
Operations
Rail

GO Transit's
commuter rail
Commuter rail, or suburban rail, is a passenger rail transport service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting commuters to a central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter towns. Generally commuter rail systems are co ...
services carry the large majority of its overall ridership. Until 2012, five GO Train lines operated only during weekday
rush hour periods in the peak direction (inbound towards Union Station in the morning and outbound in the afternoons and early evenings), with off-peak service on these routes being
provided solely by buses. Since then, partial off-peak train service has been added to three of these lines. The present off-peak service is as follows:
*the Lakeshore West and Lakeshore East lines operate half-hourly trains on weekdays off-peak hours and weekends, with weekend service on Lakeshore West extending as far as
Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls () is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the border between the province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York in the United States. The largest of the three is Horseshoe Fall ...
. Nearly all trains on the two lines are through-routed, making it possible to travel between
Aldershot
Aldershot () is a town in Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme northeast corner of the county, southwest of London. The area is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Alde ...
(or Niagara Falls) and
Oshawa
Oshawa ( , also ; 2021 population 175,383; CMA 415,311) is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the Lake Ontario shoreline. It lies in Southern Ontario, approximately east of Downtown Toronto. It is commonly viewed as the eastern anchor of the ...
without having to change trains at Union Station. They are to date the only lines with all-day train service 7 days a week.
*the Kitchener line provides hourly, two-way midday and late evening service as far as
Mount Pleasant station in Brampton on weekdays only, with two off-peak weekday trains going all the way to Kitchener. There is also one daily round trip to London, Ontario. There is no weekend service.
*the Barrie line has all-day weekday and weekend train services along the entire line, although most of them only go as far as
Aurora
An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of bri ...
*the Stouffville has hourly midday and late evening service as far as
Mount Joy on weekdays only and hourly weekend service in both directions
The Richmond Hill and Milton lines continue to operate during rush hours only, although there has been an increasing number of trips on these lines in recent years. As part of the Regional Express Rail plan, there are plans to eventually offer two-way, all-day 15-minute service on the central sections of the remaining five lines. Nevertheless, rush-hour service accounts for over 90 per cent of GO Train ridership.
= Rolling stock
=
GO Transit's
rolling stock
The term rolling stock in the rail transport industry refers to railway vehicles, including both powered and unpowered vehicles: for example, locomotives, freight and passenger cars (or coaches), and non-revenue cars. Passenger vehicles can ...
uses
push-pull equipment. Its
passenger car
A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods.
The year 1886 is regarded as t ...
fleet is composed entirely of
Bombardier BiLevel Coach
The Bombardier BiLevel Coach is a bilevel passenger railcar currently built by Alstom and previously by Bombardier, Hawker Siddeley Canada, the Canadian Car and Foundry (Can Car), and the UTDC. Used by North American commuter rail operato ...
es built in
Thunder Bay, Ontario
Thunder Bay is a city in and the seat of Thunder Bay District, Ontario, Canada. It is the most populous municipality in Northwestern Ontario and the second most populous (after Greater Sudbury) municipality in Northern Ontario; its population i ...
.
These
double-decker coaches, which have an elongated-octagon shape, were designed in the mid-1970s for GO Transit by
Hawker Siddeley Canada
Hawker Siddeley Canada was the Canadian unit of the Hawker Siddeley Group of the United Kingdom and manufactured railcars, subway cars, streetcars, aircraft engines and ships from the 1960s to 1980s.
History
Founded in 1962 as the Canadian divis ...
as a more efficient replacement for GO's original single-deck coaches, built by the same company. Later coaches were manufactured by
Can-Car/
UTDC
The Urban Transportation Development Corporation Ltd. (UTDC) was a Crown corporation owned by the Government of Ontario, Canada. It was established in the 1970s as a way to enter what was then expected to be a burgeoning market in advanced l ...
and the most recent coaches are produced by
Bombardier Transportation
Bombardier Transportation was a Canadian-German rolling stock and rail transport manufacturer, headquartered in Berlin, Germany.
It was one of the world's largest companies in the rail vehicle and equipment manufacturing and servicing indus ...
, who now owns the designs and manufacturing facilities. GO Transit owns approximately 700 BiLevel Coaches, which are also used by a number of other
commuter railways across North America. They have a seating capacity of 162 people per coach, or 1,944 per train.
All upper levels of the coaches on rush hour trains are designated "Quiet Zones".

The coaches are primarily hauled by
MPI MPXpress
MPXpress is a series of diesel-electric passenger train locomotives designed for commuter rail service. The locomotives are built by MotivePower, a subsidiary of Wabtec. To date, MPI has offered five main variants: MP36PH-3S, MP36PH-3C, MP40PH-3 ...
series locomotives. The current model, the 4000-
horsepower
Horsepower (hp) is a unit of measurement of power, or the rate at which work is done, usually in reference to the output of engines or motors. There are many different standards and types of horsepower. Two common definitions used today are th ...
MP40PH-3C, is more powerful than their predecessors, the
EMD F59PH
The EMD F59PH is a four-axle B-B diesel-electric locomotive built by General Motors Electro-Motive Division from 1988 to 1994. A variant, the F59PHI, was produced from 1994 to 2001. The F59PH was originally built for GO Transit commuter ope ...
. They are capable of pulling or pushing trains of 12 coaches instead of 10.
More than 60 of these locomotives have been ordered since their introduction in 2006, with a further 16 types of an even more powerful model, the 5400-horsepower MP54AC, to enter service in coming years. Opposite the locomotive, trains are bookended by
cab cars, which are coaches with driver controls incorporated into them. While most of them closely resemble ordinary coaches, GO Transit began upgrading their rail fleet with newly designed, more
crashworthy
Crashworthiness is the ability of a structure to protect its occupants during an impact. This is commonly tested when investigating the safety of aircraft and vehicles. Depending on the nature of the impact and the vehicle involved, different crit ...
cab cars in the summer of 2015, incorporating an improved visibility, safety features and comfort for train crews.
Rolling stock is maintained at the
Willowbrook Rail Maintenance Facility, located west of
Mimico station in Toronto and also at the newer
Whitby Rail Maintenance Facility. The Willowbrook facility occupies the Willowbrook Yard, a historical freight yard established by
Grand Trunk Railway
The Grand Trunk Railway (; french: Grand Tronc) was a railway system that operated in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario and in the American states of Connecticut, Maine, Michigan, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The rai ...
in 1910. GO Transit acquired the Willowbrook Yard from Canadian National sometime after its inception, and built and expanded the Willowbrook facility onsite to maintain the expanding fleet. GO Transit built a second maintenance facility covering in
Whitby
Whitby is a seaside town, port and civil parish in the Scarborough borough of North Yorkshire, England. Situated on the east coast of Yorkshire at the mouth of the River Esk, Whitby has a maritime, mineral and tourist heritage. Its East Clif ...
to accommodate additional trains for its upcoming Regional Express Rail project, and was completed by the end of 2017.
= Ownership and crews
=
GO has always owned its locomotives and coaches, but its trackage used to be owned entirely by Canada's two major commercial railways: the large majority by the
Canadian National Railway
The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I railroad, Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern United States, M ...
(CN) and the remainder (the current Milton line) by
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canad ...
(CP). In 1988, as part of expanding service east of Pickering, GO built its first section of self-owned purpose-built trackage. From 1998 until 2009, GO owned only six per cent of the railway trackage on which it operated. Starting in 2009, Metrolinx incrementally acquired further trackage from the two commercial railways in order to improve GO service. As of 2014, Metrolinx has complete ownership of the Barrie, Stouffville and Lakeshore East lines, and a majority of the Lakeshore West, Richmond Hill, and Kitchener lines. CP still owns most of the Milton line. This puts Metrolinx ownership at 69 per cent of GO Transit's trackage.

Each train runs with a three-person crew: two
operators
Operator may refer to:
Mathematics
* A symbol indicating a mathematical operation
* Logical operator or logical connective in mathematical logic
* Operator (mathematics), mapping that acts on elements of a space to produce elements of another sp ...
control the train from the
cab at the front end of the train and handle related operations, while a third crew member is the
Customer Service Ambassador. Stationed in a designated car in the middle of each train, the Customer Service Ambassador operates the doors and
wheelchair ramp
A wheelchair ramp is an inclined plane installed in addition to or instead of stairs. Ramps permit wheelchair users, as well as people pushing strollers, carts, or other wheeled objects, to more easily access a building, or navigate between ...
, makes station stop announcements, and is dedicated to
assisting customers on board.
Alstom Transport is responsible for providing train operations, taking over from Bombardier Transportation in 2021.
GO trains achieve on-time performance of approximately 95 per cent,
and a refund will be provided if a train is more than 15 minutes late, with some conditions.
Bus

GO Bus service consists of a combination of routes, many of which stand in for train service when it is not operating and/or which extend the reach of train service to communities beyond their terminal. Other GO buses are independent of rail services, such as the
Highway 407 series of routes, which provides an orbital-type service that encircles Toronto proper and makes connections between all train lines. There are also routes that serve
Pearson International Airport
Lester B. Pearson International Airport , commonly known as Toronto Pearson International Airport, is an international airport located in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. It is the main airport serving Toronto, its metropolitan area, and the sur ...
, seasonal destinations such as several colleges and universities. The vast majority of GO train stations have connecting GO bus service, of which almost all the exceptions are situated within Toronto proper. There are also 16
bus terminals served by GO buses, many of which provide local transit connections, as well as
intermediate stops and
ticket agencies.
The first buses operated by GO Transit, a suburban variant of the
GM New Look bus
The GM New Look bus is a municipal transit bus that was introduced in 1959 by the Truck and Coach Division of General Motors to replace the company's previous coach, retroactively known as the GM "old-look" transit bus.
Also commonly known b ...
, were unveiled at
Queen's Park on August 11, 1970, about a month before commencing operations on its expanded services east, west and north of Toronto.
Operated by
Gray Coach, a pilot program to test them was conducted in
Pickering Pickering may refer to:
Places Antarctica
* Pickering Nunataks, Alexander Island
Australia
* Pickering, South Australia, the original name (1872–1940) of the town of Wool Bay
* Pickering Brook, Western Australia, Australia
Canada
* Pic ...
before they entered service on 8 September 1970.
Later buses included a combination of single-door, suburban-type
transit bus
Transit may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film
* ''Transit'' (1979 film), a 1979 Israeli film
* ''Transit'' (2005 film), a film produced by MTV and Staying-Alive about four people in countries in the world
* ''Transit'' (2006 film), a 2006 ...
es built by
Orion Bus Industries
Orion Bus Industries, also known as Bus Industries of America in the United States, was a private bus manufacturer based in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.
The company had its main manufacturing plant in Mississauga and sent bus body shells to ...
and
New Flyer
New Flyer is a Canadian multinational bus manufacturer, specializing in the production of transit buses. New Flyer is owned by the NFI Group, a holding company for several bus manufacturers. New Flyer has several manufacturing facilities in C ...
, and single-level
highway coaches built by
Prevost Car
Prevost (, , formally known as Prevost Car) is a Canadian manufacturer of touring coaches and bus shells for high-end motorhomes and specialty conversions. The company is a subsidiary of the Volvo Buses division of the Volvo Group.
History
...
and
Motor Coach Industries
Motor Coach Industries (MCI) is a North American multinational bus manufacturer, specializing in production of motorcoaches. Best known for coaches produced for intercity transit and commuter buses, MCI produces coaches for a variety of appli ...
(MCI, now a subsidiary of New Flyer).
Today, GO Transit operates a combination of single-level coach buses and commuter-type
double-decker bus
A double-decker bus or double-deck bus is a bus that has two storeys or decks. They are used for mass transport in the United Kingdom, the United States, New Zealand, Europe, Asia and also in cities such as Sydney; the best-known example is the ...
es. All buses are equipped with
bike racks and are
wheelchair accessible
Accessibility is the design of products, devices, services, vehicles, or environments so as to be usable by people with disabilities. The concept of accessible design and practice of accessible development ensures both "direct access" (i.e ...
. Most of the older buses in the fleet are , single-level
D4500CT coach buses built by
Motor Coach Industries
Motor Coach Industries (MCI) is a North American multinational bus manufacturer, specializing in production of motorcoaches. Best known for coaches produced for intercity transit and commuter buses, MCI produces coaches for a variety of appli ...
, which can seat 57 people and features a
platform lift. The first models of this type entered service in 2001 and orders have continued until 2015. In April 2008, GO began operating
Enviro 500 double-decker bus
A double-decker bus or double-deck bus is a bus that has two storeys or decks. They are used for mass transport in the United Kingdom, the United States, New Zealand, Europe, Asia and also in cities such as Sydney; the best-known example is the ...
es built by British manufacturer
Alexander Dennis
Alexander Dennis is a British bus manufacturing company based in Larbert, Scotland. The largest bus and coach manufacturer in the United Kingdom with a 50% market share in 2019, it has manufacturing plants and partnerships in Canada, China, E ...
in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
.
These buses come in three different designs differing mainly in their size and
height
Height is measure of vertical distance, either vertical extent (how "tall" something or someone is) or vertical position (how "high" a point is).
For example, "The height of that building is 50 m" or "The height of an airplane in-flight is ab ...
. All double deckers have a
low-floor design and a wheelchair ramp at the front door.
The first two batches of double deckers have a height of , too tall to meet many height standards set by the provincial
Ministry of Transportation
A ministry of transport or transportation is a ministry responsible for transportation within a country. It usually is administered by the ''minister for transport''. The term is also sometimes applied to the departments or other government a ...
. Thus, they are restricted to routes which avoid low
bridge
A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...
s and
underpass
A tunnel is an underground passageway, dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, and enclosed except for the entrance and exit, commonly at each end. A pipeline is not a tunnel, though some recent tunnels have used immersed tube cons ...
es. In particular, they are found exclusively on routes on the
Highway 407 and
Highway 403 corridors, providing service between Peel and York Regions.
In 2012, GO ordered new Enviro500 double-decker units for its fleet. Designated as "Go-Anywhere" models, they have a redesigned front end, based on the
Enviro400 (and which would later form the basis for the global Enviro500 MMC refreshed design), and a height of , lower than the previous models. The lower height allows these buses to meet many more clearance standards as a result and are used on a wider variety of routes, including those that travel on
Highway 401
King's Highway 401, commonly referred to as Highway 401 and also known by its official name as the Macdonald–Cartier Freeway or colloquially referred to as the four-oh-one,
is a Controlled-access highway, controlled-access 400-series high ...
. Three additional batches of "Go-Anywhere" Enviro500s were ordered until 2015.
Despite the lower height, these buses are still too high to fit in a number of GO terminals, namely
Hamilton,
Yorkdale,
York Mills
York Mills is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is centred around Yonge Street and York Mills Road located in the district of North York. In 2010, it encompassed the fourth and seventh most affluent postal codes in Canada. It is ...
, and
Union Station
A union station (also known as a union terminal, a joint station in Europe, and a joint-use station in Japan) is a railway station at which the tracks and facilities are shared by two or more separate railway companies, allowing passengers to ...
. Beginning in 2016, GO Transit began placing further orders of Enviro500 double-deckers. These buses, designed specifically for the GO Transit network and designated as "Super-Lo", have an even lower height of , low enough to operate on virtually the entire GO bus network.
They also have a longer length than previous orders, being long (the same as its coach buses), and dedicated space for luggage at the rear. The chassis for these vehicles are being locally assembled at a newly established facility in
Vaughan
Vaughan () (2021 population 323,103) is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is located in the Regional Municipality of York, just north of Toronto. Vaughan was the fastest-growing municipality in Canada between 1996 and 2006 with its population increas ...
, creating up to 30 new full-time jobs.
Stations and connections
GO Transit stations are designed to provide seamless and barrier-free connections between its trains and buses. They include amenities such as elevators, washrooms, parking, pay phones, ticket vending machines, ticket sale kiosks and
automated teller machine
An automated teller machine (ATM) or cash machine (in British English) is an electronic telecommunications device that enables customers of financial institutions to perform financial transactions, such as cash withdrawals, deposits, f ...
s. All GO stations have Presto card readers. Most bus terminals are also served with a ticket sales booth or vending machine. As of 2016, the capital costs of building a GO Transit train station is about $50 to .
Most GO stations include large commuter parking lots, some of which have recently included large parking structures, and also include onsite bus loops for buses making timed connections to GO Buses.
Some GO train stations are shared with
Union Pearson Express
The Union Pearson Express (UP Express or UPX) is an airport rail link connecting Union Station (Toronto), Union Station in Downtown Toronto to Toronto Pearson International Airport. The UP Express began operation on 6 June 2015, in time for the ...
(commuter train services from
Toronto Union Station to
Pearson Airport
Lester B. Pearson International Airport , commonly known as Toronto Pearson International Airport, is an international airport located in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. It is the main airport serving Toronto, its metropolitan area, and the sur ...
),
Via Rail
Via Rail Canada Inc. (), operating as Via Rail or Via, is a Canadian Crown corporation that is mandated to operate intercity passenger rail service in Canada. It receives an annual subsidy from Transport Canada to offset the cost of operati ...
(Canada's national passenger rail services) and
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada ...
(which offers passenger train service to the United States). GO also connects with fifteen other municipal transit providers, such as the
Toronto Transit Commission
The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) is the public transport agency that operates bus, subway, streetcar, and paratransit services in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, some of which run into the Peel Region and York Region. It is the oldest and largest ...
(TTC) and
York Region Transit
York Region Transit (YRT) is the public transit operator in York Region, Ontario, Canada. Its headquarters are in Richmond Hill, at 50 High Tech Road.
YRT operates 65 full-time, rush hour and limited routes, 35 school services, and six Viva b ...
(YRT), as well as several long-distance intercity bus services, such as
Ontario Northland
The Ontario Northland Transportation Commission (ONTC), or simply Ontario Northland, is a Crown agency of the Government of Ontario responsible for providing transportation services for passengers and goods in northern Ontario. It reports to ...
,
Megabus Megabus may refer to:
*Megabus (Europe), a low-cost coach service with services in Europe owned by ComfortDelGro.
*Megabus (North America), a low-cost bus service in the United States and Canada owned by Variant Equity Advisors.
*Megabús
The Meg ...
,
TOK Coachlines and United States-bound
Greyhound Lines
Greyhound Lines, Inc. (commonly known as simply Greyhound) operates the largest intercity bus service in North America, including Greyhound Mexico. It also operates charter bus services, Amtrak Thruway services, commuter bus services, and ...
services.
Metrolinx
Metrolinx is a Crown agency of the Government of Ontario that manages and integrates road and public transport in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA), which comprises much of Ontario's Golden Horseshoe region. Headquartered at Union ...
calls many of these transfer points between services
mobility hubs, and it has made them a priority as it moves forward with ''
The Big Move
The Big Move is the regional transportation plan (RTP) published by Metrolinx for the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) in Ontario, Canada. It makes specific recommendations for transit projects, resulting from seven " green papers" an ...
'' regional transportation plan.
Ridership
On an average weekday, GO runs 322 train trips carrying 206,167 riders, and 2,386 bus trips carrying 48,477 passengers. This adds up to 254,644 passengers throughout the entire system.
In 2017, GO Transit ridership totalled 68.5million, and if expansion plans are realized, is projected to total over 200million by 2055.
At least 91 per cent of the train ridership is to and from Union Station in downtown Toronto, while about 70% of all bus passengers travel to and from the City of Toronto.
The average trip taken by a passenger is long. Most GO Transit commuters have a private vehicle available to them for their commute, but choose to use GO Transit instead. About 80% of train commuters and 60% of bus commuters choose GO Transit over driving.
Over half of GO's ridership occurs on the Lakeshore West and East lines, which can be attributed to the almost continuous development along their corridors, as well as being the only two lines with two way, all day service since their inception. This is followed by the Milton line, carrying almost 14% of all ridership. Other corridors carry 4–11% of riders each.
Fares

Fares on the network are based on a zone tariff set between two specified points by GO Transit, and the type of passenger using the ticket.
Tickets are sold for single trip, or passes for one day or one month.
Tickets can be used on a GO train, bus, or a combination of both. They can be purchased at train stations, bus terminals and ticket agencies.
Passenger categories exist for adults, youth, students, seniors and groups. As of March 9, 2019, passengers aged 12 and under ride GO Transit for free.
The
Presto card
The Presto card (stylized as PRESTO) is a contactless smart card automated fare collection system used on participating public transit systems in the province of Ontario, Canada, specifically in Greater Toronto, Hamilton, and Ottawa. Presto ...
, available on all GO trains and buses, is a unified
smart card
A smart card, chip card, or integrated circuit card (ICC or IC card) is a physical electronic authentication device, used to control access to a resource. It is typically a plastic credit card-sized card with an embedded integrated circuit (IC) c ...
-based payment system used throughout the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area. Presto is a sister operating division of Metrolinx and the card can also be used on numerous local transit agencies in the GTHA such as the
Toronto Transit Commission
The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) is the public transport agency that operates bus, subway, streetcar, and paratransit services in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, some of which run into the Peel Region and York Region. It is the oldest and largest ...
and
York Region Transit
York Region Transit (YRT) is the public transit operator in York Region, Ontario, Canada. Its headquarters are in Richmond Hill, at 50 High Tech Road.
YRT operates 65 full-time, rush hour and limited routes, 35 school services, and six Viva b ...
as well as on
OC Transpo
OC Transpo, officially the Ottawa-Carleton Regional Transit Commission, is the public transit agency for the city of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It operates an integrated hub-and-spoke system including light metro, bus rapid transit, conventional ...
in Ottawa. As of March 14, 2022, free transfers to most connecting local transit systems throughout the GTHA (except TTC) are included with the GO Transit fare.
The Presto system allows passengers to load money on a reloadable card. Passengers pay their fare by "tapping" on and off on busses and trains. With each tap, the system calculates the fare for the ride, and it is deducted from the balance of the card. The card can also be linked to a credit or debit card and set on autoload, so that it automatically adds a certain amount of money as soon as the balance decreases past a certain level.
Since August 11, 2022, contactless credit cards & their associated mobile wallets such as Apple and Google Pay have been accepted on GO Transit. These are used in a similar fashion to PRESTO cards, in which a passenger taps on and off with their credit card.
GO Trains use a "
proof-of-payment
Proof-of-payment (POP) or proof-of-fare (POF) is an honor-based fare collection system used on many public transportation systems. Instead of checking each passenger as they enter a fare control zone, passengers are required to carry a ticket, p ...
" policy where the fare system is run on an "
honour system". Passengers are required to carry a valid GO paper ticket or pass, digital mobile ticket or pass, a validated credit card or mobile wallet or Presto card to prove that they paid for their fares. Passengers may be subject to random fare inspections at any time during travel. This system is designed to reduce costs and improve efficiency. Enforcement of this system is carried out via Metrolinx's By-law No. 2 that, by reference to the ''Provincial Offences Act'', imposes a fine for fare evasion.
If a child under 12 is alone on the transit vehicles, they must show valid ID such as a Birth Certificate, Student ID, etc.
Logo
The GO Transit logo has remained largely unchanged since the agency was founded. The design was created by Gagnon/Valkus, a
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...
-based design firm that was also responsible for the corporate identities of
Canadian National
The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States.
CN ...
and
Hydro-Québec
Hydro-Québec is a public utility that manages the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity in the Canadian province of Quebec, as well as the export of power to portions of the Northeast United States.
It was established by th ...
.
The firm's team wanted to create a unified logo using the initials of the Government of Ontario ("GO"), via two circles with a ''T'' incorporated into it. Lead designer Frank Fox described the creation of the logo as "a happy accident. More or less, we had this feeling among us that this couldn't be true. We went off trying many other solutions, but nothing else was good enough."
The logo has since become woven into the
cityscape
In the visual arts, a cityscape (urban landscape) is an artistic representation, such as a painting, drawing, print or photograph, of the physical aspects of a city or urban area. It is the urban equivalent of a landscape. ''Townscape'' i ...
of Toronto, and is a prominent identifier of the agency. As one
graphic design expert stated, it achieved "an enviable goal that most graphic designers strive to accomplish with any logo they design". Only one minor revision was made after the original version was unveiled: while the ''G'' and ''O'' used to touch each other, a gap now exists with a bolder white ''T'' to enhance them.
The primary corporate colour was known as "GO Green", matched the green on
Ontario Highway
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Cana ...
signs, and was used on all vehicles, signage, and printed material. In 2013, GO introduced a two-tone colour scheme that changed the primary colour to a darker green, and added a second lighter apple green. The changes were made to better harmonize with the branding of Metrolinx and its other operating divisions, as well as to improve its display digitally.
Safety and security
By-law No. 2
GO Transit By-law No. 2 is a document of rules and regulations governing actions of passengers and employees while on GO Transit property, which includes land, facilities, trains, buses and other structures. Besides issues relating to fares, the by-law specifies permissible and prohibited actions such as staying in designated safe areas, commercial or distribution activities, parking and other personal actions that promote or endanger the safety of passengers. It covers items like paying fares, parking, general behaviour, fines and rule enforcement. These rules can be enforced by a "proper authority" which is defined as "an employee or agent of GO Transit wearing a GO Transit uniform
rcarrying an identification card issued by GO Transit, a GO Transit Special Constable, or a municipal police officer". Any contravention of the by-law can result in a fine under the ''Provincial Offences Act''.
Enforcement

GO Transit employs Transit Safety Officers, who are designated
special constables that patrol Metrolinx properties, and are responsible for ensuring passenger safety and protection, enforcing relevant laws or by-laws, offering customer assistance and supporting local police, fire and ambulance, and promoting railway safety.
Under the ''
Police Services Act'', Transit Safety Officers are appointed by the Commissioner of the
Ontario Provincial Police
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) is the provincial police service of Ontario, Canada. Under its provincial mandate, the OPP patrols provincial highways and waterways, protects provincial government buildings and officials, patrols unincor ...
, with approval from the
Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services. In addition to By-law No. 2, they have the authority to enforce other certain federal and provincial laws.
GO Transit also employs Provincial Offences Officers, known as Revenue Protection Officers, to enforce the
proof-of-payment
Proof-of-payment (POP) or proof-of-fare (POF) is an honor-based fare collection system used on many public transportation systems. Instead of checking each passenger as they enter a fare control zone, passengers are required to carry a ticket, p ...
system. GO Transit operates a 24-hour Transit Safety Communications centre operated by Communications Operators. They are mainly responsible for taking calls from the public with regards to actionable complaints, dispatching special constables or relevant emergency services to all areas serviced by Metrolinx.
Incidents
On December 12, 1975, a westbound GO train collided with a
Toronto Transit Commission
The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) is the public transport agency that operates bus, subway, streetcar, and paratransit services in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, some of which run into the Peel Region and York Region. It is the oldest and largest ...
(TTC)
bus
A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...
that was stalled on a crossing at St. Clair and Midland Avenue. Nine passengers on the bus were killed and 20 others were injured. This was the worst accident in terms of loss of life in the history of the TTC and GO Transit systems. The level crossing was replaced by an overpass a few years later.
On November 17, 1997, an empty train collided with another train waiting to depart Union Station with over 800 passengers on board. The empty train's locomotive engineer was at the opposite end of the train, and the conductor at the leading end failed in his attempts to relay the situation to the engineer or apply the emergency brake. The two trains then collided at a speed of , causing a partial derailment and minor injuries to fifty-four passengers and two crew members. The subsequent
Transportation Safety Board report made recommendations, including making emergency brakes more accessible and that the locomotive engineer must always control the train from the leading end in the
Union Station Rail Corridor
The Union Station Rail Corridor (USRC) is a corridor of railway tracks that exist through and adjacent to Union Station in downtown Toronto. It is long, approximately stretching from Bathurst Street (mile 1.1) in the west to the Don River in th ...
.
On July 8, 2013, a
Richmond Hill–bound GO train encountered
flash flood
A flash flood is a rapid flooding of low-lying areas: washes, rivers, dry lakes and depressions. It may be caused by heavy rain associated with a severe thunderstorm, hurricane, or tropical storm, or by meltwater from ice or snow flowing ...
ing in the
Don Valley when a record-breaking 123 mm rain storm fell over a few hours in Toronto area. As the crew worked to reverse the direction of the train back to Union Station, flood waters continued to rise and submerged the entire track and the train itself began to flood. Approximately 1,400 passengers on board had to be rescued by boat.
On January 14, 2015, a GO bus on Highway 407 near Weston Road hit a guard rail and rolled into a ditch. One passenger was ejected and crushed to death, and another two in addition to the bus driver were injured. On March 2, 2015, the GO Transit driver was charged with careless driving causing death.
See also
*
GO Transit fleet
*
List of GO Transit stations
GO Transit serves the Greater Toronto Area in Southern Ontario, Canada with the following stations:
Train
Future train stations
Bus
*Barrie
*Finch
*Guelph
*Kitchener
* McMaster
* Newmarket
*Oshawa
* Richmond Hill Centre
* Scarborough ...
References
General references
*
** Part of collection
LakeshoreGeorgetownRichmond HillMiltonBradfordStouffvillecorridors, an
GO ALRT
Bibliography
*
External links
*
GO Expansion Projects on Metrolinx website''People on the GO'' 1973, Archives of Ontario YouTube Channel
{{Toronto
1967 establishments in Ontario
Ontario government departments and agencies
Government agencies established in 1967
Standard gauge railways in Canada
Articles containing video clips
Intercity bus companies of Canada