Friends of Railpath have been working with the City Departments, Councillors, and Metrolinx to make Railpath Stage 2 a reality. There is a lot of activity in and around the Georgetown Rail Corridor these days so there is a fair amount of planning involved in seeing Stage 2 happen. (updated March 2013)
A Feasibility Study/EA has been commissioned by the City this year (2013) to specifically look at building stage 2 and will report later in the fall. Many people are contributing their expertise on this including Friends of West Toronto Railpath. There will be a series of public meetings hosted by the City to get feedback and collaborate on ideas for the next stage.
If you need more information about the process please contact the Sr. Public Consultation Coordinator Maogosha Pyjor: mpyjor@toronto.ca or call 416-338-2850.
Where will Railpath Stage 2 go?
We see the stage 2 feasibility study dealing with a few main issues. First we want to get the Railpath as far south as we can. Originally we had hoped to get to Strachan but the rail corridor is very congested so our sights are set on getting south of Queen, how far we do not know. Second we would love to be bold and find a way to connect a ramp from Sorauren Park over the rail corridor and to Railpath. The Wabash Building Society has expressed their desire to see a bridge over RPas well. Any cyclist or pedestrian can see how this would totally change the West End and bring together communities that have always been separated by rail lines for over 150 years. Many people have sent us their own diagrams of how this could be done and some of us have done a site survey to see if its possible. Its a big idea but think about it, it would change the lifestyles of a massive amount of people in a positive way. (If you live along Sorauren get on the phone and let Councillor Perks know you support him on this). And lastly, the existing Railpath ends at Cariboo Avenue north of Dupont and that is something we want to change. The reality here is both positive and negative. The negative part is that the rail diamond stops us from going straight north. The positive is that if Railpath were to become an on street bike lane for a few blocks the opportunity to become a linear park north of there exists. Its a geographic area that really is interesting and has not been explored. There could be some excellent opportunities. That’s the short version!
There is also a Rail Corridor Local Area Study underway by the City Planning Department that will help shape development along the corridor and Railpath 2 is a big part of that. There is info on their site about how you can take part in the study in person or via email. Get involved. This site will be updated to reflect some of the feedback that they have received. Planner Sarah Phipps is the contact person on this study and eager to get feedback.
Local Councillors are on board but it never hurts to let them know that you want to see Railpath 2 happen. These two are most involved in Stage 2.
Stage 1 of RP took 10 years to happen but now that people are seeing it and loving it we are very optimistic that Stage 2 will take way less time.
We see the stage 2 feasibility study dealing with a few main issues. First we want to get the Railpath as far south as we can. Originally we had hoped to get to Strachan but the rail corridor is very congested so our sights are set on getting south of Queen, how far we do not know. Second we would love to be bold and find a way to connect a ramp from Sorauren Park over the rail corridor and to Railpath. Any cyclist or pedestrian can see how this would totally change the West End and bring together communities that have always been separated by rail lines. Many people have sent us their own diagrams of how this could be done and some of us have done a site survey to see if its possible. Its a big idea but think about it, it would change the lifestyles of a massive amount of people in a positive way. (If you live along Sorauren get on the phone and let Perks know you support him on this). And lastly, the existing Railpath ends at Cariboo Avenue north of Dupont and that is something we want to change. The reality here is both positive and negative. The negative part is that the rail diamond stops us from going straight north. The positive is that if Railpath were to become an on street bike lane for a few blocks the opportunity to become a linear park north of there exists. Its a geographic area that really is interesting and has not been explored. There could be some excellent opportunities. That’s the short version!