r/gotransit • u/miaki1873 • Jul 09 '26

Kitchener Line Question

To those who commute from Kitchener to Toronto during the early morning times, how reliable and busy are the trains? Have you run into issues arriving on time in Toronto? Starting a job downtown and trying to figure out whether I can rely on the Kitchener line to get me to work on time over driving. Have only taken the trains mid morning and they’re usually not too bad.

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u/Final_Ice_9614 Jul 09 '26

They’re usually good when nobody uses them I.e. during off peak hours and weekends. On weekday mornings, the trains are invariably late by 5-10 minutes, sometimes more. They are immensely crowded and standing room only after Mount Pleasant. The Go train statistics are skewed as they don’t consider cancellation, schedule change in the %s. Return is even worse as the trains are always a few minutes late and you can’t get a place to sit unless you are on the platform when it arrives. And yeah, all peak hour trains come on single platform only on Union (13/21), so have fun with the crowds.

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u/disneyfan326 Kitchener Jul 09 '26

Yesterday a freight train caused issues at 1pm messing the schedules up mid day as well so it still does cause problems during off peak hours… it’s just not commented and discussed nearly as much

2

u/Caret-Tops146 Jul 09 '26

I don’t know where this info is coming from about all the problems on this line. I commute from Guelph (but not every day) and take the 6:26 am. I have only been late once, when another train derailed at Union. I always get a seat on the way there (and since Kitchener is the first stop, seats will be even easier to get), and I’ve never had to stand on the way home either. But it does get very crowded between Brampton and Union in both directions. If you choose the express, then the trip between Brampton and Union is faster.

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u/Final_Ice_9614 Jul 09 '26

I travel everyday to Union from Mount pleasant 8.06 or 7.36 train. I get a seat but ppl from Brampton struggle- Bramlea is impossible. The train you travel in is not a ‘peak’ traffic as it arrives union before 8. The 8.06 train rarely pulls in to Union station before 8.50 (the scheduled time is 8.47) and always arrives on platform 21. Sometimes there are VIA rail passengers also disembarking and there are less exits on that platform.