Latest news with #Navigo
Winnipeg Free Press
3 days ago
- Sport
- Winnipeg Free Press
New transit system launches
Winnipeg's new bus network is now in effect, with the first bus on the Primary Transit Network departing Portage Avenue at Spence Street just after 5:30 a.m. Sunday. The new spine-and-feeder transit model means most bus routes have changed with this overhaul to the city's transit system, and teams of Winnipeg Transit staff are set to hit the streets in high-bus-traffic areas to help transit users navigate the changes. Users can map their new bus routes in advance using Winnipeg Transit's Navigo online or on the app. RUTH BONNEVILLE / FREE PRESS FILES Bjorn Radstrom is the manager of Transit Service Development and project manager for the new transit network. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. The city has said the new network, consisting of a main bus line (spine) that connects to feeder buses along community routes, will provide more reliable and frequent service. It's being hailed as the biggest change in Winnipeg Transit's 142-year history. The project manager for the Primary Transit Network, Bjorn Radstrom, Winnipeg Transit's manager of service development, is set to provide an update this morning about the launch. MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS FILES The new Winnipeg Primary Transit network came into effect early Sunday morning, representing an overhaul of the city's bus system. We want to hear about your experiences with the new Winnipeg transit network. Share your thoughts online. Here's an online survival guide to help navigate the transit changes.
Winnipeg Free Press
5 days ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Big changes for your bus trips
Opinion Well, fasten your seatbelts! Except you can't. There aren't seatbelts on Winnipeg Transit buses, but you know what we mean. Tomorrow starts the biggest set of changes at Winnipeg Transit in years: in reality, the first full-scale revamp of transit routes and services that any transit user is likely to be able to remember. The old route map has been torn up: there are hardly any surviving legacy routes, and it's a new era for Winnipeg bus travel. File photo New bus routes start Sunday. The process has been unrolling slowly for several years, with transit officials designing a new feeder system, seeking input on proposed route changes, followed by a final route plan and a redrafted Navigo app, transit signs for new routes being installed, and temporary signs listing the routes that will be vanishing tomorrow. The idea changes the entire structure of the system, moving to a main 'spine' Primary Transit Network and feeder system that promises sufficiently frequent buses that riders won't need to schedule their trips and connections that thread out into different parts of the community from those 'spine' routes. It's a lot different from the system that's in place now, but the goal is a familiar one — to get you from here to there as quickly and easily as possible. There will be problems. There will be hiccups. There will be angry passengers and frustrations. You can't massively overhaul a system that had just under 67 million riders in 2024 and not have issues arise. Heck, the system will be brand new for bus drivers, too, and there are something like 1,100 of them who will have to get up to speed all at once. (A quick note here: bus drivers didn't devise this new system, and if you're angry about the changes, you've got no right to take it out on them, even if they are the first and only face of Winnipeg Transit you see in the flesh.) But keep this in mind: most of the changes to Winnipeg's bus system in recent years have been incremental, building on a foundation that hasn't changed greatly while the needs of a changing demographic certainly have. The system, where it worked well, worked well in spite of itself, not because of carefully managed and planned change. This is different. So, now to the 'what's next?' part. No one sets out to deliberately make things worse: there will be winners and losers, commutes that take more time for some riders and, hopefully, more routes that take less. But the whole process has been undertaken in an attempt to improve transit for the largest number of riders possible. Weekday Evenings Today's must-read stories and a roundup of the day's headlines, delivered every evening. Winnipeg Transit is making quite a few claims about the benefits of the new system. 'You'll benefit from a route network that's more … Frequent: Buses arrive more often on frequent routes. Direct: Major routes are straighter, fewer take slow and winding paths. Connected: Service expands into new areas, and bus stops move to improve connections. Simplified: Routes are easier to figure out.' At least, that's what the website says, That does all remain to be seen. But the changes are the result of a careful process, one that has tried to deliver the most benefits possible for the most people. Do that hardest of things: if you're inconvenienced or confused at the beginning, try to give the new system the benefit of the doubt as kinks are worked out and you get used to how it can work for you. And be patient: at least at this point, Winnipeg Transit intends to keep this iteration of its bus routes and schedules in place for a full year before making significant changes. Enjoy the ride.
Winnipeg Free Press
5 days ago
- General
- Winnipeg Free Press
Winnipeg's transit system is changing. Here's your survival guide.
Winnipeg Transit's bus network is undergoing a complete transformation on June 29. The network is switching from a hub-and-spoke system — where buses travel between downtown and outlying neighbourhoods — to using a spine-and-feeder concept, where frequently serviced spines along major corridors are supported by a network of feeder routes. As virtually every route in the city is set to change, the Free Press has created a survival guide to help you navigate the new system. City officials say the spine-and-feeder concept will allow buses to arrive more frequently, travel more directly and provide an overall more reliable Transit service, in part because most feeder buses won't have to navigate downtown traffic. Under the new network, a bus is expected to arrive every five to 15 minutes along each of the most frequent routes during peak periods, while connector route buses would come every 15 to 30 minutes. More transfers will be required and community routes will end earlier in the evening. A close-up of the downtown section of the new transit system map. Winnipeg Transit launches its new routes on Sunday, June 29. That day, about seven or eight 'travel trainers' and 30 other Transit staff will be posted along main routes and stops to help travellers find their way. It is possible one of the bus stops you usually use has been moved, replaced or removed. Under the new system, the total number of bus stops will be reduced to 4,000 from 5,200. Over the last few weeks, signage has appeared showing new route information at existing stops, and providing information on stops that are being removed or moved. Every bus stop sign in the city has changed, and the number and location of stops has also changed. (Ruth Bonneville / Free Press) Bus riders can plan routes they'll need to take in the new network using Transit's trip-planning website, Navigo. Navigo lets you choose your starting point, your destination, and the time you wish to leave or arrive by. The site will generate a selection travel plans. If you're reading this before June 29, select 'Preview this trip in the new Primary Transit Network' to switch to the new system map. Using Navigo, riders can enter their starting point, destination and time of arrival/departure and review possible routes. The Navigo website that can help you locate stops and their respective schedules and specific routes. Winnipeg Transit's website also offers: Navigo also allows users to search for stops and routes near an address or landmark. Riders can also use the Winnipeg Transit app or the Transit app. Winnipeg Transit has partnered with the Transit app for one year. The Transit app uses a different algorithm for planning trips and may suggest different routes than Navigo. The app allows users to plan an immediate or future trip using Navigo, find stops and schedules, explore routes and 'go live' using the On the Go feature to follow the route you are riding on. Printed route maps are also available at Transit customer service centres. Riders can also call 311 for assistance. System maps are available online and at Winnipeg Transit customer service centres. (Ruth Bonneville / Free Press) If want to report an issue or request an enhancement to a bus stop, you can complete this form on the City of Winnipeg's website.
