Viva Purple
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VIVA Purple
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| Overview | |||
| Type | Bus Rapid Transit | ||
| System | YRT/VIVA 1system | ||
| Status | Phase 1 | ||
| Locale | York Region, Ontario (Vaughan; Richmond Hill; Markham) Toronto (North York) |
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| Termini | York University Markham Stouffville Hospital |
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| Stations | 23 | ||
| Operation | |||
| Opened | September 4, 2005. | ||
| Owner | Regional Municipality of York (York Region Transit) | ||
| Operator(s) | Veolia Transportation | ||
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Viva Purple, or the York University/Richmond Hill/Cornell line,[citation needed] is a line on the Viva bus rapid transit system in York Region, north of Toronto, Canada. It is operated by Veolia Transportation under contract from the Region of York.
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[edit] Route Description
There are twenty-three stations on the Viva Purple line, as well as more than 15 proposed changes to the line including new stations, relocated stations, or closed stations. Most of these changes are associated with Phase 2 of the VIVA plan.
The VIVA purple line runs along primarily the Highway 7 corridor east of Keele Street, with the brief exception on Centre Street and on Bathurst Street when the line runs through the Thornhill area. The Highway 7 corridor west of Keele Street is served by Viva Orange. Viva Purple connects with all other VIVA Lines.
[edit] Cornell Terminal
Since January 27, 2008, the VIVA Purple Line has been extended eastward to Markham Stouffville Hospital from the previous line terminus, which was McCowan. This extension involved adding 3 more stations in the line. Markham Stouffville Hospital currently acts as a temporary bus terminal for several YRT bus routes, including VIVA. This bus terminal will be moved to the intersection of Donald Cousens Way and Highway 7. Hence, the end point of VIVA purple will also be moved there, and the current Markham Stouffville Hospital Stop will be "skipped". This scheduled terminal is named as Cornell. VIVA began showing Cornell on destination signs in February 2012, but it may be a software test or glitch.
[edit] List of all stations
From west to east:
| Name | Opening Date | City / Town | Major Connections |
|---|---|---|---|
| York University | September 4, 2005 | North York, Ontario | Viva Orange |
| Keele | September 4, 2005 | Vaughan, Ontario | |
| Dufferin | September 4, 2005 | Vaughan, Ontario | |
| Promenade Terminal | September 4, 2005 | Vaughan, Ontario | |
| Atkinson | September 4, 2005 | Vaughan, Ontario | |
| Richmond Hill Centre | September 4, 2005 | Richmond Hill, Ontario | Viva Blue, Viva Pink, GO Transit (Langstaff) |
| Bayview | September 4, 2005 | Markham/Richmond Hill, Ontario | Viva Pink |
| Valleymede | September 4, 2005 | Markham/Richmond Hill, Ontario | Viva Pink |
| West Beaver Creek | September 4, 2005 | Markham/Richmond Hill, Ontario | Viva Pink |
| Leslie | September 4, 2005 | Markham/Richmond Hill, Ontario | Viva Pink |
| East Beaver Creek | September 4, 2005 | Markham/Richmond Hill, Ontario | Viva Pink |
| Allstate Parkway | September 4, 2005 | Markham, Ontario | Viva Pink |
| Woodbine | September 4, 2005 | Markham, Ontario | Viva Pink |
| Montgomery | September 4, 2005 | Markham, Ontario | Viva Pink |
| Town Centre Blvd. | September 4, 2005 | Markham, Ontario | Viva Pink |
| Warden | November 20, 2005 | Markham, Ontario | Viva Green, Viva Pink |
| Enterprise | November 20, 2005 | Markham, Ontario | Viva Green, Viva Pink |
| Kennedy | October 16, 2005 | Markham, Ontario | Viva Green |
| Bullock | October 16, 2005 | Markham, Ontario | Viva Green |
| McCowan | October 16, 2005 | Markham, Ontario | Viva Green |
| Galsworthy | September 5, 2010 | Markham, Ontario | |
| Main St. Markham | January 27, 2008 | Markham, Ontario | |
| Wootten Way | January 27, 2008 | Markham, Ontario | |
| Markham Stouffville Hospital | January 27, 2008 | Markham, Ontario | |
| Bur Oak | TBA | Markham, Ontario | |
| Cornell | TBA | Markham, Ontario |
- proposed Vivastations
Service from York University to Town Centre Boulevard began on September 4, 2005. Services extending from Town Centre Boulevard east to McCowan Road began October 16, 2005. Peak-time services west of York University began November 20, 2005. Services east of McCowan Road to Markham Stouffville Hospital was to begin on July 1, 2007, but has been postponed to January 27, 2008. Service east of McCowan Road to Cornell will replace the aforementioned service at a future date. Services west of York University was discontinued as of September 2, 2007.
[edit] vivaNext
Rapidways
As the Highway 7 transit corridor, the Viva Purple line will have a dedicated right of way dubbed "rapidway" for most of the route. This will enable VIVA buses to quickly pass through traffic.
The first phase of vivaNext brings a rapidway along the portion of Viva Purple from Bayview to Kennedy.[1] The rapidway will consist of bus lanes in the median of Highway 7 between Bayview Avenue and Town Centre Boulevard, and a new bus-only road parallel to Enterprise Drive, between Warden and Kennedy. Stations along the rapidway will be longer than existing stations, and include heated shelters protected from the elements. Later phases will extend the rapidway west to Highway 50 and east to Cornell Terminal, potentially to the Durham Region border at the York-Durham Line.
Merger with Viva Orange
In 2015, the Viva Purple line will merge with the Viva Orange line, bypassing York University. Service to York University will be provided by the Toronto Transit Commission's Spadina subway extension, currently under construction. Viva Purple will also be extended west to the Peel Region border at Highway 50 and east to the Cornell Terminal in Cornell. Eventually, this corridor could be upgraded to light rail transit.
The stations of the extended Viva Purple will be as follows, from west to east:
- Western Gateway (Highway 50)
- Highway 427
- Highway 27
- Martin Grove
- Kipling
- Islington
- Helen Street
- Pine Valley
- Ansley Grove
- Weston
- Vaughan Centre Station
- Commerce
- Keele
- Dufferin
- Promenade Terminal
- Atkinson
- Bathurst Street
- Richmond Hill Centre
- Bayview
- Chalmers Road/South Park Road
- West Beaver Creek
- Leslie
- East Beaver Creek
- Allstate Parkway
- Woodbine
- Montgomery
- Town Centre
- Warden
- Enterprise
- Unionville GO Station
- Kennedy
- Bullock
- McCowan
- Galsworthy Drive
- Main Street Markham
- Wooten Way
- Markham Stouffville Hospital
- Bur Oak Drive
- Cornell Terminal
Future Viva stations are in italics
[edit] Service frequency
As of September 2, 2007:
- York University to Richmond Hill Centre: every 10 minutes on peak periods
- Richmond Hill Centre to Warden (combined with Viva Pink): every 5 minutes on peak periods
- Warden to Enterprise (combined with Viva Green and Viva Pink): every 3–4 minutes on peak periods
- Enterprise to McCowan (combined with Viva Green): every 6–7 minutes on peak periods
The frequency of vehicles on off-peak periods is every 15 minutes on all corridors.
[edit] Travel times
As of September 2, 2007:
- York University to Richmond Hill Centre: 32 minutes on peak periods, 26 minutes on off-peak periods
- Richmond Hill Centre to Enterprise: 26 minutes on peak periods, 22 minutes on off-peak periods
- Enterprise to McCowan: 8 minutes on peak periods, 6 minutes on off-peak periods
These results will vary depending on the traffic volume and weather.
