Toronto’s heat wave has GO Transit passengers feeling suffocated, as many say they’re going without air conditioning on their lengthy train rides.
Temperatures in Toronto have reached heights of around 40 C with humidity this week, and the heat is inescapable to train passengers. Several are expressing their discomfort about the steamy cars online and calling the lack of A/C a safety issue.
One pregnant rider said a train car they were in did not have A/C. The passenger said they stayed cool by drinking water, but said they felt ill for the rest of the evening.
“It felt very illegal,” they wrote on Reddit.
Some questioned why the rider did not simply move cars, as sometimes other coaches may be cooler, but many came to their defence.
“It’s not acceptable if maintenance is not to par and paying customers have to deal with it by playing musical chairs,” another user said.
According to Metrolinx, all GO trains and buses have air conditioning.
“Our team regularly inspects all coaches and vehicles to ensure air conditioning units are in working order. If any cars are found to have malfunctioning air conditioning, they are not put into service,” Metrolinx told Now Toronto.
Another Reddit user who sat on the top floor of the train said they were forced to move to a lower level due to the heat. The passenger claimed to have inquired about the lack of A/C to a customer service representative at Union Station, in which they admitted that the GO trains have hot spots and some cars don’t have air conditioning.
According to a Reddit user aboard a morning Lakeshore West train on Wednesday, a woman fainted as the train pulled into Union Station. The woman was treated by medical professionals on board.
However, Metrolinx did not confirm if the woman fainted due to the warm conditions.
The same user posted about not feeling A/C on the train later that day, claiming that it was hotter in the car than it was outdoors.
One user on the Stouffville line claimed their ride was “steaming hot.” The rider aboard the train said the warmth was so unbearable that several riders got off at the Kennedy stop because they “couldn’t handle the heat.”
The rider also mentioned that the train 30 minutes prior had been cancelled, which led to overcrowding on the train they were on.
Metrolinx said that temperatures inside GO buses and GO trains may also increase when the cars are busier with more people. But earlier this week, several train trips were also affected by cancellations and delays due to prolonged heat potentially causing issues to the rail tracks, which ultimately led to overcrowding.
“On hot days, our GO train, GO bus engines, and air conditioning systems have to work harder to keep things cool,” the transit agency explained, and assured they are doing their best to maintain comfortable conditions throughout the heat wave.
