Aurora GO commuters sound off on parking issues, empty spots

Commuters who park their vehicles at the Aurora GO station before taking the train are frustrated by what they say is a lack of parking at the station due to construction and a reserved parking program that regularly sees spots sitting empty.

Provincial transit agency Metrolinx closed a 375-spot parking lot adjacent to the station, located approximately 50 kilometres north of Toronto, last year to begin construction on station upgrades.

Meanwhile, more than a hundred spots in the five-storey parking garage are reserved from Monday to Friday for commuters who pay a monthly fee.

Some commuters who don't pay for reserved parking say they struggle to find empty, unreserved spots on busy days during the week, forcing them to choose between risking a ticket and towing if they park in a reserved spot or parking at a new overflow lot off station property.

"The parking here has gotten really bad since they've taken away that side of the parking," said Aurora resident Michelle Giustini, who commutes to Toronto five days a week for work. 

The frustrations highlight some of the challenges of maintaining service during GO Transit's expansion of the Barrie line, which aims to increase the number of weekly trips on the system from 3,500 in 2019 to more than 10,000. The multi-year, multi-billion dollar project will see a second track constructed between Union and Aurora stations, so GO can provide two-way, all-day train service up to every 15 minutes, seven days a week.

Overflow lot 15-minute walk from station

Construction work at the Aurora GO station includes upgrading the rail signal as well as constructing a new west platform, pedestrian tunnels and a passenger pick-up and drop-off area.

During the construction period, an overflow lot with 380 parking spots was built a 15-minute walk away from the station, while the passenger boarding area was shifted south of its former location.

"I've had to go to the overflow lot, which is quite a distance away, and ended up missing a train because they've also moved the platform further down, so it's even longer to get there," said Tracy Tucker, a Caledon resident who commutes downtown three days per week.

GO Transit's reserved parking program allows commuters to pay $98 per month for "exclusive access" to a parking space at their preferred GO station 24-7 on weekdays. The service requires a six-month commitment.

Commuters who park and ride at Aurora GO say on busy days, public parking spaces at outdoor lots on station property and unreserved spots in the parking garage fill up quickly, while dozens of reserved spots in the parking garage remain empty. 

"I don't understand why there's so many reserved spots when there could be more open spots," said Tucker. "I think they need to cut it down."

Aurora resident Henry Kuo said he decided to bite the bullet and pay for a reserved spot earlier this year because he constantly struggled to find parking at the station at his commute time just before 9 a.m. Kuo said he uses his spot four days a week when travelling to work at an architecture firm near Downsview Park station, but it remains empty on the fifth day.

"It would be nice if Metrolinx can increase parking, you know, free parking for everyone," Kuo said.

Metrolinx says more parking spots despite construction

In an emailed statement, Metrolinx said there were 1,455 parking spots at Aurora GO before the closure of the west parking lot in 2023.

"Despite the temporary removal of 375 spots in the west parking lot for improvement work, there is an increased number of parking spots providing access to the station, totaling 1,480. Of these parking spots, 135 are reserved," Metrolinx said. 

However, on Wednesday, CBC News counted 263 spots with reserved signs, 180 of which were empty between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. All unreserved spaces in the parking garage were filled.

After CBC's inquiries, Metrolinx said it's currently reallocating parking spots to reflect the most recent subscription numbers, which will result in more free parking spots being opened.

A pilot project underway at the Port Credit and Durham College Oshawa GO stations opens up reserved parking spots to the public if they aren't filled by 11 a.m. on weekdays. Metrolinx says it has no plans at the moment to expand the program.

Giustini said GO Transit should re-think whether people should be able to reserve spaces for the entire week. Many office workers have shifted to a hybrid work week, she said.

"I think they still hold on to these spots for when they do come in once or twice maybe a week," she said.

Metrolinx said the monthly reserved parking program is "based on demand" and it monitors ridership and station access trends carefully "to meet the needs of customers."