Kitchener GO train to get 2 more cars on evening run to help with overcrowding

The Kitchener GO train line will see the 5:02 p.m. trip from Union Station in Toronto get two additional cars to help deal with overcrowding.

Transportation Minister Jeff Yurek announced the additional cars on Twitter and also in a meeting with Kitchener Mayor Berry Vrbanovic. GO Transit also tweeted the 5:02 p.m. train will go from 10 cars to 12.

Yurek said they'll also look at other options to further reduce congestion.

In a statement earlier this week, Yurek said he had heard concerns about the trains being too full.

"The crowding on the trains as a result of our expanded service has proven how much of a demand there is for more service. My caucus colleagues and commuters have raised their concerns over the crowding and I take their concerns very seriously," Yurek said.

Many commuters took to social media to tell Yurek they were not only upset with overcrowding, but that an express train at 4:50 p.m. on the Kitchener line had been dropped. It means every trip from Toronto to Kitchener takes more than two hours.

NDP MPPs from Kitchener, Waterloo and Brampton issued a joint statement saying the provincial government didn't improve service for commuters with the recent changes to the Kitchener line, adding that "the Ford government has made things even worse for people."

They called for the express train to be reinstated immediately.

Yurek argued the comments from the NDP were "a publicity stunt" and that doing what they suggested would "cut the service increase and take a step backwards."

When asked about the express train and whether it will be reinstated, Yurek's press secretary Andrew Buttigieg said in an email: "We are continuing to work with CN to add more trains as we work towards two-way, all-day service."