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The history of public transportation in Toronto in Canada dates back to the middle 19th century under many different private companies, organizations and owners, which were all later unified as a single government-run entity during the 1920s.
Toronto's first public transportation company was the Williams Omnibus Bus Line, owned by furniture–maker and undertaker Burt Williams. The line began operation in 1849. It carried passengers in horse-drawn stagecoaches via King and Yonge Streets, between the St. Lawrence Market and the Village of Yorkville. The price of each trip was six pence.
In 1861, a 30-year franchise for a "street railway" was given to Alexander Easton in 1861. The company operated under the name Toronto Street Railway (TSR). In 1891, the TSR franchise was not renewed. After a few months of municipal operation, a 30-year franchise was granted to William Mackenzie's Toronto Railway Company (TRC). The TRC was required to replace horse-drawn streetcars with electric ones by 1894. From their introduction, streetcars were only allowed to operate six days a week, as a blue law prohibited their use on Sundays. This was upheld in an 1892 referendum, but a second referendum in 1897 overturned the law by a narrow margin, and the first Sunday streetcars ran on May 16 of that year. [1]
In 1885, north of the city, a franchise was granted to the Metropolitan Street Railway (MSR). Outside of the city, transit connections to the suburbs were provided by interurban lines, known in Ontario as "radial railways" because their lines radiated from the city. These included the Toronto and York Radial Railway and the Toronto Suburban Railway.
Prior to the establishment of the TTC, the City of Toronto operated the city-owned system under the Toronto Civic Railways (TCR) name, which was created to serve areas to which the Toronto Railways Company did not.
In 1920, a Provincial Act created the Toronto Transportation Commission (TTC) and, with the expiration of the TRC's franchise in 1921, the Commission took over and amalgamated nine existing fare systems within the city limits. Between 1921 and 1953, the TTC added 35 new routes in the city and extended 20 more. It also operated 23 suburban routes on a service-for-cost basis. It abandoned the unprofitable North Yonge Railways radial railway line.
The Great Depression and World War II both placed heavy burdens on the ability of municipalities to finance themselves. During most of the 1930s, municipal governments had to cope with general welfare costs and assistance to the unemployed. The TTC realized that improvements had to be made, despite the depression, and in 1936, purchased the first of the newly developed PCC streetcars. The war put an end to the depression and increased migration from rural to urban areas. After the war, municipalities faced the problem of extending services to accommodate the increased population. Ironically, the one municipal service that prospered during the war years was public transit; employers had to stagger work hours in order to avoid overcrowding the streetcars. Toronto continued their program of purchasing PCC cars, running the world's largest fleet, including many obtained second-hand from U.S. cities that abandoned streetcar service.
Public transit was one of the essential services identified by Metropolitan Toronto's founders in 1953. On January 1, 1954, the Toronto Transportation Commission was renamed the Toronto Transit Commission and public transit was placed under the jurisdiction of the new Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto. The assets and liabilities of the TTC and four independent bus lines operating in the suburbs were acquired by the Commission. In 1954, the TTC became the sole provider of public transportation services in Metro Toronto.
Canada's first subway system, the Union Station-to-Eglinton section of the Yonge Street subway, was conceived and built with revenues gained during the war. Gasoline rationing limited the use of automobiles, resulting in increased usage of public transit. After five years of work, the subway line opened to the public on March 30, 1954. Its underground portions were built entirely using cut-and-cover construction, with reinforced boards and temporary streetcar tracks laid over the trenches to allow Yonge Street to remain open as the tunnels were built. The original Yonge Street subway line went from the railways' Union Station on Front Street, north to a suburban terminus at Eglinton Avenue. Important dignitaries, including the Premier Leslie Frost, and Toronto mayor Allan A. Lamport, rode the first train, going north from the yards at Davisville Station, and then south from Eglinton along the entire line. At 2:30 p.m. that day, the last streetcar to travel Yonge Street south of Eglinton made its final ride. The subway reduced the trip from Union to Eglinton from about half an hour by streetcar (in good traffic) to less than fifteen minutes.
It was the first subway line to replace surface routes completely. It was also later the site of as experiment with aluminum subway cars, which led to their adoption throughout the system, and by other transit systems. Several expansions since 1954 have more than quadrupled the area served, adding two new connected lines and a shorter intermediate capacity transit system.
The University line opened nine years later, continuing from Union, back north under University Avenue, to St. George station. It was intentionally designed to serve much the same area as the Yonge line, in order to increase capacity in anticipation of the planned east-west line. Three years after the University line opened, the original Bloor–Danforth line was built, going under Bloor Street and Danforth Ave. from Keele in the west, to Woodbine in the east. Within two years, the Bloor–Danforth line had been extended in both directions, to Islington in the west and Warden in the east.
Plans were made for a streetcar subway along Queen Street, which were upgraded to a full subway in 1964, from the Humber loop to Greenwood, curving north to connect to the Bloor–Danforth Subway. All that ever materialized of this line was an incomplete east-west station structure under Queen station at Yonge, which remains in existence today. The Queen Subway plan was cancelled in 1974 in favour of new lines in the suburbs.
In the 1970s, Toronto adopted a streetcar abandonment policy. The plan was to have low-volume services be served by buses, and more heavily used routes by subway lines. Later in that decade, the rising cost of subway construction and the awareness of the limitations of buses reversed that decision; Toronto is now one of the few North American cities to retain its streetcars through the 20th century, and is now slowly expanding the service.
Changes to the composition of the Metro Toronto council moved the balance of power towards the suburban areas, and soon afterwards in 1973, the Yonge subway line was extended north to York Mills Road, and the next year it was as far north as Finch Avenue. Five years later, the Spadina line opened, going from the north terminus of the University line, to Wilson Station. In 1980, the Bloor–Danforth line was extended once again, to the current termini of Kipling Station on the west end, and Kennedy Station on the east.
After the 1980 extension of the Bloor–Danforth line, subway building came to a standstill. For the next 16 years, there would be no additional subway extensions, and for eight years after that, any new subways. Instead, a proposed extension on the Danforth end of the Bloor–Danforth line was built in 1985 as the L-shaped Scarborough RT line, which went from Kennedy to McCowan Station. The line was originally envisioned as a light rail line, using streetcars in a dedicated right of way, but was ultimately built as a mini-subway. Two years later, a new station was added south of Finch on the Yonge line, at the North York Centre.
In 1985, the TTC released the Network 2011 expansion plan calling for expanding the subway system to nearly doubling its then-current size, including new lines on Sheppard, Eglinton, and a Downtown Relief Line. [2] Only a small portion of the plan was ever built. The Progressive Conservative provincial government of Mike Harris halted work on the Eglinton line in 1995, and the partially dug tunnels were filled in. A similar line was later built as Line 5 Eglinton, with Progressive Conservative premier Doug Ford announcing a plan in April 2019 to expand the line west to Pearson Airport with a section of the line built underground from Royal York to Martin Grove. This expansion was expected to cost $4.7 billion and generate an estimated 37,000 daily boardings. [3] The only subway expansion in this period was on the Spadina line, which added one new station, Downsview (later Sheppard West), in 1996.
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In 1998, the Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto ceased to exist, replaced by the new City of Toronto, formed from the amalgamation of its six former municipalities. Four years later, the Sheppard line was opened, the first new subway line in decades. However, it was much shorter than originally planned, going from Yonge Street east only as far as Don Mills Road, instead of connecting with the Scarborough RT at Scarborough Centre. Extension of the Sheppard line remains one of the TTC's priorities for further extensions, should the funding become available. The TTC is running four-car trains on the abbreviated Sheppard Line, two-thirds the size of those on the other Toronto subways, but the stations were built to accommodate full-length trains should sufficient traffic develop.
In January 2005, the cash-strapped TTC introduced a plan to curtail costly subway expansion and look at expanding the rapid transit network less expensively. This could involve busways, or expanding the streetcar system with more modern vehicles and less running in mixed traffic. While the TTC does not have funding to break ground on new projects, it was completing the planning stages, including an environmental assessment, for an extension of the Spadina line north to York University and Vaughan Metropolitan Centre. This project was completed by December 2017.
On May 29, 2006, a wildcat strike took place, after TTC employees walked off the job suddenly, primarily caused by safety concerns and late shifts. The strike was immediately deemed illegal by the Ontario Labour Relations Board, and they were immediately ordered back to work. The short interruption in service caused severe disruption in the city, on what was a very hot day. The strike, however, was not without consequence to TTC management, as the general manager, Rick Ducharme officially tendered his resignation just one week later.
A transit strike was averted for 21 April 2008, after a tentative contract was reached the day before. The contract specified a 3% increase in salary over three years to workers. On April 25, 2008, the TTC union voted down this contract. 65% of workers voted no to the settlement, and as of midnight on April 26, 2008, the Toronto Transit Commission was officially on strike. [4] The TTC workers were legislated back to work on 27 April 2008 by the passing of Bill 66 by the Ontario Provincial Parliament.
The TTC continues to be the sole provider of public transit within the City of Toronto, as well as operating contracted services into the neighbouring York Region. Regional commuter service (both bus and rail) is operated by GO Transit, the vast majority of which goes to downtown Toronto's Union Station. Connection buses of the Mississauga, Brampton, York Region, and Durham Region transit systems enter Toronto at various points.
From 1989, the chair of the TTC was a member of Metro Toronto Council. After 1997, the chair was a member of Toronto Council.
General managers of the TTC (Chief general managers from 1975) | ||||||||||
1920 — – 1940 — – 1960 — – 1980 — – 2000 — – 2020 — |
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* denotes general managers for subway construction ** denotes general managers for operations | ||||||||||
| Name | Term |
|---|---|
| P. W. Ellis | 1920–1929 |
| Frederick Langdon Hubbard | 1929–1930 |
| William C. McBrien | 1931–1932 |
| S.J. McMaster | 1932–1933 |
| William C. McBrien | 1933–1954 |
| William G. Russell | 1954–1955 |
| Allan A. Lamport | 1955–1959 |
| Charles A. Walton | 1959–1960 |
| C. C. Downey | 1960–1963 |
| Ralph Day | 1963–1972 |
| Franklin I. Young | 1972–1973 |
| Karl L. Mallette | 1973–1975 |
| G. Gordon Hurlburt | 1975–1979 |
| Julian Porter | 1979–1987 |
| Jeff Lyons | 1987–1989 |
| Lois Griffin | 1989–1992 |
| Michael (Mike) Colle | 1992–1994 |
| Paul Christie | 1994–1998 |
| Howard Moscoe | 1998–2000 |
| Brian Ashton | 2000–2002 |
| Betty Disero | 2002–2003 |
| Howard Moscoe | 2003–2006 |
| Adam Giambrone | 2006–2010 |
| Karen Stintz | 2010–2014 |
| Maria Augimeri | 2014 |
| Josh Colle | 2014–2018 [5] |
| Jaye Robinson | 2019–present [5] |
A list of CGMs and CEOs of the TTC:
The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) is the public transport agency that operates bus, subway, streetcar, and paratransit services in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, some of which run into the Peel Region and York Region. It is the oldest and largest of the urban transit service providers in the Greater Toronto Area, with numerous connections to systems serving its surrounding municipalities.
Line 3 Scarborough is a light rapid transit line that is part of the Toronto subway system in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The line runs entirely within the suburban district of Scarborough, encompassing six stations and 6.4 kilometres (4.0 mi) of mostly elevated track. It connects with Line 2 Bloor–Danforth at its southwestern terminus, Kennedy, and terminates in the northeast at McCowan. In 2021, the system had a ridership of 2,822,300, or about 14,400 per weekday as of the second quarter of 2022.
Line 4 Sheppard is the newest and shortest subway line of the Toronto subway system, operated by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC). It opened on November 22, 2002, and has five stations along 5.5 kilometres (3.4 mi) of track, which is built without any open sections in the district of North York along Sheppard Avenue East between Yonge Street and Don Mills Road. All stations are wheelchair accessible and are decorated with unique public art. The Government of Ontario has announced plans to extend the line east to Sheppard Avenue and McCowan Road in Scarborough to meet up with an extended Line 2 Bloor–Danforth.
The Toronto subway is a rapid transit system serving Toronto and the neighbouring city of Vaughan in Ontario, Canada, operated by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC). It is a multimodal rail network consisting of three heavy-capacity rail lines operating predominantly underground, and one elevated medium-capacity rail line. As of December 2022, three new lines are under construction, two light rail lines and one light metro line.
Line 2 Bloor–Danforth is a subway line in the Toronto subway system, operated by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC). It has 31 stations and is 26.2 kilometres (16.3 mi) in length. It opened on February 26, 1966, and extensions at both ends were completed in 1968 and again in 1980.
Line 1 Yonge–University is a rapid transit line on the Toronto subway. It serves Toronto and the neighbouring city of Vaughan in Ontario, Canada. It is operated by the Toronto Transit Commission, has 38 stations and is 38.4 km (23.9 mi) in length, making it the longest line on the subway system. It opened as the "Yonge subway" in 1954 as Canada's first underground passenger rail line, and was extended multiple times between 1963 and 2017. Averaging over 790,000 riders per weekday, Line 1 is the busiest rapid transit line in Canada, and one of the busiest lines in North America.
Kennedy is both a terminal and interchange station on Line 2 Bloor–Danforth and Line 3 Scarborough of the Toronto subway system. Opened in 1980, it is located east of the Kennedy Road and Eglinton Avenue intersection. With the adjacent Kennedy GO station on the Stouffville line of GO Transit, Kennedy is an intermodal transit hub and the fifth busiest station in the system, after Bloor–Yonge, St. George, Sheppard–Yonge, and Union, serving a total of approximately 111,190 customer trips a day.
Toronto Civic Railways (TCR) was a streetcar operator created and owned by the City of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, to serve newly annexed areas of the city that the private operator Toronto Railway Company refused to serve. When the Toronto Railway Company's franchise expired in 1921, its services were combined with those of the Toronto Civic Railways, and are now assumed by the new Toronto Transportation Commission (TTC). The first route of the TCR started operation on December 18, 1912.
The Queen Street subway line was a proposed subway line for the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was one of many subway lines planned for, but has yet to be built by the Toronto Transit Commission.
The Relief Line was a proposed rapid transit line for the Toronto subway system, intended to provide capacity relief to the Yonge segment of Line 1 and Bloor–Yonge station and extend subway service coverage in the city's east end. Several plans for an east–west downtown subway line date back to the early 20th century, most of which ran along Queen Street.
Accessibility for people with disabilities on the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) system is incomplete but improving. Most of the Toronto subway system was built before wheelchair access was a requirement under the Ontarians with Disabilities Act (ODA). However, all subway stations built since 1996 are equipped with elevators, and elevators have been installed in 44 stations built before 1996. Over seventy percent of Toronto's subway stations are accessible. In 2014, the TTC began introducing new low-floor vehicles on its streetcar network. These accessible vehicles ultimately replaced the ageing, non-accessible Canadian and Articulated Light Rail Vehicle streetcars by December 29, 2019. In December 2015, the TTC retired the last of its lift-equipped high-floor buses, which were introduced in 1996, making all TTC bus routes 100% low-floor accessible.
Transit City was a plan for developing public transport in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was first proposed and announced on 16 March 2007 by then-Toronto Mayor David Miller and Chair of the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) Adam Giambrone. The plan called for the construction of seven new light rail lines along the streets of seven priority transit corridors, which would have eventually been integrated with existing rapid transit, streetcar, and bus routes. Other transit improvements outlined in the plan included upgrading and extending the Scarborough RT line, implementing new bus rapid transit lines, and improving frequency and timing of 21 key bus routes. The plan integrated public transportation objectives outlined in the City of Toronto Official Plan, the TTC Ridership Growth Strategy and Miller's 2006 election platform.
The Jane LRT is an inactive proposal for a light rail line in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was originally proposed in 2007, cancelled in 2010, and later revived in the 2013 "Feeling Congested?" report by the City of Toronto, where it was labelled as a "Future Transit Project". However, in April 2019, Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced the province's plans for rapid transit development and funding for the Greater Toronto Area that omitted the Jane LRT.
Network 2011 was a plan for transit expansion created in 1985 by the Toronto Transit Commission. It was centred on three proposed subway lines: the Downtown Relief Line, Eglinton West Line, and the Sheppard Line. Eventually only a portion of the Sheppard Line was built, while construction on the Eglinton line was started and then abandoned but replaced by the Eglinton Crosstown light rail line.
The Toronto Transit Commission operated the Bloor streetcar line along Bloor Street and Danforth Avenue, extending at its longest from Jane Street in the west end of the city to Luttrell Avenue in the east. Both Luttrell and Jane loops at the termini were transfer points between streetcars and suburban bus routes. The line was abandoned in 1966 with the opening of the Bloor-Danforth subway line, except for two stubs of the line abandoned in 1968.
Beginning operation in 1861, the Yonge streetcar line was the first streetcar line in Toronto and the first in Canada. It started off as a horsecar line and closed in 1954 operating two-unit trains of Peter Witt motors pulling a trailer. Under the Toronto Transportation Commission, the Yonge line was the busiest and most congested streetcar line in the city leading to its replacement in 1954 by the Yonge Subway line, also Toronto's first and the first in Canada.
Public transportation in Toronto dates back to 1849 with the creation of a horse-drawn stagecoach company. Today, Toronto's mass transit is primarily made up of a system of subways, buses, and streetcars, covering approximately 1,200 km (750 mi) of routes operated by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) and inter-regional commuter rail and bus service provided by GO Transit.
The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) maintains four rapid transit lines and 75 stations on 76.9 km (47.8 mi) of route.
Toronto-gauge railways are tram and rapid transit lines built to Toronto gauge, a broad gauge of 4 ft 10+7⁄8 in. This is 2+3⁄8 in (60 mm) wider than standard gauge of 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in which is by far the most common track gauge in Canada. The gauge is unique to the Greater Toronto Area and is currently used on the Toronto streetcar system and the Toronto subway, both operated by the Toronto Transit Commission. As well, the Halton County Radial Railway, a transport museum, uses the Toronto gauge so its rail line can accommodate its collection of Toronto streetcars and subway trains. Several now-defunct interurban rail systems also once used this gauge.
The St. Clair Carhouse was a streetcar facility in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was located south of St. Clair Avenue on a parcel of land bounded by Wychwood Avenue on the east, Benson Avenue on its north side and Christie Street on the west side. It was opened by the Toronto Civic Railways in 1913, taken over by the Toronto Transportation Commission in 1921 and closed by its successor, the Toronto Transit Commission, in 1998. The carhouse was subsequently transformed into a community centre called the Wychwood Barns.
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| Miscellaneous | ||
Italics indicate a project under construction | ||
