As a lifelong TTC rider, I’ve learned to maximize trips on a single Presto tap. In the two hours of unlimited rides a fare gets you, I can squeeze in multiple errands or grab a meal. Of course, your mileage will vary — especially if you’re stuck waiting for say, the 169 bus going from Don Mills station to Scarborough Town Centre or crawling along the King streetcar at 5 p.m. on a Thursday. But the subway — when it’s not rush hour or plagued by service shutdowns — can get you from one end of the city to another with time to spare for side excursions.
On a recent Monday I started off at my home subway station, Don Mills, with the goal of heading to Dufferin Mall to get something I’ve been pining for more than a year: a bottle of the Gap’s very ‘90s-smelling perfume that’s now only sold at its outlets (remember the names like Dream, Om and Grass?). I challenged myself to see how many side excursions I could make between point A and B, and whether I could tap back into Dufferin station to head home before the two hours were up. Everyone’s trips are going to be different (you’ll get more trips going back and forth on Line 2, for example, since the stations are closer to each other), but this is one way to get the most out of your $3.30.