Missed meetings and appointments. Incomprehensible onboard announcements. Forty minute waits on crowded platforms.
At a Monday morning news conference, volunteers from advocacy group TTC Riders and Toronto city councillors shared their stories of recent commuter frustration while riding the Toronto subway.
Delays “disrupt lives, affect livelihoods, cause anxiety, and erode public trust,” said TTC Chair Coun. Jamaal Myers.
Together with Coun. Josh Matlow, Myers has crafted a motion set to be presented to the TTC board Monday requesting the transport agency tackle how it investigates and handles service delays.
The motion directs TTC staff to investigate what caused recent delays — including a string of signaling issues in December and a broken power rail last week.
It also directs the agency to make replacement shuttle bus service better by exploring using “priority surface transit routes,” investing in preventative measures to stop members of the public from trespassing on the tracks, and improving communication during delays — including by auditing subway sound systems.
“It almost sounds like Charlie Brown’s teacher. You cannot understand what they are saying,” said Matlow.
Many TTC commuters were forced to wait outside in the cold on Wednesday morning after a broken power rail shut down part of Line 1. CBC’s Dale Manucdoc spoke to riders, who say delays along the TTC are an “all the time thing.”
Matlow says he’ll go into the board meeting Monday looking for a plan from interim TTC CEO Greg Percy to put the motion’s asks into practice.
“I don’t want to hear excuses. I don’t want to hear, ‘we can’t do that,’ or ‘we’ll get back to you next year,'” said Matlow.
The root causes of slow and inconsistent service on the TTC have made headlines several times in the last few months.
Among the issues flagged: the impact of vehicle “bunching” on streetcar and bus delays, the ongoing battle against track “slow zones” in the subway system, and the delay-creating oil leaks that result from aging and faulty equipment.