The TTC will ask its staff to look at the idea of the transit system handing out “Baby on Board” pins to pregnant women in the hopes that riders will offer them seats, its board decided on Tuesday.
Coun. Stephen Holyday, a TTC commissioner, proposed the idea formally at a TTC board meeting. The board voted four to three in favour of his motion to direct staff to investigate the feasibility of such a badge program.
“It’s kind of a badge of pride, but also might have the little TTC logo on it. And I thought that was good PR,” Holyday told the meeting.
“I’m fairly frugal with money, but this is one of those things that I thought was deeply within our budget and within our means and might actually turn out to be a positive thing.”
When travelling in London, England recently, Holyday said he noticed some women wore official Transport for London “Baby on board!” badges not only on transit but also when out on the street and in restaurants. Transport for London is a transportation authority that runs London’s public transport network.
In his motion, Holyday, who represents Etobicoke Centre, said the badges would make the “public transit experience” of pregnant women better. He said the badges seem to be popular in London.
“It eliminated any awkwardness about finding a seat on a vehicle, and it promoted a positive public image of the transit agency. Many women wore the badge throughout their day, even after they had used the public transit system,” the motion reads.
Councillor says program might not achieve results
Coun. Josh Matlow, who represents Toronto-St. Paul’s, questioned whether the program would have the desired effect.
Matlow also said the program is a “very sweet idea” and a “well-intended suggestion,” but it would take TTC staff time and resources to produce a report on the proposed program and he added that every taxpayer dollar matters.
“Every tax dollar is precious and we need to be mindful,” Matlow said.
“I think it’s not a good use of staff time, printing costs, resources. We want to ensure that we don’t have excessive property tax increases, that we protect every dollar that we’re entrusted with,” he added.
“And we don’t want to see money being spent on something that may have the motivations behind it — it is lovely and the idea is sweet and kind — but it most likely won’t actually achieve the results that you would hope for.”
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Holyday disagreed, saying he thinks it’s a good idea and not costly and the TTC should pay attention to the needs of people travelling with children, whether they are local residents or visitors to Toronto.
TTC staff say program costs would be minimal
In response to a question, TTC staff said producing a report on the proposed program could cost staff time, but not a massive amount, and the cost of printing the badges themselves would be minimal.
The TTC already has a “Please Offer Me a Seat” program adopted as part of its 2018-2022 corporate plan to promote accessibility and staff said that program would be used as a template for the “Baby on Board” badge program. Staff said the uptake has not been huge. Staff added the main cost is printing.
For its part, Transport for London says on its website: “Travelling on the Tube can be tricky for mums-to-be, but having a Baby on board badge makes it easier by letting other passengers know that you have a very good reason to need a seat.”
In a second part of the motion, the board also decided to ask staff to review TTC communication materials, including its website, and to update the information for pregnant women and riders with small children, based on best practices of other jurisdictions.