TTC: Other Items (catch all)

[EastYorkTTCFan]

I would expect the elevators to go at the very end of the platform, and they only need to go down one level since it connects to the Line 2 mezzanine via the walkway so they would probably be easier to install as a result. However it's at least 3-4 years before they start that project and I haven't seen any plans or anything yet.

I was think they might have to do something like thath for the end of the platforms to connect with the walk way to the bloor danforth line. Who knows as you've said that's a few years off. I'm surprised they didn't do both at the same time though it would have made more sense to me just like how they are doing all entrances at stations right now for the new fare gates.

 

[P23]

I'm surprised they didn't do both at the same time though it would have made more sense to me just like how they are doing all entrances at stations right now for the new fare gates.

I believe one of the issues preventing quicker work is lack of funding. There actually isn't enough money to add elevators to all the stations as of now.

 

[drum118]

When will we see these on our roads??

Mercedes demonstrates a self-driving bus in Amsterdam

 

[muller877]

I believe one of the issues preventing quicker work is lack of funding. There actually isn't enough money to add elevators to all the stations as of now.

The TTC Management and Board have decided no to prioritize helping the disabled and to prioritize other things. They also do not care about the safety of individuals by not accelerating the secondary exit plan for each subway station either.

AODA is a law and they are required to comply. When the capital budget cycle includes 2025 and does not include 100% compliance under the AODA there is the ability under the AODA to force the TTC to include it in their plan.

And if they don't 100% comply by 2025 they can be fined up to $100,000 per day AND officers/directors can be fined $50,000 per day. Since they are knowledgeable about the AODA rules and are ignoring the capital requirement they should be punished at the maximum level. After a week that would eat up all of Andy Byford's salary.

 

[Edward Skira]

If you are going to punish anyone how about the politicians that fund the system and not those having to deal with financial constraints not of their making? How about allocating part of the billions being spent on a one station extension to getting this done?

 

[W. K. Lis]

The TTC Management and Board have decided no to prioritize helping the disabled and to prioritize other things. They also do not care about the safety of individuals by not accelerating the secondary exit plan for each subway station either.

AODA is a law and they are required to comply. When the capital budget cycle includes 2025 and does not include 100% compliance under the AODA there is the ability under the AODA to force the TTC to include it in their plan.

And if they don't 100% comply by 2025 they can be fined up to $100,000 per day AND officers/directors can be fined $50,000 per day. Since they are knowledgeable about the AODA rules and are ignoring the capital requirement they should be punished at the maximum level. After a week that would eat up all of Andy Byford's salary.

Mayor Tory and his administration demands that the TTC reduce spending by 2%. With inflation, that comes to around a 5% cut. We have had cuts under the Ford administration which continued under the Tory administration. We can't keep cutting, cutting, and cutting each and every year. You want to help the disabled, provide better safety, and other things, we'll have to agree to increase taxes AND get funding from the province and the federal governments.

 

[TheTigerMaster]

The only ones being fined should be Mayor Tory and his cronies

 

[drum118]

Good thing we are not going this way as it was dead almost from day one when the SRT open for service.

Given how few are around the world, Montreal is making a mistake going this way.

Honolulu has until the end of the year to deal with the $1.5B short fall to the point they are now looking at stopping the line and building LRT for the rest of it.

Montreal, Quebec - op-ed: death of Canadian light metro ??

 

[muller877]

Mayor Tory and his administration demands that the TTC reduce spending by 2%. With inflation, that comes to around a 5% cut. We have had cuts under the Ford administration which continued under the Tory administration. We can't keep cutting, cutting, and cutting each and every year. You want to help the disabled, provide better safety, and other things, we'll have to agree to increase taxes AND get funding from the province and the federal governments.

Wages make a huge portion of the TTC's costs. The average cost in Ontario has only gone up 1% year over year. Anything more than that is bad labour negotiations.
http://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidien/160428/dq160428a-eng.htm
Most organizations who have stagnant growth look at cutting costs while maintaining good customer service (e.g. back office functions and middle management). The direction that City Hall gave to the TTC is very reasonable.

Most organizations also comply with the law. Environmental law, tax law, labour law, corporate law, human rights issues, AODA, etc. Just because your the TTC does not make you exempt.

I can't believe how many people support this absurd policy of not allowing the disabled to use the subway. Accessibility is a basic right that should be granted to everyone.

 

[rbt]

Wages make a huge portion of the TTC's costs. The average cost in Ontario has only gone up 1% year over year. Anything more than that is bad labour negotiations.

What negotiations? Ford gave away our ability to negotiate (one of the very first things he did actually). Now the union makes a demand, the arbitrator says "that's fine", and the city pays the bill.

 

[salsa]

Most organizations who have stagnant growth look at cutting costs while maintaining good customer service (e.g. back office functions and middle management).

Last year's budget cut only resulted in fare hikes and deferred maintenance that is now wreaking havoc on bus reliability and broken air-conditioners on Line 2. Prior to that, Ford's budget cut resulted in reduced bus service and fare hikes. This year the TTC is facing $178 million in increased operating costs and decreased ridership just to maintain current service levels amid huge population growth, and yet they are being asked to cut the budget again. For John Tory there is always enough money for his Gardiner initiatives, but not for transit riders. It's okay that fares go up way beyond inflation but not property taxes.

Instead of imposing budget cuts, council should be making investments to attract more riders. The last time the TTC faced declining ridership, they launched the ridership growth strategy in 2003 that actually increased service rather than cut back, which resulted in sustained ridership growth up until now. Contrast that to Mike Harris' "race-to-the-bottom" approach which caused a huge ridership loss that took 15 years to recover to pre-Harris levels.

The direction that City Hall gave to the TTC is very reasonable.

No. It's not reasonable. In fact it is despicable that John Tory wants to impose another budget cut to a transit system that is already grossly underfunded and unable to handle Toronto's growing population, all in the name of this fantasy belief that there is still a trove of "efficiencies" waiting to be found.

 

[Amare]

Tory is scared to do what he knows is needed. One of either the implementation of a new tax or increased property taxes are needed to adequately fund the TTC to prevent cuts.

But instead of doing either, he comes up with the idea of cutting the TTC's budget. He loves to pour money into countless "studies" into the Scarborough subway and Smartrack to make it seem as though we wants to expand transit, while simultaneously starving the TTC of much need cash.

 

[AlbertHWagstaff]

Tory is scared to do what he knows is needed. One of either the implementation of a new tax or increased property taxes are needed to adequately fund the TTC to prevent cuts.

But instead of doing either, he comes up with the idea of cutting the TTC's budget. He loves to pour money into countless "studies" into the Scarborough subway and Smartrack to make it seem as though we wants to expand transit, while simultaneously starving the TTC of much need cash.

Along with the Fordian logic of saying that the City has to be very prudent with taxpayers' money and taxpayers are stretched so we can't raise taxes more than inflation and we have to trim budgets ... etc etc and then going all out to blow billions on a really expensive subway extension. Funding for state of good repair gets chiselled back and back and as pointed out above we see the results, broken a/c, poor bus reliability, more and more deferred maintenance. I hear 90s retro is back, I'd rather not have the 90s back at the TTC.

As for accessibility, blaming the TTC isn't going to help when the funding comes from guess where? City Hall! Unless the politicians are willing to budget billions at a time so that multiple stations can be updated at once, it'll continue the way it is. And even if you could have 15 stations being done at once, are there enough qualified contractors out there to do that work? You don't want contractors with no experience in this kind of project getting the jobs and then having them go way over budget and schedule because they didn't know what they were doing. People were fed up enough with that happening at Lawrence West. Imagine that at several stations at the same time.

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

FFS - from the Star:

https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/20...ng-over-abuse-of-workers-on-social-media.html

AoD

 

[drum118]

TTC hosts 2016 Underground Freedom Train Ride

July 29, 2016

This Sunday night, the fourth annual midnight Underground Freedom Train Ride in the TTC subway, presented by A Different Booklist bookstore on Bathurst Street, will take place. The midnight subway train ride welcomes Emancipation Day on Aug. 1 and marks the role of the Underground Railroad in Canadian history. Celebrations include: singing, poetry readings, drum playing and remarks by African Canadian Heritage Association.

"The annual Freedom Train Ride on the TTC is an important event for our city, and an occasion not to be missed," says TTC Chair Josh Colle. "I am proud to have supported this event from its inception and want to thank the TTC staff and the event organizers for making this celebration possible."

When: Sunday, July 31-Monday, August 1, 2016
Where: Line 1, Union to Downsview stations
Start time: Remarks begin at 10:55 p.m. at Union Station; ceremonial train departs Union Station at approximately 11:40 p.m., and arrives at Downsview Station at approximately 12:02 a.m. where a welcome ceremony and closing remarks will take place.

The 2016 Underground Freedom Train Ride attracts huge, jubilant crowds and is open to the public.