All-door boarding to be allowed on the King streetcar
Posted December 8, 2014 12:30 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Some relief could be on the way for the almost 60,000 people crammed onto Toronto’s busiest above-ground transit route.
Mayor John Tory announced a new policy allowing riders with proof-of-payment, such as a transfer or Metropass, to board at any door of the King streetcar.
Tory was joined by newly-appointed TTC Chair Josh Colle and TTC CEO Andy Byford for the announcement on Monday morning.
The new mayor promised the move, to be enacted Jan. 1, “will deliver immediate relief for both transit riders and for drivers.”
Almost 20 per cent of the streetcar’s trip is spent stopping to let passengers off and on, Tory said, promising the new policy will cut that time in half.
“[Commuters] will get to work sooner and they will get home to their families faster,” Tory said.
All-door boarding, or proof-of-payment, is already allowed on the Queen and Spadina streetcars — the second and third busiest surface lines in the system — and will be extended to all routes as the new streetcars are rolled out.
Byford admitted that many drivers already allow all-door boarding on the 504 King, but the policy will now be formalized and expected.
A TTC staff report released in August recommended the policy be rolled out on streetcar routes across the network as soon as possible.
Tory was skeptical of the plan at the time, saying the financial implications of the nine-point plan needed to be addressed.
The King streetcar is the third-busiest surface route in the network and carries more than the Sheppard subway or Scarborough RT, which take 49,000 and 40,000, respectively.
“The King car is rammed,” Byford said, citing condo development along the line, including Liberty Village, that has led to a surge in ridership along the line.
Transit users along the crowded line took to crowd-funding a pilot project for a private bus to run during rush hour.
The new boarding policy will come with new enforcement targeting fare evaders.
“I know Torontonians will do the right thing. For those who don’t, no mercy — for they are ruining it for everyone else,” Tory said.
Twenty new inspectors were brought in when the Spadina line started accepting proof-of-payment. Byford hopes to add 20 more in the next budget round and ultimately have 100 inspectors fanned out across all proof-of-payment routes.
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All data for 2012 ridership. Source: ttc.ca