SETAC – South Etobicoke Transit Action Committee

TTC’s CEO Andy Byford has introduced a list of proposals to improve transit service in Toronto. A major aim of this is to do things quickly and everywhere. Unlike major projects that might take more than ten years to plan and build, these are to be implemented in the short term. Steve Munro has a summary and analysis of the proposals. Let’s see what they will do for riders in South Etobicoke.

All door boarding for streetcars: in theory, we already have this on the 501 Queen and 508 Lake Shore streetcars that run through South Etobicoke. However, operators often don’t open the rear doors. Maybe they will do so more often.

Ten minute or better service on routes: this means that there will be a bus/streetcar every ten minutes or better, throughout the service day, from about 6AM to about 1AM the next morning.

1. Lake Shore Blvd. shows up on the map. Currently, the 501 Queen car, even in theory, does not come every 10 minutes or less, most of the day, never mind short turns. This would be a great improvement, if the TTC can get it to work.
2. 44 Kipling South and 79 Royal York South show up. This would mean improved service in the evenings on these routes.
3. Islington South shows up on the map, but only as far south as Judson. This means that the different branches of Islington South 110 will not be as frequent as every ten minutes, but the combined service will be.

All day service: this means that some rush-hour or limited-service routes will run all day. Strangely, the map shows the 110B Islington South via 30th as already being all-day which it is not. But the 110B does seem to serve a purpose as a connection to the subway for the long stretch of Lake Shore between Brown’s Line and Kipling, and it would be a good route to have all day. On the TTC’s map, Evans and Queensway are marked for possible expansion to all-day service. These were a couple of the routes that got cut back in the service reductions of 2011.

Express bus network: Kipling South is being considered for express bus service. This would be especially good for students attending the high schools and Humber College at the south end, who need to travel to and from the subway.

Downtown Express routes: The TTC is proposing two changes, which would affect the 145 Humber Bay express:

1. Downtown express buses are proposed to be regular-fare services, not premium fare.
2. Improved service on downtown express bus routes

This is a very common request, both via SETAC and at various public meetings and forums. Clearly, it is something the TTC is willing to try out. It will be very interesting to see how popular the 145 Humber Bay express might become.

Overnight network: the TTC is proposing additional Blue Night routes. For South Etobicoke, there is a proposed all-night bus from Long Branch loop via Brown’s Line and Horner to Kipling, then north on Kipling and Martin Grove to Steeles. This would give Alderwood much better access to all-night transit, and is a nice addition to the network.