Much air time and print space have been devoted to Wednesday’s TTC meeting (September 12).  Which routes will be on the chopping block?  What will happen to fares?  Does anyone except the riding public actually care, or are the politicians and press too busy scoring political points off of each other?

The Transit Commission has a difficult decision, but hardest one will be this:  resist calls for cuts now.

Shirking responsibility?  Nonsense.  The Transit Commissioners should be advocates for transit, not hatchet men for those who prefer to starve a vital service.  The Commission’s job is to avert the destruction of the system. Continue reading →

Tonight, Councillor Michael Thompson, who is also a TTC Commissioner, will host a public meeting in the Rotunda of the Scarborough Civic Centre (south of the SRT station, across the plaza).

TTC CGM Gary Webster and the Chair Adam Giambrone will join Councillor Thompson to talk about how the City’s cost containment measures will affect the TTC and transit services in Scarborough.

I will not be attending tonight, but will be at the full TTC meeting on Wednesday. Later today, I will publish my position on the TTC cuts overall and the action that the Commission should take pending resolution of budget problems.

The surveys conducted by the TTC and the Torontoist website both show that retention and improvement of service is paramount for TTC riders. Recently, the Toronto Board of Trade released their own five-point election platform, and they strongly support transit improvement.

Let your Councillors, especially those who prefer to blame every cut on Queen’s Park or the unions, know that we need better service, we need more service, and we will not tolerate more excuses for Toronto’s failure to properly fund its transit system.