With Victoria Day weekend and the arrival of unquestionably late spring weather in Toronto, people are turning out in droves on Queens Quay: pedestrians, strollers, bladers, cyclists, streetcars and more than a few bewildered motorists.
The TTC will operate one PCC on Sunday afternoons from now through Labour Day weekend on the route. No fare is charged, and a free transfer is possible to the subway at Union Station.
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- 4500 WB on Queens Quay between Lower Simcoe and Rees Streets
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- 4500 and friends looking W on Queens Quay at Rees
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- 4500 EB on Queens Quay nearing the “crossover” west of Spadina
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- 4410 WB on Queens Quay at the Music Garden
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- 4409 WB on Queens Quay at the Music Garden
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- 4500 WB on Queens Quay at the Music Garden
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- 4409 (the Volvo ad car) EB on Queens Quay E of Dan Leckie Way
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- 4500 EB on Queens Quay east of Dan Leckie Way
Steve Munro 
I see 4409 already has a front panel which they didn’t bother painting with the proper scheme.
But what about fare revenue loss???
Steve: I am sure that a special tax will be levied on downtown latte sippers to pay for this!
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Actually on a closer inspection it looks like they accidentally used one of the rear panels on the front.
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I think Steve Munro appears in a PCC photo I took at Union Station. Is that you, Steve, in the photo? I noticed the resemblance only after I examined the photos at home.
More PCC photos are here.
Steve: Yup, that’s me. I had been photographing along the line and just waited a bit at Union to see how the passengers would react to the old car.
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Are they actually using real rollsigns in the PCC again finally? Very nice to see. Now if they could also remove the ‘non-historic’ tourist messages I’d be really happy.
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604 Harbourfront is back with avengance, lol, just kidding. ; )
I think the elevator that was put in with Queens Quay / Bay station was the first elevator in the entire TTC system, shortly followed by the elevators that were put in the new south Bloor station mezzanie entrance when renovation work to Bloor station was completed in 1993. The three of those elevators have a bit of an oddness to all the rest of the elevators put in. In the beginning the TTC was probably unsure how it’s elevators should be like.
Of course over twenty years later the Queens Quay / Bay st station elevator can finally serve disabled passengers. When I look at the opening ceremony news coverage for 604 Harbourfront there was some issue taken about there being no accessible streetcars, not the mention the high floor ALRVs just having starting service and the 1990 provincial legislation that ordered all new transit vehicles be accessible, ah well.
Of course it’s amazing riding about on the new Flexity trams on Harbourfront, along with riding the one remaining historic PCC that harkens back to when the Harbourfront streetcar was all A-15 PCCs. As far as I know when pantograph operation for the Flexitys comes into full swing it won’t be possible for the Peter Witt or PCC to run on our streets anymore. Best as always to enjoy what bit of our historic streetcars is left before that’s really gone.
Steve: The elevator at Queens Quay station is technically not a “TTC” elevator, but one installed by the development above the station. There are more than a few cases where “accessibility” is actually provided through a private building that installed an elevator or escalators as part of their development agreement with the City, or their connection agreement with the TTC.
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