John Tory seems to like making it up as he goes along in his new job. Of course, he has had to produce reasons for doing the things he said he wouldn’t do. In the case of increasing TTC fares its that Andy Byford made him do it. Really. The Chief Magistrate (Tory) and the Chief General Manager (Byford) sat down and, says the mayor, Mr. Byford convinced him that things were far worse at the TTC than he had thought. Apparently Byford did not dust off the Bulldog’s idea of a bus for South Bayview, but let’s not complain. In coming weeks children under 12 will ride the TTC for free and the city will make “an investment” of some $95 million in the TTC. And a single fare (except cash) will go up 10 cents. TTC Chair Josh Colle added that the cash ride stays the same because it is the poorer rider who uses cash. There is no way of testing that conclusion but let it go. It’s probably very few people in total at the top and bottom of the economic ladder. It will take a smart accountant to figure out the transit agency’s books although the TTC did give us a number ($7 million annually) for letting the kids ride free. We can’t help wondering why it is necessary for all kids to ride free. But so be. There will be absolute free entry onto the streetcars. This is the one they call proof-of-payment (presumably with a transfer or something) but there will be many free rides and everyone knows it. What that will cost is unknown. There was a lot of encouraging talk about buying new buses. Reliable and versatile buses are so much better than the streetcar circus which confounds the City year in and year out.
