It’s
reassuring to know that TTC drivers can contact the authorities
directly from their vehicles -- it’s made the city safer.
Transit staff have reported fires, collisions and stopped
violence, all because they were passing by on the their regular
routes. The TTC gives out monthly Transit Community Watch Awards
to personnel who come to the aid of citizens, and one person
wins the annual version.
Kudos to
bus operator Kurt Bowman, who will receive the 2003 award today
from the TTC and Bell Mobility. While driving his bus, Bowman
rescued two men from attackers brandishing martial arts weapons
-- including a samurai sword. He stopped his bus when the two
ran into the street, followed by two other men. Bowman leaned on
the horn -- enough distraction to defuse the situation.
Notifying the police, he collected the two victims, and took
them in his bus to a safe location.
TTC
employees are encouraged “to observe and report” any problems or
emergencies they encounter while on their daily rounds. Aside
from the recognition and thanks, I hear Mr. Bowman will also get
a cool new phone from Bell Mobility, which will also donate
$1,000 to his favourite charity.
n n n
If you’re
travelling on the Spadina subway line this Sunday, don’t be
surprised if you can’t go all the way to Downsview station.
Riders travelling between Wilson and Downsview Stations will
have to use shuttle buses Sunday, as the TTC replaces a track
switch. Buses serving Downsview station should not be affected.
This is not
related to another construction project at the Downsview
terminus -- a new commuter parking lot is being built just south
of the subway station. 641 new spaces are expected to be
available by October this year, which may help boost ridership
on this underused portion of the subway system.
It’s taken
a long time to get things moving at Downsview. Transit stations
are ideally supposed to attract development, such as new housing
and office buildings. The Yonge line is the best example of
intensification near subway stops, and the lesser used Spadina
branch has been disappointing by comparison. Much of it runs
down the centre of the Allen Road, and freeways tend to dampen
pedestrian-friendly urban development.
When the
subway line was extended one stop from Wilson to Downsview in
the early 1990’s, critics called it an extension “from nowhere
to nowhere”. Making Downsview into a vibrant transit “village”
has been complicated by complex land ownership issues, and the
fact that a live air strip is located just to the west. A
parking lot is not necessarily the best thing for attracting
people to live nearby, but it could be a sign that the
development log-jam around the station is ending.
n n n
On Thursday
afternoon, the website
www.torontogasprices.com reported that the cost of gasoline at
some stations in greater Toronto had dropped close to 80 cents
per litre. Now that the weekend is here, expect prices to rise.
The TTC is
insulated somewhat from the upward pressure of fuel costs,
thanks to a timely move that was either very lucky, very shrewd,
or both. The transit system has just begun a two year contract
for diesel fuel at 54 cents a litre -- even though the retail
price for diesel is currently almost 20 cents more per litre.
The system’s buses burn 60 million litres of fuel every year,
but the TTC’s deal guarantees the price until March 2006.
Send e-mail
to metrointransit@hotmail.com.
Include address and phone number.