TTC says there will 'never be zero' subway slow zones, despite progress in cutting them
CBC
For TTC riders irritated by constant delays across Toronto's subway system, there's both good and bad news.
The agency has cut the number of "reduced speed zones" from a peak of nearly three dozen during the summer to only 10 as the new year begins. The zones are areas where trains must slow down because the tracks are in need of maintenance or repair.
The bad news is that slow zones are likely here to stay permanently to help minimize the strain on older sections of the track.
They're also likely to increase after the TTC's upcoming spring geometric survey. Last year's survey resulted in a significant rise in reduced speed zones.
"We understand that all of them mean that there is a slower trip time for people," TTC spokesperson Stuart Green told CBC Toronto.
A million riders use Toronto's subway system each day, so even with an added trip time of two minutes per slow zone, overall thousands of hours in commute time are lost each day — even with the dramatic reduction since August.
But the number will "never be zero," Green says, adding the agency has set a target of keeping the number of slow zones under a dozen across the network.
Transit advocates in the city are frustrated by that position, saying that while some zones are temporarily justifiable, the ultimate target should be zero.
"I think their goal is ridiculous," said transit advocate Steve Munro.
Munro says the reduction in slow zones is partly attributable to easier fixes, while problem areas continue to plague segments of Line 1.
The TTC says the median time to resolve a reduced speed zone is 11.6 days, while the average time is 22.1, suggesting some take much longer to resolve and skew the average upward.
For example, multiple slow zones have been in place for months along a four-stop section between Sheppard West and Lawrence West stations.
The TTC says it's aiming to remove many of those Line 1 zones in the first quarter of 2025, but didn't give a specific date.
Green says one of the challenges in addressing problem areas is that track maintenance crews have only about 90 minutes to carry out repairs overnight while trains aren't in operation.
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