FROM THE CEO: TTC Special Board Highlights

Earlier this week, the Advisory Committee on Accessible Transit (ACAT) held its annual special meeting to elect its executive team. I want to officially congratulate ACAT’s 2025 Chair, Betty Rivington-Law, and Co-Vice Chairs, Lori Bailey and Sophie Petrillo. I look forward to collaborating with them and the committee members as we continue to eliminate barriers to public transit.

I’d also like to welcome ACAT’s newest members, who began their three-year terms on January 1: Craig Nicol, Jason Osborne, Karen Mootoo, Lauri Sue Robertson, and Sophie Petrillo. ACAT is comprised of 15 Toronto citizens who advise the TTC on challenges faced by people with disabilities and seniors. The committee meets publicly on the last Thursday of every month at TTC Head Office at 1900 Yonge St.

Supporting mental health and wellness at the TTC
​Wednesday, January 22, marks the 15th annual Bell Let’s Talk Day, dedicated to promoting mental health awareness, acceptance, and action.

The TTC is committed to supporting your health and well-being. Our Employee and Family Assistance Program (EFAP), through our provider TELUS Health, offers an array of counselling services for you and your family members, including support for addiction, stress management, or financial management. Support is available 24/7 and always personal and confidential.

To access EFAP services, you or your family members can call 1-800-572-0039 or visit one.telushealth.com.

TTC Board approves 2025 budgets
​Congratulations to our Finance team and CFO Josie La Vita for their exceptional work in presenting the 2025 budgets, which were approved by Commissioners last week. Our budgets preserve and build on service increases achieved last year and include huge funding investments for crucial state-of-good-repair work. The official 2025 Operating Budget and 2025-2034 Capital Budget and Plan will go before City Council on February 11. Please see below for highlights of what was approved on January 10.

The next Board meeting is scheduled for Monday, January 27.

Greg Percy
​Chief Executive Officer
​January 17, 2025

TTC Board Highlights
​TTC Special Board Meeting January 10, 2025

New Commissioners welcomed to TTC Board
​The TTC Board officially welcomed Deputy Mayor Ausma Malik (Spadina-Fort York) and Councillor Alejandra Bravo (Davenport) to their first meeting. Their term of office began on January 1 and runs until November 14, 2026. They replaced Councillors Stephen Holyday (Etobicoke Centre) and Chris Moise (Toronto Centre).

TTC Board approves TTC 2025 Budgets
​After receiving presentations from TTC staff, the Board approved the TTC’s 2025 Operating, Wheel-Trans, and Capital Budgets. The budgets will be forwarded to the City Budget Committee and the City Manager as the official submissions for the TTC. Here is what was approved:

• 2025 Operating Budget totalling $2.819 billion in gross expenditures, $1.432 billion in revenues and a net funding requirement of $1.387 billion for the TTC comprising the following services:

  - 2025 TTC Conventional Operating Service Budget of $2.636 billion in gross expenditures, $1.423 billion in revenues and a net funding requirement of $1.214 billion; and,

  - 2025 Wheel-Trans Operating Budget of $182.6 million in gross expenditures, $9.4 million in revenues and a net funding requirement of $173.2 million.

• Approve $1.6 million gross and $0 net to establish a General Body Repairperson Apprenticeship program, conditional on securing funding under the provincial Skills Development Fund (SDF) Training Stream.

• Endorse the TTC 2025-2039 Capital Investment Plan of $53.379 billion (Attachment 1).

• Endorse the TTC 2025-2039 Real Estate Investment Plan Update, including the implementation timeline (Attachment 2).

• Approve a 2025 Capital Budget of $1.688 billion and future year planned estimates of $14.707 billion for a total TTC 2025-2034 Capital Budget and Plan of $16.395 billion, comprising the following:

  - 2025 Capital Budget of $1.618 billion and future year planned estimates of $14.615 billion, for a total TTC 2025-2034 Base Capital Budget and Plan of $16.233 billion, and,

  - TTC 2025 Capital Budget of $70.54 million and future year planned estimates of $92.35 million, for a total TTC 2025-2034 Capital Budget and Plan of $162.89 million for Transit-Expansion-Related Projects.

• Approve a 2025 year-end workforce complement of 18,201 positions, comprised of 14,916 operating positions and 3,285 capital positions, reflecting an increase of 476 operating positions and 199 capital positions.

• Reaffirm requests to the Federal and Provincial Governments for a tri-partite discussion on the development of a sustainable, long-term funding model for public transit capital and operations needs.

• Delegate authority to the Chief Executive Officer to execute any transfer payment and/or contribution agreements required with the Province of Ontario and/or the Government of Canada to receive intergovernmental funding for priority projects and programs, subject to terms and conditions satisfactory to the TTC’s General Counsel.

Board members also approved the following motions:

• TTC Staff conduct public consultations and develop a Ridership Growth Strategy 2.0, building upon the Ridership Growth Strategy 2018-2022, and report back to the Board in July 2025.

• TTC staff develop a hiring strategy on the basis of the approved Ridership Growth Strategy 2.0 and report back to the Board by October 2025.

• TTC staff use the approved Ridership Growth Strategy 2.0 and associated hiring strategy to inform the 2026 TTC Budget process.

• Establish a Strategic Planning Committee to assist the TTC Board in managing strategic planning and priorities, including through a Ridership Growth Strategy and other existing strategic documents, and direct the Director – Commission Services to report back to the February 24, 2025 TTC Board meeting on a proposed structure and meeting schedule after canvassing Commissioners’ interest in committee membership.

• Amend the 2025 Schedule of Meetings to add a Special Meeting of the Board in September 2025 to consider recommendations from the Strategic Planning Committee, receive an update on the 2026 Budget, and discuss budget priorities informing the development of the 2026 TTC Operating Budget, 2026-2035 Capital Budget and Plan, and 15-Year Capital Investment Plan and Real Estate Investment Plan Update.

• Direct the Director – Commission Services to include a Special Meeting to consider recommendations from the Strategic Planning Committee, receive an update on the next year’s budget, and discuss budget priorities informing the development of the next year’s budgets in future year’s recommended annual schedule of Board and Committee meetings for the Board’s approval, in accordance with Section 20 of the By-law to Govern Board Proceedings.

• Directs the TTC CEO and Director – Commission Services, to publicly release the TTC’s annual budget at least 10 business days prior to its consideration by the Commission.

Operating Budget Highlights

• Freezes TTC fares at 2023 prices.

• Allocates $33 million to preserve and build on service increases made in 2024 and address rising demand on weekends and evenings as well as challenges posed by road congestion. The overall increased service hours will match pre-pandemic levels.

• Increases Wheel-Trans funding by $14.2 million to meet the rising demand.

• Establishes a pilot project on 11 routes across the city to reduce bunching and gapping of vehicles in real-time through enhanced on-street route management.

• Funds operating and maintenance costs for the opening of Lines 5 and 6 in 2025 as well as full-year operations on the Line 3 SRT bus replacement service.

• Creates a new subway stations management pilot program to add more staff and improve cleanliness at six priority locations (Scarborough Town Centre bus terminal, and Kennedy, Dundas, Finch, Spadina, and Lansdowne stations).

Capital Budget Highlights

• 55 replacement subway trains on Line 2 with the recently announced $1.5-billion matching Federal and Provincial funding ($2.3 billion total project cost).

• Investments in approximately 700 eBuses and 950 charging systems totalling $1.2 billion over the next five years, with a total project cost of approximately $2.4 billion.

• Bus, Streetcar, and Subway fleet overhaul programs directly resulting from the $500 million funding provided through the City’s reallocation of the Gardiner/DVP funding.

• Critical subway systems infrastructure (Signals, Electrical, Communication) and escalator/elevator overhaul/replacement programs, with $368 million in additional funding.

• Climate adaptation and resiliency, efficiency measures, and projects that will reduce GHG emissions, key initiatives of the TTC’s Innovation and Sustainability Strategy, with more than $67 million in new funding.

• Targeted station/transit priority investments of $15 million over 2025 and 2026 to improve the condition; aesthetics; to pilot a public address system upgrade and station lighting LED retrofit at six key stations and install red paint treatment on existing city roads, intersections and TTC stations to improve transit priority and safety and support fare compliance at station entrances.

Next meeting of the TTC Board
​The next scheduled TTC Board meeting will be on Monday, January 27, 2025.

-30-