Toronto Transportation Commission

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The Toronto Transportation Commission (TTC) was the city’s public transit operator starting in 1921. It ran buses, streetcars, and island ferries. In 1954, it was renamed the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC).

Before the TTC, Toronto had several transit companies. The Williams Omnibus Bus Line in 1849 used horse-drawn stagecoaches on Yonge Street. The first street railway franchise began in 1861, with later systems including the Toronto Street Railways and the Metropolitan Street Railway in 1885, and the Toronto Railway Company in 1891. The city also ran its own system, the Toronto Civic Railways, which served areas private companies didn’t.

In 1920 a provincial act created the TTC, and in 1921 the Commission took over nine existing fare systems, unifying Toronto’s transit. From 1921 to 1953, the TTC added 35 new routes, extended 20 more, and ran 23 suburban routes on a cost basis. It also abandoned the North Yonge Railways, an interurban line.

The Great Depression and World War II strained city finances, but improvements continued. In 1936 the TTC purchased its first PCC streetcars, a modern design. After the war, Toronto’s population grew and demand for service increased. The TTC bought more PCC cars and built the world’s largest PCC streetcar fleet, including many second-hand cars from U.S. cities that had stopped streetcar service.

In 1954 Metro Toronto was created and the Yonge subway opened, so the TTC became the Toronto Transit Commission. Streetcars remained the core operation, and the TTC absorbed the old Toronto Railway Company and Toronto Civic Railways cars. Older wooden cars were retired and replaced by newer models.

Buses became a much bigger part of the system, especially after the 1960s. Bus service began in 1921, but bus routes gained importance as streetcar routes expanded.

Gray Coach Lines, begun in 1927 by the TTC, provided inter-urban bus service to Southern Ontario and offered tour operations in connection with Gray Line. The main terminal was the Toronto Bus Terminal on Elizabeth Street.

The TTC also ran trolley buses on about 10 routes, mainly downtown. The first trolley bus route started in 1922, but many trolley routes were later replaced by streetcars. A second major trolley bus system operated from 1947 to 1993.

In 1926 the City bought the ferries from the Toronto Ferry Company. The TTC modernized the fleet with diesel ferries to serve the Toronto Islands, which continue to be an important part of the island service.