Vast cuts to TTC include scaling back removal of cancer-causing asbestos in stations

Due to Toronto ending last year in a significant budget shortfall, the city is slashing capital spending across the board this year, whether by delaying or cutting back on the extent of roadwork, library renovations and other planned projects, or cancelling them outright.

While not ideal, there are certainly some things that can wait — but a few items on the list are a bit concerning.

One of these is nestled among the whopping $87,000,000 in TTC subprojects that are being reduced and pushed to future years, and is titled simply "Subway Asbestos Removal," which the city itself was unable to expand further upon inquiry from blogTO.

It appears that, along with putting off certain TTC service improvement projects, some building work and a few upgrades to computer equipment and software for the commission, the city has decided to re-allocate some of the cash that was to go towards getting rid of the once-popular, though very hazardous insulation material that is in some tunnels and stations.

The transit agency has been working towards safely eliminating asbestos from across the system for many years now, closing portions of the subway lines during periods of low ridership to have crews complete the difficult work, along with other repairs.

Between the citywide construction pollutants, the lingering asbestos in the TTC, and now this cloud of death.. I’d say it’s time to stop pretending we’re not all fucked https://t.co/OEjnAY6ee7

— MyerClarity🔂 (@ThatMyerClarity) June 7, 2023

There was a total of $9,338,000 earmarked to this end in 2022, and it is unclear how much of the removal was completed last year. But, putting some of the leftover work on ice will save $566,000, according to the budget docs.

In 2021, the TTC acknowledged that "due to leaks deteriorating the condition of the material, there are concerns that the asbestos could fall onto the tunnel" and that "there have been several occasions in the past where asbestos material from the tunnel structure has fallen through the ceiling to platform level" in some areas.

Staff have raised alarms in the past over pollution levels in the city's subway network, which was at one point found to be up to 10 times worse than outside air. But, efforts to improve air quality have apparently been working, especially with the use of new braking technologies.

Hopefully the unidentified cuts won't have too significant of an impact on the much-needed extraction.