Newest Metrolinx renderings show TTC bus very realistically trapped in the snow

A new spate of renderings for public transit upgrades on the way for Toronto appear to include a hilarious Easter egg that is painfully true to life in the city during the winter: a TTC bus stuck in an unplowed snow drift.

The images in question, which are part of a series showcasing new GO Expansion projects, show what the forthcoming St. Clair-Old Weston GO Station will look like once complete, with all-new buildings, pathways, tunnels, bike parking accommodations and more in the Stockyards neighbourhood.

Three images that Metrolinx shared to X on Tuesday depict the future exterior of the future stop on the Kitchener Line GO, which riders can expect ground to break on next year.

While the visuals are nothing too detailed or exciting, they do give a general idea of what the public can expect to see on Union Street north of St. Clair Ave. W in a few years — including, apparently, more instances of poor snow removal and stalled vehicles come wintertime.

the second rendering is so unserious https://t.co/vU8FaB8wkr

— Kevin (@ClarityMCNet) December 20, 2023

While a few on X are commenting on the rudimentary nature of the renderings — one person called them "goofy" while another questioned if they were a joke — the bus trapped in the middle of the road is too funny to ignore given how accurate it is.

Residents will remember that more than 500 of the city's buses were unable to navigate the roads after last winter's historic snowstorm, many of them left stranded for days before they were eventually dug out.

Some passengers and passersby even found themselves helping to push the lodged vehicles out of snow ruts as roads remained untreated.

This winter, though, the commission plans to shut down 56 bus stops during major snowfalls to prevent such headaches, which will be inevitable given how many complaints there are about the city's snow removal each year.

St. Clair-Old Weston GO is part of Metrolinx's SmartTrack program to revamp some 40km of existing rail corridors with five new stations for additional connections. The transit agency did not reply to blogTO's request for comment on the rendering in time for publication.