TTC subway service about to get a whole lot faster after frustrating slowdowns

Riders who have been grumbling about slow TTC subway service as of late will soon be back on the fast track as the commission finally phases out the reduced speed zones it implemented last month.

More than a dozen segments of track on Line 1 and Line 2 were identified as in need of maintenance in early February, which necessitated trains traversing the routes to slow down to a crawl.

Instead of their usual speeds of 40-5o km/h, vehicles were in some areas forced to decelerate to a mere 15 km/h, or even less, adding multiple minutes to people's commutes, along with increasing overall crowding and congestion on the network.

But thankfully, it looks like operations should be back to normal by the end of this month, with only seven reduced speed zones remaining in effect out of an original 21.

TTC announces slower subway service and people are very pissed off https://t.co/q77mZfDO0k

— blogTO (@blogTO) February 12, 2024

Last week, the transit agency wrote that crews had "made significant progress" in lifting the speed restrictions, working away at track level while trains still operated around them in order to avoid greater impacts to customers.

In total, the zones represented a whopping 16,500 feet of rail that needed repairs. TTC spokesperson Stuart Green told CityNews in an update Tuesday that all work is due to be wrapped up by March's end.

The portions of Line 1 and 2 where reduced speed zones are still ongoing as of March 12 are:

• Northbound from York Mills to Sheppard on Line 1 Yonge-University
• Northbound from St. Clair to Davisville on Line 1 Yonge-University
• Northbound from Union to King on Line 1 Yonge-University
• Northbound from North York Centre to Finch on Line 1 Yonge-University
• Southbound from St. Andrew to Union on Line 1 Yonge-University
• Southbound from Davisville to St. Clair on Line 1 Yonge-University
• Eastbound from Castle Frank to Chester on Line 1 Bloor-Danforth

Other service adjustments can be found on the TTC's website.