TTC could soon start advertising on its subway tunnel walls

When you're commuting across Toronto, ads follow you everywhere – from bus shelters and stops to subway platforms. Soon, even subway tunnels might be emblazoned with advertisements.

The TTC is looking to display advertisements on its subway tunnels, according to a new City report. The transit agency is seeking approval to install six "Tunnel Advertising Systems" within the TTC subway network.

This means video display ads could soon be spotted not on the platforms or inside the subways but in the actual tunnels themselves. These proposed ads will be mounted on tunnel walls with vertical lights and only activated by passing trains. 

Other cities like Vancouver have already started implementing this technology. In fact, the TTC's proposed 15-year contract is with adtrackmedia, the same company that installed tunnel ads on the Vancouver SkyTrain in 2022. 

What a coincidence that these new display ads are looking to be implemented in 2026, just in time for the FIFA World Cup co-hosted in Toronto. 

The TTC generates approximately $32 million a year in traditional and static ads. This new proposal with Adtrackmedia could "diversify the TTC's non-fare advertising portfolio" and "enhance the resilience of the TTC's commercial revenue strategy," the report states. 

The report states that City staff are "currently reviewing adtrackmedia's proposal, including commercial, operational, and financial terms, as well as technical and service requirements," adding that "outcomes of this review will guide final contract negotiations, and as such, financial projections of revenue may be impacted."

This proposal is set to go before the TTC board sometime this week.