TTC's fancy new LRT line didn't even make it 30 minutes before first delays

The TTC welcomed its first new transit line in 23 years with the Dec. 7 opening of the new Finch West LRT, but it didn't take long at all for the first delays on the newly christened Line 6 Finch West.

Riders braved snowy weather and long lines on Sunday morning to be among the first to ride the 18-stop, 10.3-kilometre light rail line.

However, in what has become an all-too-familiar TTC tradition, passengers were notified within minutes of the line's opening that there was a delay affecting Line 6.

Line 6 already fitting in well with its peers. https://t.co/q8W6X7poiE

— Charlie ND 🇨🇦 (@charliefrom6) December 7, 2025

The TTC informed passengers at 7:40 a.m. on Sunday — just ten minutes after the first public train got underway — that it was experiencing "Delays westbound at Finch West station while we deal with an operational problem."

The public reaction was swift and brutal, with several users calling out the transit agency for the same old struggles. 

lol that didn’t take long 😂😂

— Andrus (@Suur_Andrus) December 7, 2025

Frustration among riders was palpable in threads on social media.

Its only been. Running 30 mins ffs

— 🇨🇦 🌱Ms Stacey Lace🌿 🇨🇦 (@msstaceylace) December 7, 2025

Even during moments when the line functioned as intended on opening day, many passengers were left underwhelmed by the LRT's speed — a shortcoming many have pointed out stems from Metrolinx's controversial decision to not pursue signal priority at intersections with roads.

Toronto, where we spend 6+ years and a couple billion dollars to build 11 km of higher order transit for a part of the city that has none, but then undermine the whole premise - improved speed and reliability - by not giving it true signal priority.

Fix this. pic.twitter.com/lf4KZKCpJD

— Gil Meslin (@g_meslin) December 8, 2025

And while the first-day jitters may come as a surprise to some, it really just reads as par for the course for anyone paying attention to the never-ending transit delays in this town.

In fact, these transit hiccups are so burnt into our lives that one local engineer recently harnessed their annoyance at service delays and created a new website that lets riders take a deep dive into the source of service disruptions.