Transit in the 2026 City Budget

Highlights 

• A fare freeze for the third consecutive year. This is a major win for transit riders, as many Torontonians face mounting costs of living, shifting the burden on transit riders is not the solution.
• Fare capping! Another victory for affordability. Fare capping replaces the expensive monthly pass with a cap on fares. Instead of paying $156 on the first of the month–the same day your rent is due–you will stop being charged after you tap 47 times in a month. This program is set to begin in September 2026, and there is a pledge to lower the cap to 40 taps in September 2027. We’d love all of this sooner, but we’ll take it.
• Moderate service increases, bringing us closer to pre-pandemic levels. Annualizing the investments in service increases on Line 1 and 2 and on the 6 minute streetcar network on the Dundas, St. Clair and Bathurst lines.
• Increased subway and streetcar maintenance to maintain a state of good repair, and not contribute to the massive backlog.
• Continued funding for the the 2025 Bunching and Gapping pilot, which focuses on 10 key routes with several suggestions that we called for in our Bunching Report.
• An increase to the land transfer tax on luxury homes to help pay for transit. 
• Wheel-Trans expansion to meet with growing demand.
• Continuation of a pilot of crisis workers on transit to address safety on transit. 

What's missing?

• Lack of operating funding from the Federal and Provincial governments. While the New Deal between Toronto and the Province did provide some significant resources for transit, and the province will continue to pay for the first year of operations on Lines 5 and 6, the lack of permanent federal and provincial funding continues to place an unfair burden on the City.
• No new funding for RapidTO expansion. Transit riders already had to wait far too long for dedicated transit lanes on Dufferine and Bathurst, and it looks like we will have to wait longer still for long promised lanes like on Jane St. Finch East, Steeles, Lawrence, not mention expanding Dufferin to Wilson station and Bathurst to Eglinton.
• Faster fare capping rollout. We’re thrilled that Toronto is finally getting fare capping, which is something that London, New York, Hamilton and Ottawa already do–but are disappointed that it will only be implemented in September. They have the technology, why wait?
• Lower fares for post-secondary students. Right now, post secondary students are eligible for a lower-cost monthly pass, and as such the introduction of fare-capping isn’t useful for them at either the 47 or 40 caps. We shouldn’t have a two tiered transit system, with some people having access to a cheaper monthly pass and others being eligible for fare capping. Post secondary students should pay the same rate as seniors and fair pass recipients.
• Few new revenue tools. The budget has worked magic by increasing service, keeping fares frozen, implementing fare capping all without any service cuts. This is great news for transit riders, but there is still a funding problem for transit and the city needs to invest in new revenue tools like a commercial parking levy or a rideshare congestion charge. Revenue tools like these will prevent future fare increases or property tax increases if the federal and provincial governments don't step up and will allow for more service improvements and deeper affordability.

Get involved! 

Members of the public can speak directly to City Councillors during budget hearings on January 20 and 21 at locations across Toronto. Your voice is needed to convince Councillors to invest in fixing subway slow zones, more frequent service, and bringing in fare capping. 

Learn how to Speak up for transit by attending one of our workshops:

• January 13 at 6:00pm virtually 
• January 19 at 7:00pm virtually 

RSVP to Speak up for transit at a Budget Hearing

• January 20 from 9:30am | 1:30pm | 6:00pm at:
  • City Hall, Committee Room 1 
  • North York Civic Centre, Council Chamber 
  • Video Conference 
• January 21 from 9:30am |1:30pm | or 6:00pm at:
  • Scarborough Civic Centre, Council Chamber
  • Etobicoke Civic Centre, Council Chamber  
  • Video conference

Check out other organizations and resources on how to get involved

• Progress Toronto's 2026 Budget Training Series

• Social Planning Toronto 

More details 

Link to the 2026 TTC Conventional and Wheel-Trans Operating Budgets.

Link to the 2026-2035 Capital Budget and Plan, 15-Year Capital Investment Plan, and Real Estate Investment Plan Update.

Visit Steve Munro for more in-depth analysis: https://stevemunro.ca/

Affordability

• Monthly fare capping would start September 1, 2026: riders who pay per trip will stop being charged after 47 paid rides in a calendar month (this cap applies universally to all adult / youth / senior, and Fair Pass riders).
• The plan is to increase the cap to 40 rides a month in 2027.
• Fare freeze for a third year in a row. Fares remain frozen at 2023 rates.
• This is important because for three decades, TTC fares have risen faster than inflation. 
• $3.2 million added to Fair Pass administration, to make sure that those who need it can get access faster. 

Service

• Service hours increase: +2% service hours, for a total of 9.9 million hours in 2026. The report ties this to congestion, changing travel patterns, and delivering “world-class service” during the FIFA World Cup, and budgets for 426.4 million rides in 2026.
• Annualizing the investments in service increases on Line 1 and 2 and on the 6 minute streetcar network on the Dundas, St. Clair and Bathurst lines.
• Operating funding to support added service hours: the budget includes $25.0M net for additional service hours
• Sustains prior-year enhancements: the budget explicitly says it sustains prior year service enhancements, including peak capacity increases on Lines 1 and 2, safety/security measures, and extending cleanliness and reliability pilots like bunching and gapping
• $179.0M gross to support operating/maintenance for Line 5 Eglinton and Line 6 Finch West, fully offset by Provincial funding under the Ontario–Toronto New Deal.
• Funding for increased streetcar and subway maintenance, including $2.5M for maintenance of 60 new streetcars delivered over the past three years.

Wheel-Trans

• The Wheel-Trans operating budget totals $201.7 million
• The TTC forecasts approximately 4.4 million Wheel-Trans rides in 2026, an 8.7% increase over 2025.
• Wheel-Trans ridership ended 2025 above budget, reflecting growing demand driven by demographics and increased trip frequency.
• The budget includes $0.5 million and 28 positions to open a new Wheel-Trans satellite location at 800 Kipling Avenue, intended to improve operational efficiency.

This continued investment is important. TTCriders has consistently warned against restricting door-to-door Wheel-Trans service, particularly for riders in suburban and equity-deserving neighbourhoods who rely on it for daily mobility.

Where the money comes from

The TTC’s total 2026 operating budget is $3.03 billion, with $1.48 billion required from the City.

• 42% comes from TTC revenues (mostly fares but also including ad revenue)
• 49% comes from the City of Toronto property tax base
• 9% comes from Provincial operating support
• To hold fares flat, the budget relies on:
• $87.3 million in ongoing efficiencies
• A one-time $35.0 million draw from the TTC Stabilization Reserve
• An increase to the Municipal Land Transfer Tax on houses sold for more than $3 million. This increase brings in more than $13.8 million in revenue for the city next year and will help pay for the fare freeze. 
• This budget once again shows that Toronto lacks a stable operating funding agreement with the Province and Federal government. The City is carrying nearly half the cost of running the TTC and riders are still asked to fill the gap through fares.
• Without long-term funding from higher orders of government, future budgets will continue to rely on one-time fixes and restrained service growth instead of transformational improvements.