On October 25th, Torontonians elected a new mayor and city council with divided views on transit. It has become clear that we as transit users need to come together and be well represented when decisions are being made about fares, service and transit priorities. We need to create a united voice to demonstrate that Torontonians want transit that is accessible for everyone in our communities, that we want affordable and predictable fares, that we want to expand transit through the Transit City light rail plan, and that we want our TTC to be kept public.
Over the coming months we are working to further establish TTCriders - a voice for transit riders. Our goal is to build a strong and vibrant transit advocacy group that will give a voice to the interests and concerns of the millions of us who use the TTC. Our main objective will be to ensure that the TTC is responsive to users, that all orders of government provide funding for TTC operations, and that the Transit City Light Rail Plan proceeds quickly. We are inspired by other transit advocacy groups such as the Straphangers who have become the voice of public transit users in New York City. We are also inspired by local coalitions of groups and individuals such as the Green Energy Act Alliance and Toronto Cyclists Union.
Currently, TTCriders is being incubated by an alliance of environmental, labour, and community organizations. These groups include the Canadian Federation of Students - Ontario, Social Planning Toronto, Toronto ACORN, the Toronto & York Region Labour Council, and the Toronto Environmental Alliance.
We are inviting new groups and individuals to partner with us as we work toward building TTCriders. Please join our listserv or contact us directly if you would like to work with us. You can do so here.