[diminutive]

Not sure you're allowed to operate a train without looking where you're going. Also not sure that a reverse-facing camera is a safe substitute.

You're allowed to run trains with no driver at all...

 

[AlbertHWagstaff]

You're allowed to run trains with no driver at all...

If there's no driver, such as in an ATO operation, running backwards is protected automatically, but running backwards with drivers is a different situation. A second person at the front acting as a spotter and the ability to stop the train using the emergency is required when rear-cab driving.

 

[Long Island Mike]

Thanks to our brave politicians who never want to spend money on anything that doesn't involve them getting all the glory of cutting a ribbon for a new extension or new trains. Advanced fare collection, CCTV, ATO, all tested out by the TTC but the politicians always balked at spending money on these things. "The way it's done is good enough. We can't afford to spend money on frills like that". But dangle a shiny new subway extension in front of them and the billions start flowing. That's how we got to where we are today.

Guarding circa 1985. Photographer unknown. Originally posted in a Transit Forum in the US.

View attachment 21108

AHW: Interesting 1985 picture of an attractive female TTC Guard or "Conductor" as this occupation would be titled in cities
such as NYC - One of the 6 rare aluminum Gloucester cars coupled to an original "Gloucester Red" catches my eye here...

The thing I remember most about TTC's guards is how they used to blow whistles to signal doors closing because as many
know TTC Subway cars then had no door chimes until the late 80s (?) built in...

I also recall that Philadelphia's Market-Frankford Subway-Elevated trains using the 1960 vintage Budd cars began to have
their Conductors use whistles beginning in the late 80s/early 90s until this fleet was replaced by the end of the 90s at which
point MFSE trains were converted to OPTO operation (one person train operation)...

Was this picture posted at: www.nycsubway.org which has a large collection of pictures/info from other cities?
They have a decent Toronto section with many streetcar pictures as an example...
Direct link: www.nycsubway.org/wiki/Toronto,_Ontario

LI MIKE

 

[Long Island Mike]

TTC subway ‘guards’ on the edge of obsolescence

http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2013/12/19/ttc_subway_guards_on_the_edge_of_obsolescence.html

.....

Many of Toronto’s frontline transit workers are on the verge of a major job shift, now that a push to modernize the TTC is finally taking hold. A plan to begin testing single-operator subway trains next year marks the beginning of the end of the guard position. That’s the second operator, the one who pokes his or her head out to ensure that no one has been caught in a door before the subway moves on.

- Eliminating that job, which pays about $31 an hour, will be closely followed by a new role for subway collectors as the TTC begins a full-scale launch of the automated Presto fare card system. The collector position will be “re-engineered” into more mobile, direct customer-assistance roles, said TTC CEO Andy Byford.

- But there won’t be any layoffs on the TTC, Byford promised. Staff will be absorbed into other roles, and efficiencies will be achieved through attrition. All safety procedures and protocols will be developed in consultation with the union. --- “We’re not looking to have people lose their jobs, but jobs will change,” he stressed. Byford, who worked on the London Underground, plans to replace the subway guards with cameras on the platforms and monitors in the train cabs.

.....

MARK: More then likely these Guards or Conductors will become Train Operators when the TTC Subways go to OPTO...
This makes perfect sense since the training for this occupation is similar...

LI MIKE

 

[M II A II R II K]

Accelerate smart-card rollout, TTC chief says as timing for Pan Am Games looks doubtful

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news...ful-in-time-for-pan-am-games/article16057616/

.....

Ms. Stintz has repeatedly said that the Presto smart-card system would be “substantially complete” for the games, a pledge that appeared optimistic in the face of a TTC report to the board Thursday.

- Commissioners heard that 50 new streetcars and 23 subway stations would be Presto-equipped beginning next fall. Only then would procurement begin for the second wave of implementation. Under this timeline, it’s unclear how much of the system would have the technology to allow passengers to use the card by the games, in the summer of 2015.

- “Based on this schedule, it’s unlikely that we’ll meet our commitments,” Ms. Stintz told reporters after moving a motion to urge quicker work. “I would expect the subway stations to be equipped, I would expect the new buses to be equipped and I would expect Wheel-Trans to be equipped.”

- The timeline depends on procurement, which is being done by Metrolinx, the regional transit agency, with input from the TTC. In an e-mail, a Metrolinx spokeswoman said they were “confident” in the current plan and that they expect Presto to be ready “to serve key venues in time for Pan Am games.”

.....

 

[Jonny5]

Can someone elaborate on how today's streetcar shutdown evolved? Media reports the decision was made around 6am, but walking down Gerrard and Carlton, I saw 5 streetcars abandoned on the road, like regular Sunday service had started and they called it off around 10am.

 

[PinkLucy]

Can someone elaborate on how today's streetcar shutdown evolved? Media reports the decision was made around 6am, but walking down Gerrard and Carlton, I saw 5 streetcars abandoned on the road, like regular Sunday service had started and they called it off around 10am.

Byford was on TV explaining that they tried to use tools to break through the ice on the copper wire but couldn't keep up. We've had one stuck near us since at least 8 am. Their priority is subway right now

 

[taal]

all back and running now

 

[doady]

For a streetcar driver not be willing to help a lost child in any way, it's just sickening.

 

[ShonTron]

For a streetcar driver not be willing to help a lost child in any way, it's just sickening.

? Context, please.

 

[BurlOak]

? Context, please.

I do recall that story about a week ago, but I am not sure of the details.

But I won't bother looking for it. If Doady pulls this comment out of thin air well after the fact then the onus is on Doady to provide a link to it.

 

[salsa]

I do recall that story about a week ago, but I am not sure of the details.

But I won't bother looking for it. If Doady pulls this comment out of thin air well after the fact then the onus is on Doady to provide a link to it.

Here's the story: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ttc-says-it-simply-failed-to-help-lost-child-1.2470844

 

[M II A II R II K]

Support Person Assistance Card

http://www.ttc.ca/Fares_and_passes/Support_Person_Card/index.jsp

.....

Effective January 1, 2014, a support person accompanying a person with a disability will not be required to pay a fare when travelling on the TTC. Customers with disabilities who travel with a support person on the TTC must apply for a TTC Support Person Assistance Card to be eligible for this fare exemption. A support person is someone who assists the card holder with communication, mobility, personal care/medical needs or with access to goods, services or facilities.

.....

 

[M II A II R II K]

TTC considers time-based transfers

http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2014/01/23/ttc_considers_timebased_transfers.html

The TTC is considering a switch from its longstanding single-continuous-trip transfer system to the kind of time-based transfers used in most other transit jurisdictions. The move would probably be welcomed by riders. But it would be costly — up to $20 million a year in lost fare revenue.

.....

 

[W. K. Lis]

TTC considers time-based transfers

http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2014/01/23/ttc_considers_timebased_transfers.html

The TTC is considering a switch from its longstanding single-continuous-trip transfer system to the kind of time-based transfers used in most other transit jurisdictions. The move would probably be welcomed by riders. But it would be costly — up to $20 million a year in lost fare revenue.

.....

It'll have to be made up by property taxes (something the Ford brothers wouldn't support, as well by their anti-transit views), if not made up by an operating subsidy from the province and/or federal governments. (TTC & GO are the LEAST subsidized transit agencies in North America.)