Toronto Public Transit

Forewarning most people that I have had a very bad day and this is a rant post about the many shortcomings of the TTC. First of all, I'd like to explain what happened today and why I am so upset.Me and my other half were riding the subway from the Sheppard station to the Don Mills station. We sometimes decide that we have extra time and do not need to get off of the subway and walk in the rain and we can ride it again since we are sleep deprived high school students. Today, however, once we had decided to ride it again, when we reached Sheppard station (once again), the TTC conductor very rudely announced to us that it was the last stop. In thinking he was being kind to remind us that we had reached our destination, thinking that we had fallen asleep, I replied nicely that we would be in fact riding it back. He then proceeded to say in a very rude tone again that this was the last stop and shot us a menacing glance.

Let me say there are many things wrong with this scenario. I am a TTC customer , I have paid the required fare to be able to ride the TTC. Let me repeat. I HAVE PAID. This means that the TTC services are at my disposal for as long as I don't exit the station or cause disruption to other customers or TTC employees. Therefore there should be nothing wrong with riding the subway more than once. I have done it more times than I can count on one hand, and no one has had a problem with it and has never told me to get off of the subway. Therefore I was rather shocked at today's incident as:

1.We were not causing any kind of trouble and we were not being rude or disrespectful in any way. My boyfriend was sleeping on my shoulder and I was holding his hand. We were not being noisy or disruptive, and we were in no way bothering any other passenger on the subway.

2.The subway was rather empty, and there were a lot of available seats. If this was a seat problem, we would have gladly relinquished our seats to the other patrons. However, seeing as there were many more available seats, this was clearly not the issue.

3.I have done my research, both on the official TTC website and on the internet and have not found anything to say that riding the subway more than once is in any way not permitted.
I have found that in the TTC by law act, it states

"i) “loiter” means to linger without due cause and includes but is not limited to:(i) idly spending time in or on TTC property without the express purpose of using the transit system;"

This however is very vague. We had an express purpose of using the transit system, we had a destination to go to. We are also not the only passengers that remain on the TTC after it has come to a stop. I think this is silly. If you paid for it, you should be able to ride it over and over again if you are not, of course disturbing anyone else. We were not loitering in the station.There is no reason why this subway driver should have kicked us out. If it is not permitted, there should be a kind of sign in the actual subway or in the station telling riders this. It is ridiculous that TTC drivers believe that because they press a few coloured buttons they can act rude to customers. Even if the driver had been correct, he should have been more courteous.. There are of course times when it is necessary that they take matters into their own hands, this was however, not one of those times.

4. Both me and my boyfriend are for one patrons of the TTC and we have paid the necessary fare. This is really mind boggling. If one goes to Wonderland, and pays for a ticket, there is no reason why people cannot ride the rides more than once. If it is an empty day at Wonderland, and you are on a ride and there is no line up, why can you not ride again??

5. The fact that the TTC conductor was so rude is also an issue. When he stated that it was the last stop, I replied to him in a kind manner, I did not reply to him in an unfriendly or rude manner. Is it not correct that I should expect the same courtesy from him, an employee of one of the essential services of Toronto? Is it wrong to expect such understanding and kindness from people? It would have been understandable had I been mean or disrespectful to him for him to reply to me in such a manner. However, this was not the case.

Don't get me wrong, I actually like TTC drivers. There are some that greet me daily, and some that make riding the TTC a very enjoyable experience. This however, is ridiculous. I know my rights, and since there is nothing clearly stating the riding the subway back and forth is restricted ( there should be signs and the public should be told), there should have been no altercation.

The only reason that me and my boyfriend complied, ( we obviously got on the subway again, just in a different car, because come on people, that is clearly stupid and we are not going to wait), is because we did not want to cause a scene, to delay the subway for other passengers, and because in fact, if we had argued, we had no proof in order to back up our statements.Be kind to people you meet, because you never know their situation. However, when you have not done anything wrong and are being treated unfairly, especially by someone that is supposed to be kind and courteous, to you, don't stand for it. I'm not saying people don't have bad days, and I'm not saying that people don't make mistakes, however,being angry, upset or grumpy is no reason to take it out on any other human being.