As Andy Byford departs Toronto to become head of the New York City transit system, we recap some notable things he did while in charge of The Better Way.
Apologizing for delays in person
After he was officially named TTC CEO in March 2013, Byford made a point of riding the subway with a name tag on, ostensibly in part to encourage riders to approach him and talk to him about their concerns.
On days where things got particularly dicey on subways during a rush hour, Byford made a point of personally visiting subway platforms to apologize to riders.
The customer service focus appeared to pay off, with the TTC winning the American Transportation Association Award for best transit system in North America in 2017.
Getting drug testing approved
In April 2017, nine years after it was first proposed, the TTC began testing employees for drugs and alcohol while on the job.
Byford said on CP24 he took a test himself.
Harassment App
The SafeTTC app was launched in Sept. 2017 as a way for riders to report harassment and other crimes that occur on transit property without drawing undue attention.
The app can be used anonymously and is monitored around the clock.
Taking tough line with driver misbehavior
Over a span of just a few weeks in 2013, TTC riders caught drivers reading newspapers while driving, or parking illegally to go buy a snack. Many of the images were published in the press, causing significant outrage.
“Such behaviors are not only unacceptable; they lead to even more scrutiny and potential for assault,” Byford wrote in a letter to drivers at the time.
He said the few drivers who engaged in this sort of behavior “wreck all of our reputations.”
Overseeing the Line 1 extension into Vaughan
Tunnelling for the 8.6 kilometre York-University-Spadina subway extension into Vaughan began the month Byford joined the TTC in Nov. 2011.
The project took a knock in 2015 when Byford told the public the project was running $150 million over budget. In 2016, the overage increased to $400 million. Two senior executives involved in construction were fired and Byford requested a third-party review of the project.
Things seemed to improve from there and construction is finished now. It is set to open on Dec. 17, 2017.
