About 300,000 soccer fans are set to descend on Toronto for the FIFA World Cup and officials are promoting a ‘transit first’ approach to one of the world’s biggest sporting events.
The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) and Metrolinx are adding service for an expected 44,000 extra transit riders on game days. That means more trains and streetcars along with shuttle busses and extended service hours for fans.
Fleet Hub, a temporary transit terminal between Fort York Boulevard and Strachan Avenue on Fleet Street, will serve as a transit focal point. Fleet Hub will give fans access to Toronto Stadium and the FIFA Fan Festival.
“There is a lot of planning and a lot of work that goes into preparing transportation for an event of this magnitude,” Toronto’s traffic czar Andrew Posluns told NewsTalk 1010 in an interview Monday. “The work’s been going on for two-plus years in order to get ready. As you can imagine, as we got closer to the event, that turns into operational planning, that turns into testing, that turns into where we are today, which is ready to go.”
Posluns warns there will be no public parking at the stadium site. Instead, he encourages people to walk, cycle, or take public transit to games.
“Key routes like King Street and Dundas, we’ve revisited parking in those areas. We’ve revisited terms and put in place some new term restrictions,” Posluns said. “All that’s in the spirit of making sure that transit can move quickly and efficiently to where it needs to go.”
There will be “dedicated response crews” in venue areas and along certain TTC routes, with redundancies and back up plans to adjust service on the fly if needed, TTC officials say. The TTC will also deploy drones, additional Special Constables, Provincial Offence Officers, outside security contractors and a bicycle response unit during the tournament, according to their website.
Here is everything you need to know about navigating public transit in Toronto during the World Cup:
Subway
Normal TTC subway service ends at about 1:30 a.m. but the subway will have extended hours and operate a bit later on select match days.
The TTC, however, has not indicated how late trains will run, only saying it will “ensure that everyone attending games and celebrations across the city has a safe and reliable way home.”
The extended service is set for the following dates:
- June 12
- June 17
- June 23
- July 2
- July 3
- July 11
The TTC says that it chose these dates because there are multiple events happening in the city at the same time, however it says that it is prepared to extend service on other occasions as needed.
“It will be busier than usual, particularly on match days and particularly in and around the stadium site, the fan festival site at Fort York and the Bentway,” Posluns advised. “We expect it to be busier in and around the downtown and other areas where people might gather to watch an event.”
“That means plan ahead. That means give yourself a little bit of extra time to get to where you need to go.”
There will be additional service on both Line 1 and Line 2 during all match days “to ensure seamless connections to bus and streetcar routes to take soccer fans to and from Toronto Stadium,” the TTC says.
The best way to reach Toronto Stadium on Line 1 (Yonge-University) will be from Union Station on the 509 Harbourfront streetcar to Fleet Hub, the TTC says.
On Line 2 (Bloor-Danforth) TTC officials advise taking the 511 from Bathurst Station to Fleet Hub or taking the 29 Dufferin, 929 Dufferin Express, or 829 Dufferin Gate Express bus from Dufferin Station to Dufferin Gate Loop.
The 504 King route connects to the 511 Bathurst line which runs to Fleet Hub and can be boarded at St Andrew or King stations on Line 1. On Line 2, Dundas West and Broadview stations connect with the 504.
Streetcar
The TTC will increase service on certain routes to cater to increased ridership on World Cup match days.
The 504 King route (Dundas West Station to Broadview Station), 509 Harbourfront (Exhibition Loop to Union Station), and 511 Bathurst (Bathurst Station to Exhibition loop) streetcar lines will have additional service operating every five minutes.
The 509 Harbourfront and 510 Spadina (Spadina Station to Union Station) streetcars will also have enhanced signal priority, giving them preferential access through regular traffic.
The 511 will run in dedicated lanes on the way to Fleet Hub.
“We’ve put in place RapidTO (on Bathurst and Dufferin streets), which provides that dedicated lane for the transit service, Posluns said. ”For the rapid TO, that’s in place now and that carries on every day. The enhanced service and such is going on throughout the tournament time."
GO Transit
GO Transit will run increased train service from June 10 to July 5 and additional bus service between June 11 and July 19, according to their website.
Lakeshore West and East trains will run about every 15 minutes to help absorb increased ridership.
There will be added late night service, with the last late night Lakeshore West trains leaving Union Station at 12:47 a.m. and the last Lakeshore East leaving at 12:50 a.m.
GO Transit expects to run almost 3,000 weekly trips during the tournament, a 30 per cent uptick compared to service this winter, Metrolinx’s CEO said in May.
