A transit advocacy group is giving commuters “relief kits” this morning complete with breath mints, crossword puzzles, and instructions on how to push the government to take action on overcrowding.

The group TTCriders said they will be passing out the kits to customers at King Station this morning ahead of a TTC Board meeting this afternoon.

“The Yonge line is dangerously overcrowded and riders are in desperate need of relief,” TTCriders spokesperson Shelagh Pizey-Allen said in a written statement sent out this week.

“All three levels of government must fund construction of the Relief Line as soon as possible. The City and Province need to fund increased TTC service in their 2018 budgets.”

A staff report, which will be considered by members of the board at today’s meeting, says morning rush hour ridership on Line 1 has reached “historical maximums” with about 28,000 to 30,000 passengers per hour southbound from Bloor Station.

“Ridership statistics reveal that sections of Line 1 are near or exceeding capacity for a 90-minute period during the morning rush hour,” the report read.

In addition to building the Relief Line, TTCriders is urging the city to increase the subsidy for the TTC, which is the least funded transit system in North America.

In a statement released on Thursday, Don Peat, a spokesperson for the mayor’s office, said Mayor John Tory is “dedicated to building transit and improving the existing transit system.”

“That's why we now have a Council-approved transit plan that includes the Relief Line, the Scarborough Subway Extension, the Eglinton East LRT and waterfront transit. That's why the Mayor fully supported the 2018 fare freeze and will be supporting two-hour, time-based transfers across the entire TTC system as part of the 2018 budget,” the statement read.

“The Mayor sent a letter last year asking the TTC to look at quick changes it could make right now to improve the commute on Line 1, particularly through Yonge-Bloor station, that helped bring this report and these recommendations back to the TTC commission.”

Today’s board meeting will get underway at 1 p.m.