A man who allegedly hijacked a transit bus in Toronto's suburbs on Thursday night demanded to go to a Tim Hortons, but it wasn't for caffeine. He wanted to call 911 and say he had overdosed on drugs, police say.

That didn't turn out to be true, said Constable Laura Nicolle of York Regional Police. But to police and paramedics who arrived, he did appear to be under the influence of a mind-altering substance that helped explain why his behaviour was "a bit erratic," she said.

"I guess there's a lot of things you can mean by 'overdosing,' " said Constable Nicolle. "He wasn't in life-threatening condition."

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The man was taken to hospital after the 12:30 a.m. incident but was later released, she said.

No one was hurt, partly thanks to a quick-thinking bus driver who ordered his passengers to disembark. Police aren't sure if the hijacker had been aiming for the Tim Hortons all along.

He had boarded the bus with a three- to four-inch switchblade knife, said Constable Nicolle. He waited while the driver ensured everyone else was off, then forced him to speed eastward down Steeles Ave., running several red lights, before directing him to pull over at the coffee shop close to York University, just east of Highway 400.

He didn't threaten customers there, but just wanted to use a phone, she said.

"They didn't go very far," said Constable Nicolle. "I can't speak to the mental thought process of a man who would pull a knife on a bus driver."

There were no collisions at the intersections the bus sped through. The lack of injuries was "very fortunate," she said.

"It's certainly a scary situation, for sure."

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A spokeswoman for the Toronto Transit Commission said the bus driver was "shaken" by the incident.

When asked for help, TTC drivers have various options to help people in medical emergencies, including granting free rides at their discretion, said spokeswoman Nicole Ghanie. They can also call transit control enforcement officers or 911.

Police arrested 31-year-old Daniel Ferreira who faces charges of assault with a weapon, mischief endangering life, forcible confinement, uttering threats and taking a motor vehicle without consent.