On Monday April 27, join us at bus, street car, and subway stops across Toronto to encourage our provincial elected officials to ride public transit and fairly fund the TTC. We deserve more service and lower fares.

Beginning on April 1, we issued a challenge to Toronto-area Members of Provincial Parliament to join the millions of folks who use public transit daily. We wanted to see our MPPs ride the TTC to and from work at Queen’s Park for a week from April 1 to April 30.



MPP Cheri Di Novo has been taking the challenge all week. She got crammed in a Queen St Car on Monday. MPPs Eric Hoskins, Cristina Martins, and Steven Del Duca tweeted a photo of themselves on the subway this week, but one ride is not enough to meet the challenge (if only us riders had that luxury, right?), and the we still need to hear a promise from the Ontario Government to fairly fund the TTC. MPP Peter Tabuns took the challenge last week and got caught in a subway nightmare delay. MPP Arthur Potts also said yes to taking the challenge.

Transit riders in Toronto currently receive a $0.81 per-rider subsidy from the city, the lowest in North America. In the lead up to the 2015 provincial budget, it is more important than ever to send our elected representatives a strong message that we demand a better deal for transit riders in Toronto and across Ontario.

Substantial and stable funding of the TTC will lead to a better ride for everyone, and major improvements to the system, such as:

Better service and affordable fares

More express routes

Investments in state of good repair

Two hour time-based transfers

Lower fares for seniors and people living with low incomes

Alleviation of sardine crowding



We know that our MPP’s will appreciate how important these measures are after riding with us for a week.

Following our successful #grumpyrider campaign, Mayor John Tory and Toronto City Council listened to our supporters’ demands and increased city support for the TTC in this year’s budget. Now we’re asking Premier Kathleen Wynne and the Liberal government to follow their lead and be champions for transit riders. This is a big ask, and we can’t do it alone. We need your help!

JOIN US AS WE CANVASS RIDERS in ridings across Toronto on Monday April 27 to drum up support for fair TTC funding. You can either sign up to join an existing team or canvass at a location near you or near where your MPP lives or works. We encourage you to canvass for an hour either before 9.00am or after 5.00pm. We can provide you with a petition and postcards to share.

TELL YOUR MPP TO TAKE THE CHALLENGE – Encourage your MPP to accept the challenge to ride the TTC to work for a week and commit to fairly funding the TTC . Send them an email message here or Tweet them using the #savedyouaseat hashtag. MPPs twitter handles are here.

CHECK THEIR PROGRESS – See whether or not your MPP has accepted the challenge, and find out how long their TTC commute will be. Use the #savedyouaseat hashtag to congratulate MPPs who have accepted the challenge and shame those who haven’t.

The 2015 Ontario budget represents a historic opportunity to truly make the TTC the better way. We’ve saved our MPP’s a seat, and we hope they’ll join us in standing up for transit riders.

See the invitation we sent to Premier Wynne and other MPPs here.

JOIN US AFTER THE CANVASS – Canvassers, members, volunteers, and supporters are welcome to join us for dinner/drinks at the Elephant and Castle, 378 Yonge Street (Yonge and College) from 6.30pm onwards. Drop by when you can. RSVP with Rebecca at rphinnemore@socialplanningtoronto.org. If you canvassed in the day, please bring your clipboards, petitions and postcards.

Where are we canvassing on April 27?

Join us by RSVPing here.