Members of an advocacy group descended on city hall Thursday to present the TTC with a mock award for being the “least funded” public transit system on the continent.

The stunt was in response to the announcement, made Monday by TTC CEO Andy Byford, that the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) had named the TTC its transit agency of the year.

The APTA award provoked incredulous reactions from many Toronto transit users, who complained that their daily experience of overcrowded vehicles and frequently delayed service leaves much to be desired.

“We would love for the TTC to be the best transit system in North America, but quite frankly it’s not. And the main reason why is because our elected officials are not properly funding the TTC,” said Jessica Bell, the executive director of TTCriders, who also recently secured the Ontario NDPnomination for University-Rosedale.

Bell said that the group doesn’t take issue with transit agency workers or the officials who run the agency, but argued that when measured on a per rider basis, the financial subsidy the city gives the TTC is the lowest of major systems on the continent.

Bell also criticized the TTC for implementing fare increases every year for the past six years while not increasing service at the same rate. As the Star reported last November, more than a quarter of the TTC’s bus and streetcar routes regularly exceed the agency’s crowding standards.

“We want better service and lower fares,” Bell said.

The TTC’s approved budget for 2017 was a record high of $1.8 billion, which included a city subsidy of about $545 million. With annual ridership budgeted at 544 million people, the subsidy works out to roughly $1 per rider, its highest level in recent years.

Despite the increase, the per rider subsidy remains lower than that of other North American systems, including Los Angeles ($3 U.S. per rider), New York City ($1.52 U.S.), and Montreal ($1.16).

At Monday’s announcement, Byford said that APTA had given the TTC the award because of the five-year modernization plan that he implemented upon taking over the agency in 2012.

Accomplishments the TTC cited included increased service reliability, “unprecedented capital investment” in new transit facilities, a more positive work culture among employees, and the introduction of new buses, streetcars, and subways.

A statement released by Mayor John Tory’s office Monday noted that in 2015 he and TTC chair Josh Colle announced $90 million in funding to restore service that had been cut under the previous administration. The statement also said that the 2017 net budget for the TTC and WheelTrans was $80 million higher than the year before.

After a brief news conference outside Tory’s office, TTCriders gave the mock award to one of his staffers, who took it inside.