The TTC is rolling out decals on the platform of some subway stations as part of a pilot project to speed up service and encourage passengers to be more considerate when entering the train.

Each decal has arrows indicating where the train doors will open and where passengers should wait as they allow others to exit. TTC spokesperson Stuart Green told the Star they were added to persuade people to stop rushing into other passengers trying to get off the train.

“It’s just a way for us to speed up the subway system, and make it run more efficiently,” he said.

Decals have been used on the southbound platform at St. George station since early September. The decals are supposed to line up with the doors of each car when the train stops, though the system hasn’t been perfected yet.

The decals were first introduced in April at the Bloor-Yonge station. Green said they intend to keep rolling them out at other high volume stations in the near future.

Expanding them across the TTC will be time consuming, Green said, since only some stations have the “automatic train control signal system,” which allows trains to stop at a predetermined place on the platform.

At most stations, drivers have to stop the train manually, making it difficult to line up the doors with the decals once the train has stopped.

While the project is still in the early stages, Green’s impression is that passengers are starting to notice them and are adjusting their behaviour.

Markings on subway platforms to indicate where the doors open are a common sight across Asia.

Shelagh Pizey-Allen with the advocacy group TTCriders said the decals are a good start, but more needs to be done to address the root cause of the problem.

“The bigger issue is the overcrowding on TTC subways,” she told the Star. “People are rushing the stations because the Yonge line, sections of it are already at capacity, and so it’s just impossible to get on and off the train.”

Until a relief line is put in place to reduce crowding on Line 1 the situation will not improve, she said.

“Overcrowding will only get worse unless all three levels of government fund the TTC and its expansion,” Pizey-Allen said.

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Miriam Lafontaine is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Star's radio room in Toronto. Follow her on Twitter: @mirilafontaine

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