Changes to 61 TTC bus routes aim to give those travelling outside of rush hour more reliable service both downtown and across the suburbs.

Those changes, detailed for the first time on Sunday as part of the $90-million investment already announced and budgeted earlier this year, could start rolling out as early as Sept. 6, said TTC CEO Andy Byford.

The recommendations must first be approved at a TTC board meeting on Wednesday.

“For there to be that true connection, that true sense of one Toronto, we need a reliable transit system so people can get to work on time, get home faster, spend more time with their families,” Mayor John Tory (open John Tory's policard) said Sunday, next to a Scarborough bus stop on Kennedy Rd. to announce the improvements.

“This will benefit an increasing number of people who are working in different kinds of shifts, who depend on the TTC for overnight travel — the majority of whom are shift workers and people working non-traditional hours.”

Those changes would largely restore the 2011 service cuts to 41 routes under the Rob Ford (open Rob Ford's policard) administration — something Tory promised to rectify in his state of the city address back in November.

The large majority of those routes, 43 in all from Etobicoke to Scarborough, would see increased all-day, every-day service. Five routes would also see expanded service that never existed before.

The improvements also include seven new overnight Blue Night routes in Scarborough, North York, downtown and Etobicoke while extending or changing 11 others — what Tory said was recognition of the changing work lives of many Torontonians.

The TTC says the expansion would put 99 per cent of Toronto residents within a 15 minute walk of overnight bus or streetcar service.

TTC Chair Councillor Josh Colle (open Josh Colle's policard) called it part of a “historic” investment that is not months or years off, but “coming now.”

The recommendations follow those earlier put forward by the TTC in August — though it would cost less to operate the newly tabled changes at almost $8 million annually. The TTC’s original routing put forward last summer would have cost $9.5 million.

What’s changed is the threshold applied by the TTC, Byford said, at nine boardings per hour.

“It’s very similar to what was originally proposed,” he said. “For those services that just didn’t warrant it — and there aren’t very many of them — those have not got the additional service.”

Tory added the next step is to make improvements to rush-hour service, something that has to wait until 50 newly ordered buses arrive later this year.

“We’ll be in a position to then move to fill in some of these other holes,” Tory said.

TTC board member Alan Heisey said he was thrilled about the recommendations.

“I’d be shocked if there’s any resistance at all,” he said about this weeks vote.

Byford said a specific schedule for the rollout, to begin this fall if approved, is still being worked out. If all goes to plan, it will cost $2.5 million to run the expanded services from September until the end of the year.

Expanded all-day every-day service routes:

5 Avenue Rd.

6 Bay

8 Broadview

9 Bellamy

14 Glencairn

15 Evans

20 Cliffside

26 Dupont

28 Bayview South (new)

30 Lambton

32D Eglinton West

33 Forest Hill

51 Leslie

56 Leaside

59 Maple Leaf

61 Avenue Rd. North

62 Mortimer

72C Pape

73B Royal York

74 Mt. Pleasant

80B Queensway

94 Wellesley

98 Willowdale Senlac

100 Flemingdon Park (new)

101 Downsview Park

103 Mt. Pleasant North

105 Dufferin North

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115 Silver Hills

120 Calvington

124 Sunnybrook

127 Davenport

132 Milner

135 Gerrard

162 Lawrence-Donway

169 Huntingwood

172 Cherry Street

Expanded service routes:

39B Finch East; 42A Cummer; 43B Kennedy; 76B Royal York South; 79B Scarlett Rd.; 112C West Mall; 167 Pharmacy North.

New and expanded overnight (Blue Night) routes:

300 Bloor-Danforth extended from Warden Ave. to Kennedy Station

325 Don Mills changed to serve both Pape and Carlaw avenues instead of Broadview Ave.

329 Dufferin extended north from Wilson Ave. to Steeles Ave.

334 Eglinton East changed to run from Eglinton Station to Finch Ave. via Neilson Rd.

315 Evans-Brown’s Line is a new route from Royal York Station to Long Branch via Royal York Rd., Evans, Sherway and Browns Line

335 Jane extended north to York University and south to Jane Station

341 Keele is a new route from Keele Station to York University and Steeles Ave.

343 Kennedy is a new route from Kennedy Station to Steeles Ave.

304 King is a new route from Dundas West Station to Broadview Station

302 Kingston Rd.-McCowan changed to run from Kingston Rd. to Steeles Ave. via Kingston Rd.

354 Lawrence East changed to run from Eglinton Station to Starspray

352 Lawrence West extended to Pearson Airport and Sunnybrook Hospital

365 Parliament is a new route from Castle Frank Station to the Esplanade

312 St. Clair-Junction changed to run to Dundas West Station via Dundas

384 Sheppard West is a new route from Sheppard-Yonge Station to Weston Rd.

317 Spadina is a new route from Spadina Station to Union Station

353 Steeles extended from Yonge St. to York University and from Markham Rd. to Staines Rd. and Finch Ave.

395 York Mills changed to run from York Mills Station to Meadowvale Rd.

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