Hip Hop On The TTC

Toronto Mayor David Miller and TTC Chair Adam Giambrone congratulated TTC riders Randall Medford and Rudolf Watson (a.k.a. Syrus). The 21-year-olds were presented with January Metropasses for an offbeat song they wrote about the better way. Their video, I Get On The TTC, has been a big hit on YouTube.

Project Controls Contracts For Transit City Approved

Commissioners approved the award of two contracts worth $50 million for project controls consultant services for the Toronto Transit City – Light Rail Plan. The contracts will allow the implementation of Transit City and the SRT projects to progress as planned.

York U. Busway Art Sure To Inspire

Commissioners approved artwork for the York University Busway project. The artwork will be situated at Downsview Station and be visible to TTC customers, passing motorists and local residents. Artists Daniel Borins and Jennifer Marman call it Dodecadandy, which refers to “corridors of transit, the outward push of the city and the routes that commuters and pedestrians follow.”

Arts On Track For St. Patrick, Osgoode Stations

Commissioners received a status report on the Arts on Track/University Subway Station Renaissance Program. TTC staff and the Toronto Community Foundation are aiming to have a redesign of the artistic motif at St. Patrick Station, related to the Art Gallery of Ontario, ready by the end of 2009, with construction starting in 2010. Designs for Osgoode Station, themed on the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, would follow in 2010, with construction commencing in 2011.

The Arts on Track initiative, influenced by the City of Toronto’s Clean and Beautiful City Initiative, calls for more art and culture in Toronto’s public spaces.

TTC Welcomes New Members To Accessibilty Commitee

Commissioners appointed the following new members to the Advisory Committee on Accessible Transportation (ACAT): Fadumo Dirie, Richard Greco, Heather Green, Garnett Martin, Robert Muzzy, Craig Nicol and Sam Savona. Their terms begin in January 2009. ACAT is an advisory group that represents the needs and concerns of persons with disabilities who use TTC
services.