Toronto Transit Commission temporarily halts new subway fare gate rollout

The Toronto Transit Commission is hitting the brakes on the installation of its new subway fare gates over dependability concerns.

In his March report, acting TTC chief executive Richard Leary said the work is being suspended until the contractor behind the system has addressed what he called “significant reliability issues” experienced over several months.

“We know this will push our timelines for completion of the project out, but (it) is more important to me that we fix what we know is broken and improve the performance of the existing gates before we proceed with final installation at very busy stations such as Finch and Sheppard-Yonge,” Leary’s report stated.

Work at Union Station will continue, given its high volumes of passengers, with the support of a technician from contractor company Scheidt & Bachmann, the report said.

The gates in question open with either a Presto fare card or Metropass. TTC spokesman Stuart Green said just over 800 have been installed so far. There’s another 200 or so that need to be set up or activated across the system to replace the old turnstiles.

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READ MORE: Mayor Tory, city councillors urge TTC to adopt time-based transfers

Green said the issues are mostly related to the motors that control the swinging paddles as well as the software used. The TTC has requested that both motors on every gate be replaced, Green said.

“Working with the contractor, we have asked them to have come up with a schedule to make all those repairs,” Green said, adding that the repairs will be made at no cost to the TTC.

Green said the gates in question are the TTC’s property and responsibility, rather than that of the regional transit agency Metrolinx.

LISTEN: Stuart Green, TTC spokesman, joins Kelly Cutrara on 640 Toronto