[PL1]

How was Line 5 during regular weekday usage this week? (I didn't see it in the discussion). Anyone use it to get to work 3/5 days this week?

Fine, but I was only going one stop (Laird- Leaside a.m., reverse evening). There was one day with a 10 min wait, but otherwise ok. I'm still trying to figure out my optimal routing... For mornings, it may be Line 2-51-5-11, but evening may be better to go to line 1 (11 or 11-5). Trains are standing room only, but not jammed at 7:40 a m. and 4:30-5:00 p.m.

 

[ThenWhat]

The Line 5 stations seem to be mercifully free of the TTC's incessant safety announcements. A nice break from "if you see something say something" every 30 seconds.

That's the good part --- less audio pollution.
The bad part --- more video pollution, with large screens flashing commercials no matter where you look as you wait on the platform. Fortunately there is no room for such inside the trains.

 

[ShonTron]

Wrote up my thoughts to mark the one-week anniversary of the public opening of Line 5.

I got to ride it a few times - including a complete westbound and eastbound trip on Tuesday - and completely took it in before adding my opinion to the mix. Despite some important problems - bunching and service gaps and some missing elevators are the big ones - it's otherwise not bad, and should get better if signal priority is improved through Scarborough and speeds increased between stops. It's nice to feel optimistic, even if its cautious optimism.

Line 5 is alive

After an embarrassing start to Line 6 Finch West, the long-delayed Line 5 Eglinton-Crosstown quietly opened to great relief. The new LRT offers much-needed optimism for Toronto’s transit futu…

seanmarshall.ca

 

[Johnny Au]

That's the good part --- less audio pollution.
The bad part --- more video pollution, with large screens flashing commercials no matter where you look as you wait on the platform. Fortunately there is no room for such inside the trains.

Too many flashing ads. Pattison, which is the main advertising agency in the subway, says that ads work. Well, they do. To annoy many of us.

Some are useful such as the 2026 Winter Olympics medal count. Some are pure excessive such as Steam Whistle Pilsner.

Don Valley Station:

Source: @Edward Skira

To clarify, I don't drink due to me having the alcohol flush reaction:

Alcohol flush reaction - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Where's the health warning? Alcohol ads, if they must exist, must be paired with health warnings in my honest opinion, especially given the known health risks of excessive alcohol consumption.

 

[ThenWhat]

Too many flashing ads. Pattison, which is the main advertising agency in the subway, says that ads work. Well, they do. To annoy many of us.

Yes, exactly. It is not enough to have bad experiences with transit because of the things that TTC is not able to control. Let's just add more annoying things that TTC can control. Then be surprised that people stay away and prefer to drive.

 

[T3G]

The Line 5 stations seem to be mercifully free of the TTC's incessant safety announcements. A nice break from "if you see something say something" every 30 seconds.

On opening day, the opposite was the case. Every 5 seconds or so at the termini you'd have a PSA about staying back from the yellow line, presumably because of the large amounts of people milling around. Sad to think this trash is all that is holding us back from the disastrous Finch West style operations, this country is never beating the allegations of being a textbook nanny state.

I actually find the TTC's safety announcements to be easier to stomach. Whatever voice software they use for them is not nearly as abrasive as the Metrolinx one, which every hearing of makes me break out in hives, and with noise cancelling headphones they're so easy to tune out as to not be a factor, but YMMV. The interior announcements gotta go, too.

 

[Thaboss]

more video pollution, with large screens flashing commercials no matter where you look as you wait on the platform.

Too many flashing ads. Pattison, which is the main advertising agency in the subway, says that ads work. Well, they do. To annoy many of us.

Yes, exactly. It is not enough to have bad experiences with transit because of the things that TTC is not able to control. Let's just add more annoying things that TTC can control. Then be surprised that people stay away and prefer to drive.

Sometimes I cannot tell if ppl here are joking or serious...this is one of those times....


Of all the things to share and complain about on urbantoronto this ain't it folks.

 

[thettctransitfanatic]

On opening day, the opposite was the case. Every 5 seconds or so at the termini you'd have a PSA about staying back from the yellow line, presumably because of the large amounts of people milling around. Sad to think this trash is all that is holding us back from the disastrous Finch West style operations, this country is never beating the allegations of being a textbook nanny state.

I actually find the TTC's safety announcements to be easier to stomach. Whatever voice software they use for them is not nearly as abrasive as the Metrolinx one, which every hearing of makes me break out in hives, and with noise cancelling headphones they're so easy to tune out as to not be a factor, but YMMV. The interior announcements gotta go, too.

I rode Line 5 again today and this time, the ''please stand clear'' announcements seemed to not be activating so some progress there...

 

[A 6264]

Too many flashing ads. Pattison, which is the main advertising agency in the subway, says that ads work. Well, they do. To annoy many of us.

Some are useful such as the 2026 Winter Olympics medal count. Some are pure excessive such as Steam Whistle Pilsner.

To clarify, I don't drink due to me having the alcohol flush reaction:

Alcohol flush reaction - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Where's the health warning? Alcohol ads, if they must exist, must be paired with health warnings in my honest opinion, especially given the known health risks of excessive alcohol consumption.

I don't recall seeing alcohol ads on buses and trains in the past. I wonder if they relaxed the rules recently, or if control of TTC ads has been privatized with different standards.
Sorry to hear about your AF reaction; I've never heard of it before. The article shows facial markings. I wonder if that's the origin of the term, "(bleep)-faced" (= drunk)?

 

[A 6264]

Sometimes I cannot tell if ppl here are joking or serious...this is one of those times....


Of all the things to share and complain about on urbantoronto this ain't it folks.

With all due respect, people can complain about whatever they feel is worth complaining about.

 

[Johnny Au]

February 15, 2026:

Eglinton Station:

 

[81-717]

Every 5 seconds or so at the termini you'd have a PSA about staying back from the yellow line, presumably because of the large amounts of people milling around. Sad to think this trash is all that is holding us back from the disastrous Finch West style operations

Are you saying the primary cause of L6's crappy operation was/is people standing too close to the edge / trespassing onto the tracks?

 

[Thaboss]

With all due respect, people can complain about whatever they feel is worth complaining about.

Oh absolutly I agree. But my friend, lets engage on such issues like we are normal humans having a normal conversation..

for example, someone suggested that the ads may cause:

"people stay away and prefer to drive"


There is reasonable complaints that one can engage in reasonable debate and discussions over and then there's this.....

 

[A 6264]

Are you saying the primary cause of L6's crappy operation was/is people standing too close to the edge / trespassing onto the tracks?

'Scuse me for replying for somebody else, but as I interpreted it, that is indeed what T3G was saying - but with sarcasm.

 

[A 6264]

Oh absolutly I agree. But my friend, lets engage on such issues like we are normal humans having a normal conversation..

for example, someone suggested that the ads may cause:

"people stay away and prefer to drive"


There is reasonable complaints that one can engage in reasonable debate and discussions over and then there's this.....

What we have here is not a disagreement of opinion, but rather, a disagreement on how important it is.
At the risk of going off topic with a personal anecdote (it's okay, I do it all the time), I remember being in a grocery check-out line with an older person who was asked by the cashier if they wanted to fill out a survey which included giving their name and address. The older woman refused and strenuously ojbected to having to give out personal information, just to give feedback. A much younger woman in line then laughed and berated her for being one of those silly old people with loony ideas about personal privacy. A generation gap was revealed. To me, ads are trashy and annoying, and yes, I do avoid them. Another example: At one time, I took note of the fact that I rarely shop in malls because most of them play canned music in their hallways, but I did enjoy shopping at the Eaton Centre downtown because at that time, they were one of the few malls that did not. So yes, I can well imagine some people are discouraged from using public transit because of the overbearing use of ads, if it's something that did not exist when they were growing up, while others who did grow up with it, can't understand how upsetting it can be.