{"id":548662,"date":"2026-03-20T08:59:11","date_gmt":"2026-03-20T08:59:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/548662\/"},"modified":"2026-03-20T08:59:11","modified_gmt":"2026-03-20T08:59:11","slug":"ttc-still-figuring-out-how-to-handle-thousands-of-fifa-fans-this-summer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/548662\/","title":{"rendered":"TTC still figuring out how to handle thousands of FIFA fans this summer"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Estimated 4 minutes<\/p>\n

The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.<\/p>\n

This summer, approximately 65,000 soccer fans will swarm the city\u2019s waterfront to cheer at Toronto Stadium and the Fort York fan festival, but with only three months to go, the TTC has yet to paint a clear picture of how it will handle the stream of visitors.<\/p>\n

So far, the TTC’s publicly-announced plans have been limited to the introduction of transit-only lanes on Bathurst and Dufferin streets<\/a>, though some details about other service adjustments were shared by a spokesperson Wednesday at the request of CBC News. <\/p>\n

Meanwhile, across the country in Canada\u2019s other host city, Metro Vancouver\u2019s transit authority announced its plans weeks ago<\/a>. In a March 3 new release, TransLink detailed plans for a dedicated FIFA World Cup shuttle, such as empty trains that will be waiting for spectators after matches and additional vehicles on standby to respond to crowd surges.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere have been some generalities shared by both the city and TTC with respect to the fact that transit will be a priority,\u201d said Coun. Josh Matlow, who sits on the TTC board. “I mean, sure, that makes sense, we all agree with that.”<\/p>\n

However, Matlow said he worries if plans are coming together close to kickoff, the TTC may need to \u201cscramble to fix things.\u201d He\u2019d like to see the city and TTC be more transparent about their transportation planning, even if it means sharing work in progress.<\/p>\n

WATCH | Toronto could see up to 15% more downtown traffic during World Cup:\"\"<\/p>\n

How Toronto is preparing for heavier traffic during the FIFA World Cup<\/p>\n

Toronto could see up to 15 per cent more cars during the FIFA World Cup. CBC’s Lane Harrison breaks down what we know so far about the city’s plan to ease congestion during the event. <\/p>\n

But Joe Mihevc, another member of the TTC board, said the transit agency is not behind schedule on sharing plans. He said a dedicated team has been working for months on a comprehensive plan that will be announced \u201cvery shortly.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cThe city\u2019s bid included a transit-first way of getting to and from the various sites that will be hosting various events. And that, I think, excites the TTC,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In a statement, TTC spokesperson Stuart Green said in addition to the transit-only lanes already installed, it will have extra service across all modes of transit on match days. <\/p>\n

“We\u2019ll be supporting that extra service with enhanced wayfinding\/signage and additional staff in strategic locations to help those attending matches or the FIFA Fan Fest,” Green said. <\/p>\n

TTC says plan ‘intertwined’ with city congestion plan coming soon<\/p>\n

Matlow is concerned about overall transportation planning for the games. The city manager shared some early plans for the city\u2019s traffic management strategy<\/a> at Toronto\u2019s executive committee in February, while the city\u2019s congestion management plan will be coming out later this month.<\/p>\n

Asked if the TTC\u2019s plan is timed to release with the city\u2019s, Green said both plans are “intertwined.”<\/p>\n

Coun. Dianne Saxe, another TTC board member, said timely public transit service will be essential to Toronto successfully hosting the tournament.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cCouncil is looking to the TTC to show that they repay our trust in the more than $1 billion a year that we\u2019re investing … they better rise to this occasion,\u201d said Saxe. <\/p>\n

At a board meeting in early February, chief strategy and customer officer Josh Colle shared plans for increased service during the tournament \u2014 specifically on the 29 Dufferin bus and 504 King, 511 Bathurst and 509 Harbourfront streetcar routes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

WATCH | How time is catching up to the streetcar \u2014 and slowing it down:\"\"<\/p>\n

How time is catching up to the streetcar \u2014 and slowing it down <\/p>\n

An icon of transportation history in Toronto, the city’s streetcar system is now struggling to balance reliability with the necessary upkeep of its aging infrastructure.<\/p>\n

At the February meeting, Colle also mentioned a \u201cnew hub\u201d at Fleet Street, near BMO Field (which will be temporarily renamed Toronto Stadium for the tournament) that is currently under construction.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThat hub is going to be critical to the effectiveness of us moving people in and out of that area,\u201d Colle said at the time. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Listen to this article Estimated 4 minutes The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":548663,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194291],"tags":[49,48,3302],"class_list":["post-548662","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-toronto","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-toronto"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/548662","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=548662"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/548662\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/548663"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=548662"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=548662"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=548662"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}