The city of Toronto's public transit system has been plagued by dysfunctional service and rider complaints. Officials are looking to Philadelphia for lessons on improving their troubled system.
With sleeping subway collectors and thousands of complaints about customer service, Toronto's public transit system is having major issues with its reputation. Philadelphia's transit system had its own reputation issue a few years back, but managed to find some solutions.
"Toronto officials, plagued with similar complaints, have been in touch with Philadelphia in their search for solutions, said Gary Webster, the TTC's chief general manager.
To transform SEPTA's culture, Casey named a general manager of customer service, Kim Heinle, who has a background in the hospitality industry. They introduced weekly classes in customer service for transit workers.
The system still gets just as many complaints – and Casey admits it's hard to gauge the success of that program. But on the other side of the equation, in two years, customer commendations have doubled."
FULL STORY: TTC learning from Philly's transit revival
Toronto Could Give Buses and Streetcars Priority
In a shift away from subway expansions and upgrades, Toronto looks to improve the bus and streetcar systems.
Freedom Rides Transit With Unlimited Transfers
One transit rider sings the praises of an experiment that allows Toronto transit riders a two-hour window of unlimited transfers on the TTC system.
Celebrity Voices to Remind You to Keep Your Feet Off the Seats
From Judi Dench to Queen Latifah, CityLab writers match transit systems with the personalities they think would make the best announcements.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
San Francisco's School District Spent $105M To Build Affordable Housing for Teachers — And That's Just the Beginning
SFUSD joins a growing list of school districts using their land holdings to address housing affordability challenges faced by their own employees.
The Tiny, Adorable $7,000 Car Turning Japan Onto EVs
The single seat Mibot charges from a regular plug as quickly as an iPad, and is about half the price of an average EV.
Seattle's Plan for Adopting Driverless Cars
Equity, safety, accessibility and affordability are front of mind as the city prepares for robotaxis and other autonomous vehicles.
As Trump Phases Out FEMA, Is It Time to Flee the Floodplains?
With less federal funding available for disaster relief efforts, the need to relocate at-risk communities is more urgent than ever.
With Protected Lanes, 460% More People Commute by Bike
For those needing more ammo, more data proving what we already knew is here.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Smith Gee Studio
City of Charlotte
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
US High Speed Rail Association
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)