Commuters hit payment roadblock as TTC removes fare collectors at Lawrence West, Yorkdale stations

Thestar.com
January 8, 2019
Jason Miller

By noon Monday, Mahen Nagenbram was forced to turn away transitgoers looking for make change to board the subway at Lawrence West station.

“I’ve helped at least 15 people today,” he said, while manning his Gateway convenience store inside the station. “My toonies are all gone. Only two loonies left. I’m going to need more change.”

A man points out where to drop exact change at the closed booth at Lawrence West station. The TTC subway stations at Yorkdale and Lawrence West no longer provide change or staff their collector booth, but travellers could still use tokens, tickets and exact change.

As of Sunday, Lawrence West and Yorkdale stations joined a growing list -- 10 stations to date -- that no longer have fare collectors in booths accepting cash and debit purchases.

Instead, commuters without the right change were told by TTC staff monitoring the entrance to purchase a Presto card or go find the exact fare. Some riders at Lawrence West were let into the station to take their chances at Nagenbram’s store, otherwise they were directed to the mall across the street.

Minutes after Nagenbram shared his growing annoyance, a student approached his store pleading for change for a $10 bill.

“When I give you all my change, what about my business?” Nagenbram said. “If you buy something I can help you.”

Another commuter, Yeoungung Kim, was rushing to a doctors appointment when transit staff informed her of the change. She opted to buy a Presto card instead of trying her luck finding the right coins.

“They don’t understand that some people cannot afford to spend the $6 for a card, then load the money,” she said. “Some people don’t even have money for a single token. The price for the card should be adjusted.”

Around midday Monday, the majority of riders entering Lawrence West were using Presto cards; some made a brief stop to top-up depleted cards, before continuing on their way.

TTC spokesperson Stuart Green said the changes at Yorkdale and Lawrence West are part of a system-wide remodelling that started in 2017 with the opening of the Line 1 extension. It currently includes all stops from Lawrence West to York University.

“It’s part of a stations transformation program,” Green said. He added the move is meant to increase interaction between staff and customers, as staff will still be present at the stations to provide information.

The current schedule will see all stations converted to the new model in early 2020. No more phases are planned for this year.

“It’s not without its growing pains. People are still a bit confused.”

He said Presto is working on offering a single-fare ticket in the near future.

“That’s already being tested,” he said.

On Monday, Sandy and Brian Hudson were looking to purchase single tickets when they arrived at Yorkdale Station from Bradford, Ont., on their way to watch the Maple Leafs play the Nashville Predators at Scotiabank Arena.

“Right now it’s a learning curve,” Sandy said after being turned away.

They headed back inside Yorkdale Mall, returning with exact fare and Tim Hortons cups.

“We got our coffee and paid our way,” Sandy said before boarding the train headed downtown.