Starting Monday, people who depend on transit in Toronto will notice a significant increase in bus service, according to the Toronto Transit Commission.

At a news conference Thursday morning, TTC officials said riders will notice more buses along 43 public transit routes throughout the city.

They said the plan is the largest single service increase in the commission's history.

Most of the increase in service will happen on bus routes in the northeast, northwest and north end of the city, but streetcar service along Queen, Carlton and King Streets will also be improved.

The improvements cost $21 million and were made possible because of a balanced budget and help from the provincial government, Toronto Mayor David Miller told reporters at the news conference.

"Our view in Toronto is that investing in transit is essential if people are going to come to the city," he said. "These service improvements across Toronto will ensure riders have the best service to our affordability."

Twenty-nine new buses were added to the morning rush hour and 40 new buses on the afternoon commute, said TTC Chair Adam Giambrone.

Service will not only be improved during rush hour, but also during the middle of the day and the evening hours, he said. The goal is to improve service by 38 per cent by aiming to have about 54 people on each bus.

For example, on the Dufferin 29 bus, between two and six buses are being added during peak hours, reducing wait times from nine to six minutes.

"The new, improved service will result in less crowded vehicles and more convenience to our customers at all times of the week," Giambrone said. "These increases are just the first in many that will be made this year."

Some of the main routes that will see an increase number of buses are:

  • 36 Finch West
  • 53 Steeles East
  • 129 McCowan North
  • 196 York University rocket

At the news conference, Giambrone said ridership in 2007 was the second highest it had ever been with 460 million passengers. A new ridership record is expected to be reached in 2008.

The highest TTC ridership was registered in the 1980s, but since then there have been cuts to the fleet, Giambrone said. He said this latest investment will bring the TTC closer to the level of service it provided at that time.

"It's not easy to add service," Giambrone said. "Part of it is we needed the money to do that. Also you have to get the buses and train the operators. We had to prepare for it.

"There's a real need out there. It's very real and we see it everyday," he said.

With a report from CTV Toronto's Janice Golding