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Toronto·New
Sunday marks the last time that Toronto commuters tin usage legacy TTC tickets, tokens, and time passes. The displacement is portion of the TTC’s ongoing fare modernization, but for immoderate riders, these analog items are much than conscionable outgo methods — they’re pieces of the city’s history.
Transit strategy to halt accepting tickets, tokens and time passes aft June 1
Talia Ricci · CBC News
· Posted: May 27, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 13 minutes ago
What to cognize astir the TTC phasing retired ‘legacy fares’ 
Sunday marks the last time that Toronto commuters tin usage legacy TTC tickets, tokens, and time passes.
The displacement is portion of the TTC's ongoing fare modernization, but for immoderate riders, these analog items are much than conscionable outgo methods — they're pieces of the city's history.
"As idiosyncratic who has a tiny postulation of older fare media, it's bittersweet to spot it go," said transit advocator Steve Munro.
The archetypal deadline for phasing retired the outgo forms was Dec. 31, but it was extended to June 1 to springiness riders much clip to usage what they had left. After Sunday, passengers volition request to usage PRESTO cards, debit oregon recognition cards, oregon currency to wage fares.
"It'll beryllium absorbing to spot however agelong it takes betwixt the constituent which they're nary longer accepted and erstwhile each of the carnal machinery that utilized to woody with them disappears from the system," said Munro.
The TTC says less than 1 per cent of customers inactive usage tickets oregon tokens, but similar physical concert tickets and insubstantial maps, the outgo methods are different illustration of the disappearing pieces of the city's past.
The TTC, which has operated for implicit a 100 years, has seen its fare strategy germinate importantly implicit its history.
A period of fare evolution
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1921: Legacy tickets were introduced erstwhile the TTC began operating.
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1954: Tokens debuted with the motorboat of Canada's archetypal subway.
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1980: The archetypal insubstantial Metropass was introduced astatine a outgo of $26.
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1990: Magnetic stripe passes entered circulation.
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2005: Metropasses became transferable, removing the request for photograph ID.
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2018: Monthly Metropasses were replaced by PRESTO-based equivalents.
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2022: Tickets were pulled from third-party retailers.
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2023: Token income ended astatine third-party retailers.
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2025: Legacy tickets, tokens, and time passes volition nary longer beryllium accepted.
Turning aged passes into caller art
For Toronto creator Nina Okens, the fare media inactive clasp meaning. She transforms aged TTC passes into intricate mosaic art, cutting them into tiny pieces to make thing wholly new.
"I benignant of consciousness similar everyone's vigor is simply a small spot successful there, and that's what I'm trying to enactment successful the art," Okens said.
She says Torontonians person donated thousands of aged passes to enactment her work, and she's present moving connected a 1.5-by-2.1-metre mosaic representation of the city, including sparkly spots to people blessed memories radical person shared.
"These passes are astir similar a passport," said Okens. "You clasp them and deliberation of each the places you went with them."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Talia Ricci is simply a TV, vigor and web newsman astatine CBC Toronto. She enjoys covering offbeat quality involvement stories and exposing societal justness issues. Talia is besides an avid traveller and photographer. Her photography has appeared successful assorted publications and exhibits. She lives successful Toronto's westbound extremity wherever she enjoys speechmaking and going connected agelong walks to observe the quality successful the city.
English (US) ·