The future of the TTC and commuting in the GTA
In March 2026, Premier Doug Ford introduced Bill 98—a bill intended to build housing and change how transit is delivered across Ontario. On June 2, 2026, the bill officially received royal assent, making it an active law. Bill 98’s focus on transit has raised many warranted questions and concerns by students and residents of Ontario, especially regarding the impact it will have on the cost and effectiveness of commuting across the GTA.
Bill 98 hands the primary authority over municipal public transportation routes and fares to the provincial government. This allows the provincial minister of transportation to make regulations regarding fares, discounts, and transfer policies for public transportation across the GTA. Bill 98 also gives the minister of transportation the ability to prescribe geographic zones across the city. This means that all fare revenue collected by transit systems in a specific zone must be distributed among the other transit systems in that same zone.
In terms of the bill’s impact on commuter transit routes, Bill 98 allows the minister to designate priority routes based on either new or existing public transportation routes. This will prescribe service standards for those routes designated as “priority” and also establish “related service integration requirements” for those areas. This raises many questions regarding the quality of transit in the GTA, not only regarding which routes will be chosen, but also whether routes that are not designated as priority routes will be severely impacted by these changes. This may pose an especially pressing concern for students who are not commuting along the newly deemed priority routes.
Many individuals and organizations have already voiced concerns over the bill and its impact on affordability in the city. The organization TTCriders states this bill could “threaten key affordability measures including fare capping, the TTC’s two-hour transfer window, [and] discounted fares for seniors and youth.” TTCriders emphasizes how the introduction of fare zones could mean that riders commuting from Etobicoke and Scarborough would end up paying more for transit if their commute is split between zones. Similarly, questions have been raised regarding the continuation of the One Fare program and if it will be severely impacted by provincial control. Under the One Fare program, riders only pay once when transferring between the TTC and other transit systems, including GO transit. According to the government of Ontario, the One Fare program has saved Ontarians roughly $200 million and enabled 62 million free transfers.
Whether these changes are ultimately positive or negative for students and commuters around Toronto is yet to be fully understood. However, the bill will definitely have a profound impact on how the TTC is managed around Toronto and the GTA because municipal transit planning is being taken out of the hands of local councillors and there is no clear way for Toronto residents to advocate around transit routes or changes. While Bill 98 promises affordability and reliability, it may be an illusion; its designated priority routes and fare zones are not guaranteed to make TTC service cheaper or faster.