Fare gate installation back on track

The TTC has resumed the installation of Presto fare gates at subway stations, after repeated malfunctions forced the agency to halt work on the project last month. TTC spokesperson Stuart Green confirmed Thursday that installation resumed on April 12 “after the contractor provided a plan to address the deficiencies.”

At a meeting of the transit agency’s board last week, acting CEO Rick Leary said there had been three main problems with the gates, which are supposed to open with the tap of a customer’s Presto fare card. Motors in the doors weren’t working properly and a separate communication problem between the card reader and the doors caused gates to not open when they should. There was also an issue with “ghost flapping,” which is when the gates open on their own for no apparent reason.

The German company that supplies the gates, Scheidt & Bachmann, is replacing more than 2,000 motors on more than 1,000 gates the TTC has agreed to purchase, including at least 800 that have already been installed. The company is also replacing some of the motherboards within the gates and updating the software for the devices.

Leary told the board TTC officials have been meeting with the company every week and the two parties have put together a team to target stations where problems have been identified. The cost of additional parts and work required to address the gate malfunctions will be borne by Scheidt & Bachmann.

The TTC has installed gates at 125 entrances to 68 of its 75 stations. It expects to substantially complete the program by the summer, although some stations will take longer so that installation can coincide with other planned work.

The Presto system is owned by Metrolinx, the provincial transit agency for the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area, but its installation on Toronto’s transit network is a joint effort with the TTC.

Metrolinx was responsible for installing Presto readers on all buses and streetcars. That work was completed at the end of 2016.