TTC wants out of ‘hellhole’ headquarters
Chair says working conditions at Yonge St. building ‘deplorable,’ makes pitch for modern digs
The CEO of the TTC describes the transit system’s Davisville headquarters as a “Stygian hellhole” with some employees working in spaces akin to “veal crates.”
His boss, TTC chair Josh Colle, agrees that some of the working conditions are “deplorable.” He wants the transit board to take the politically perilous step of recommending the transit agency move out of the 1958 McBrien building into a modern space large enough to accommodate the system’s 3,000 office staff under one roof.
It doesn’t have to be glitzy. It doesn’t even need to be a new building. But having staff scattered among Davisville, which accommodates only about 400, and a half dozen leased offices around the city doesn’t make sense and costs the TTC more than $8.4 million a year, he said.
“We need to find a new home for the TTC. There’s some existing buildings around we could move into. That’s the best possibility. But just to have different leases and spaces, some owned, some in terrible condition, is just so inefficient and costly,” said Colle.
It’s not clear what the TTC would have to spend for new digs, but Colle thinks it would ultimately save the agency money.
It is one of the business rationalization steps Colle is asking the transit board to consider on Monday when it debates the 2016 operating budget, likely to include a fare increase.
“There’s areas we can’t put things because the floor won’t take the weight.” ANDY BYFORD CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, TTC
He also wants the TTC to look at further withdrawing from parking operations and ridding itself of dozens of unused and surplus properties, including two houses it rents out near the old Danforth bus garage. It’s all part of focusing the TTC on its core business, which is transit operations, he said.
Colle understands that TTC riders don’t care much about the administrative end of the system when they’re being asked to pay higher fares while suffering from overcrowding and service delays.
“They want to see operators and front-line staff. We get that. At the same time (leasing space) is ineffi- cient, it’s not cost effective, and they’re not working in conditions that are up to snuff for a public organization in a city like this,” he said.
The TTC outgrew Davisville a decade ago. And the offices are in need of $2.7 million in repairs over the next two years, according to a May report. A consultant’s report on po- tential consolidation solutions is due in the New Year.
Meantime, Colle says he would like the TTC to remain in a central location such as Yonge and Eglinton where the subway will intersect with the Eglinton Crosstown LRT in five years.
Amodern transit system deserves a modern headquarters, and “it’s ludicrous we’re spread to the four winds,” said TTC CEO Andy Byford, who added he’s not looking for marble and gold.
He merely dreams of a decent, modern head office where visitors are greeted by a receptionist rather than a security guard and “you really feel it’s a quality organization.”
“Ultimately being world class and having a truly customer-led workforce and culture can only be delivered by people who understand what we’re meaning to do and feel motivated and happy in their work,” he said.
A recent employee survey showed working conditions are a leading complaint among TTC staff.
“Occasionally you walk past a cupboard — but it’s not a cupboard, there’s someone working in there, no windows, this tiny little hole,” he said.
“There’s areas we can’t put things because the floor won’t take the weight, the ceilings are stained, we’ve just had a big mould outbreak,” said Byford.
A major renovation of Davisville risks the expense of bringing it up to more modern building and fire stan- dards. The elevators are on their last legs, and there are no sprinklers above the basement, he said.
In 2013 another city-run agency, Toronto Community Housing Corp., abandoned a proposal to spend up to $2 million renovating the public housing company’s head office a day after the plan was revealed. Former mayor Rob Ford, councillors and TCHC tenants suggested the plan was unnecessary and extravagant.
Colle also wants the TTC to consider a different relationship with the Toronto Parking Authority, which manages its commuter lots. It’s time to talk about whether they should cost the same as other city lots.
“We talk a good game about wanting to get people onto transit. At the same time, we incent them to drive to subway stations. We invested almost $100 million last year in expanded and enhanced bus service. It runs counter to all those dollars if we’re saying to people, ‘You can still drive to the station,” said Colle.
The TTC takes in about $9 million a year on parking but spends about $7 million operating lots with about 13,000 spaces, according to chief financial and administrative officer Vince Rodo.