Getting Around Toronto

Toronto is a large city, and navigating it can be a bit troublesome for the average tourist. But as long as you take time to prepare in advance, getting around T.O. can be as easy for you as if you were a native son or daughter.

The most popular and convenient means of transportation in Toronto is the subway, known to locals and the RT or Rapid Transit. The city's four main lines cover around 70 kilometers (43 miles) of track with just over 700 trains, reachable from 69 different stations. As of 2010, the Toronto subway serviced an average of 948,100 passengers every weekday, with trains arriving at each station at no greater interval than every five minutes and 30 seconds. As is the case with the rest of the city, the Toronto subway is clean and safe, and if you get lost, chances are you will be able to find a friendly person to help you get where you need to be.

If the subway is not able to get you close enough to your destination, you will usually be able to get within a block or two by taking one of 11 streetcar routes once you get off. While not as romantically designed as those of San Fransisco, Toronto's streetcars run on the same principals, with its bus-like cars traveling on tracks and attached to attached to electrified wires overhead. There are over 100 stations, 8 of which are located directly outside of subway stations, and these allow direct transfer from the subway system to the streetcar system with proof of payment. As with the subway, the streetcars are completely safe to use and there is no shortage of friendly people more than willing to help you.

There are many other methods of getting around Toronto - there are 138 bus routes and no shortage of yellow cabs - but if you want to get where you need to go as quickly and cheaply as possible, the subway and streetcar network are without a doubt your best bet.