The Finch West LRT reported a staggering 350 delays in less than a month
And the reasons for the lateness may surprise you
We’ve known for a while now that the Finch West LRT isn’t quite the shiny, speedy, ultra-efficient new transit line it was promised to be. But, for the first time, the TTC has released firm numbers showing the kinds of problems the line is encountering—and the results are surprising.
Over the three weeks between December 7 and December 31, 2025, the line reported 350 delays. As first noted by transit analyst Steve Munro, that’s a lot, especially compared with the 819 experienced by the entire streetcar network over the same period. Put another way, if it were a streetcar, the Finch LRT alone would account for a full third of all the delays across the network.
Related: City council passed a motion to speed up the Finch West LRT
What’s going on? Digging into the numbers shows that, despite all the griping about snowstorms and slow traffic signals, the line’s main problems are the trains themselves. Most of the delays the TTC reported had to do with equipment failures like faulty brakes, switches and motors. By our count, such problems made up two-thirds of the line’s delays. By contrast, most of the delays on the regular streetcar network had to do with issues along the route or disorderly patrons.
This isn’t a huge surprise: as the TTC has been at pains to point out, the Finch LRT was a line built and designed by Metrolinx and then handed over to them to figure out. As the TTC’s chief strategy officer, Josh Colle, said, “For the last 100 years or so, the TTC designed, built, operates, maintains our lines. And so now we’re in a new model that the province built and it’s delivered here in Toronto. I have to say the communication is excellent between Metrolinx and the TTC, but there’s certain things we cannot do.”
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The Finch line is still technically in a testing phase, meaning issues like this are par for the course. And yet, reading between the lines, one wonders if the TTC is a tad miffed that they’ve been handed an error-prone system and left to figure out its quirks as they drive the trains for the first time, all while being judged by the public.
As for the other 130-odd Finch LRT delays reported by the TTC, 37 were related to TTC personnel errors, 27 had to do with disorderly riders and the rest related to issues on the streets themselves, like inclement weather and traffic.
That will come as a surprise to keen watchers of transit issues (of whom there are, of course, legions). One of the main criticisms of the Finch LRT has been its slowness: it’s been outpaced by the bus it was meant to replace and even by joggers. Transit advocates say the trains spend too much time sitting at traffic lights and should get priority over turning cars. And yet, the TTC’s stats show only 12 congestion-related delays in the three weeks of data.
That may not blow the advocates’ argument out of the water: the TTC seems to be measuring only delays relative to its schedule, which already takes waiting at lights into account. Which is another way of saying: the slowness is by design—and therefore isn’t even being counted as an issue.
Anthony Milton is a freelance journalist based in Toronto specializing in long-form magazine writing. He previously worked as an assistant editor at Toronto Life, where he launched the Front Row newsletter. He regularly contributes all sorts of stories to the magazine, including deep dives on sports, business and housing as well as short-form commentary on our ever-changing city, from its obsession with cherry blossoms to its maddening NIMBYism. His work has also appeared in Maclean’s, Ricochet, TVO, the Trillium and more.
