Brad Bradford rips safety barriers installed at TTC’s TMU Station

'This is not a barrier. This is not a platform-edge door. This is a half-fence with a bunch of holes in it.'

Published Sep 01, 2026  •  2 minute read

The TTC recently installed subway platform barriers at TMU Station. Photo by Brad Bradford /X

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Brad Bradford is trashing metal guardrails recently installed on the platform of a busy downtown TTC subway station, calling it “a barrier that you can walk right through.”

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The Toronto city councillor and mayoral hopeful visited TMU Station at Yonge and Dundas Sts. recently and shared his views of the latest safety measures installed by the transit agency.

The waist-high fencing, which was installed along the station’s platform edges, is part of a $2-million pilot project announced in May and modelled after New York City-style barriers.

A person stands next to a MTA safety barrier on a subway platform in New York City, Feb. 4, 2025. Photo by Angela Weiss / AFP / Files /Getty Images

They are being used to reduce delays by stopping people and objects from falling onto the tracks.

However, Bradford disagreed and said it will be largely ineffective.

“This is not a barrier,” Bradford said in a video shared on social media Monday. “This is not a platform-edge door. This is a half-fence with a bunch of holes in it.”

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TTC decision

Bradford said he proposed platform edge doors back in March, but the TTC ultimately decided on fencing instead.

Mayor Olivia Chow, who is running for re-election, supported the plan back in May.

“The City invests tens of millions of dollars every year to enhance customer and employee safety and security and we know it is making a difference,” Chow said in a statement at the time.

“This year will see enhanced measures and I am committed to providing even more support in future years. We cannot compromise on safety.”

Won’t improve safety

However, Bradford called out the mayor, saying the guardrails without doors won’t improve safety.

“Olivia Chow doesn’t take your safety seriously,” he said. “In fact, her answer to subway safety was a barrier which you can walk right through.”

Adam Giambrone, a former TTC Chair who now works on transportation projects in Saudi Arabia, said the safety measure falls short of its intended use.

“I don’t think this is a major safety or operational improvement,” he said on social media last week.

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Barriers with doors better

Giambrone said the transit agency should instead use partial-height platform barriers with doors and cautioned against full-height screen doors.

He explained that airflow created by the trains between stations would be altered, which “could require a costly redesign of the subway’s entire ventilation system.”

Back in June, councillor Josh Matlow said he strongly disagreed with the TTC’s decision to install the barriers, adding platform doors are a better option.

“I’m convinced it’s a waste of money, and won’t effectively prevent tragedies, trespassing onto the tracks or reduce subway delays,” he shared on social media at the time. “I support working toward installing real platform edge doors.”

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