Toronto’s public transit began with horse-drawn streetcars on September 11, 1861, switched to electric streetcars from August 15, 1892, came under public ownership with the Toronto Transportation Commission on September 1, 1921, and gained its first subway line on March 30, 1954. That line, running 7.4 kilometers (4.6 miles) from Union Station to Eglinton Station, was the first subway in Canada.
Horse-drawn streetcars, 1861 to 1892
The Toronto Street Railway began horse-drawn service on September 11, 1861, under a 30-year franchise from the City of Toronto, according to Toronto Public Library local history staff. The franchise expired in 1891, and the city ran the service itself for about eight months. A private firm, the Toronto Railway Company, formed by William Mackenzie and James Leveson Ross, then received a new 30-year franchise that required electrification.
Toronto’s first electric streetcar ran on August 15, 1892. The last horse car finished service on August 31, 1894, according to the library. Other accounts date the end of the horse cars to December 1894, and the franchise change is dated March 26, 1891 by one source and September 1, 1891 by another. These differences do not change the sequence of events.
Annexation and public ownership
Between 1908 and 1912 the city annexed Dovercourt, Earlscourt, East Toronto, and Midway, and demand for service outside the Toronto Railway Company’s area grew. The city created the publicly owned Toronto Civic Railways to serve those districts. When the company’s franchise ended in 1921, the two operations were combined, and the Toronto Transportation Commission began on September 1, 1921. It ran until 1954, when it was renamed the Toronto Transit Commission. For the growth of the city in these years, see the overview of Toronto’s history.
The first subway line
Parks Canada states that the original Yonge Street line was planned at 7.4 kilometers with 12 stations and opened on March 30, 1954. It ended at Union Station, where it met the railway terminal described on the Union Station history page. By Parks Canada’s account, Montreal was then the only other Canadian city with a subway, and it opened its first line in 1966.
Timeline of subway and rail openings
The Toronto Transit Commission publishes official opening dates in its operating statistics. Public openings sometimes fall a day later than the official date, and some secondary sources give different days.
| Date | Opening |
|---|---|
| March 30, 1954 | Yonge line, Eglinton to Union |
| February 28, 1963 | University line, Union to St. George |
| February 25, 1966 | Bloor-Danforth line, Keele to Woodbine (some sources give February 26) |
| May 10, 1968 | Bloor-Danforth extensions east to Warden and west to Islington |
| March 30, 1973 | Yonge line north to York Mills |
| March 29, 1974 | Yonge line north to Finch |
| January 27, 1978 | Spadina line, St. George to Wilson (public opening January 28 per a secondary source) |
| November 21, 1980 | Bloor-Danforth extensions west to Kipling and east to Kennedy |
| March 22, 1985 | Scarborough RT |
| March 31, 1996 | Spadina line extension to Downsview |
| July 27, 1997 | Spadina streetcar line |
| November 22, 2002 | Sheppard line, Sheppard-Yonge to Don Mills |
| December 15, 2017 | Toronto-York Spadina extension to Vaughan Metropolitan Centre |
The Scarborough RT’s last day of service was July 24, 2023, according to the TTC. The Finch West light rail line, Line 6, opened to customers in December 2025; the TTC’s table lists December 5 while its notice says Sunday, December 7, so only the month is given here.
Streetcars after the subway
Streetcars did not disappear when the subway arrived. The TTC lists the Harbourfront light rail line as opening on June 22, 1990, the Spadina streetcar on July 27, 1997, and the Harbourfront extension on July 21, 2000. The system that began with horse cars in 1861 still runs on downtown streets.
What readers ask about current service
Searchers often ask whether the subway needs a Presto card, whether Line 1 runs all night, how fares work, and whether the subway reaches Pearson Airport. Those answers depend on current TTC policy, so the TTC’s own pages should be used. This article covers history only.
When did the Toronto subway open?
The first subway line opened on March 30, 1954, from Union Station to Eglinton Station, and was the first in Canada.
When did Toronto get its first streetcars?
Horse-drawn streetcars began on September 11, 1861, and the first electric streetcar ran on August 15, 1892.
What was the Toronto Transportation Commission?
It was the publicly owned operator created on September 1, 1921, which became the Toronto Transit Commission in 1954.
Why do sources give different dates for the horse cars ending?
Some accounts mark the last horse car on August 31, 1894, others in December 1894. The Toronto Public Library gives the August date.
Related reading
- History of Toronto: the full overview
- Union Station, the end of the first subway line
- Toronto from Indigenous roots to modern metropolis
- History of the CN Tower
- Why Toronto’s airport is called YYZ
Last verified: October 2026
Sources
- Toronto Transit Commission, Operating Statistics: Official Opening Dates
- Parks Canada, The Toronto Subway (National Historic Event)
- Toronto Public Library, Remembering Toronto’s First Electric Streetcar
Cite this page
APA: History of Toronto. (2026, October 23). History of Toronto Public Transit: Streetcars to the Subway. https://historyoftoronto.ca/blog/the-fascinating-history-of-toronto-subway-from-inception-to-modern-expansion
MLA: “History of Toronto Public Transit: Streetcars to the Subway.” History of Toronto, 23 Oct. 2026, https://historyoftoronto.ca/blog/the-fascinating-history-of-toronto-subway-from-inception-to-modern-expansion. Accessed .
Chicago: History of Toronto. “History of Toronto Public Transit: Streetcars to the Subway.” Last modified October 23, 2026. https://historyoftoronto.ca/blog/the-fascinating-history-of-toronto-subway-from-inception-to-modern-expansion.
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