Man pushed onto subway tracks after argument at Toronto’s busiest station

One person is facing an assault charge after an argument at Toronto’s busiest subway station led to one man pushing another onto the tracks Tuesday evening, Toronto police say.

Two men got into an argument at Bloor-Yonge Station during the evening rush at around 6:15 p.m. on Jan. 3. The argument escalated and one man pushed the other off the platform level onto the tracks, police said.

TTC special constables responded to the scene and arrested one person, who was then turned over to police. He has since been charged with assault.

The man who was pushed was uninjured and was helped off the tracks before a train approached, police said.

It’s not clear whether the men knew each other. TPS investigators are working with TTC special constables to investigate the incident.

Bloor-Yonge Station is the country’s busiest subway station and its platforms are often jam-packed at busy times. The station is set to receive a $1.5-billion facelift in the coming years which will provide more platform space.

Growing instances of violence on the TTC have been a concern over the past year.

A woman was pushed onto the tracks at the same station on April 17 and managed to avoid an incoming train by rolling under the lip of the platform. A few months earlier, a man was pushed onto the tracks at Bloor-Yonge Station and dragged a short distance by a train on Nov. 26, 2021. He was seriously injured, but survived.

The platform at Bloor-Yonge Station is pictured.

A 73-year-old man was fatally pushed in front of an incoming train at the station in June 2018.

This past year, a 27-year-old woman was set on fire on a TTC bus and later died of her injuries . Then on Dec. 8, a 31-year-old woman was murdered at High Park Station in what police say was a random attack.

The incidents have sparked calls for the TTC to do more to bolster safety on its property.

“We remain committed to working with police, the City of Toronto  and our union partners on ways we can all make the TTC as safe as  possible for customers and employees,” TTC Spokesperson Stuart Green said in an email to CP24.com.

Green said special constables increased high visibility patrols in subway stations in 2022. The TTC is also in the process of hiring nearly 60 additional special constables.

“The TTC moves hundreds of millions of customers every year without incident, but we cannot and do not take that for granted,” he said.

He said the TTC is working on “further changes and enhancements” as part of its 2023 budget process.