TORONTO -- Fenton Jagdeo has been riding the Toronto subway since he was a baby.

“My parents were avid subway riders and their belief was if you want to see the city, you have to do it through transit,” he said.

Jagdeo is from Guyana, but he was born and raised in the city’s North York neighbourhood. He still lives there today.

At 26 years old, Jagdeo is the youngest-ever commissioner to serve on the TTC board. He also adds diversity to the board of 10 members.

He is only the third Black man to serve as a member of the commission, followed by Frederick Langdon Hubbard in 1929 and more recently Michael Thompson – Toronto's only Black city councillor.

Jagdeo said his new position has come with its share of doubters with people questioning his credentials, but he doesn’t let it get to him.

He's already accomplished a lot, from working in corporate strategy consulting, to sitting on the board of the Toronto Public Library, and graduating from Ivey Business School.

Since Jagdeo was a child, the TTC has been his means of travel. “To go to the office, to go see my partner,” he said, so for him it’s fitting his perspective is being put to good use.

“Given my desire to use transit well into my life is going to help bring new perspectives to the board and at the same time help balance out the other opinions that may come from other generations of thinking."

As he pays for his fare and sports a pair of Nike Air Force 1s, he wants the people of Toronto to know he’s a regular guy who is approachable.

“By being friendly I’m hoping to encourage and invite conversations to hear those anecdotes and to really have an empathetic understanding."