Starting Sunday, November 19, the TTC is activating its plan to replace the former Line 3 Scarborough rapid transit with express buses between Scarborough Centre and Kennedy Station. It’s extending buses along these seven current routes to operate express between the two stations:

The seven routes include:

• 38 Highland Creek;
• 129 McCowan North;
• 131 Nugget;
• 133 Neilson;
• 938 Highland Creek express;
• 939 Finch express; and
• 985 Sheppard East express.

Buses along the routes stop at Scarborough Centre Station then continue to Kennedy Station along the Line 3 bus priority route.

The TTC is also providing passengers with buses along another express route between the two stations:

• 903 Kennedy Stn - Scarborough express.

Priority bus route

The route for the replacement route contains traffic-control measures to help speed buses along streets, including bus-only lanes and priority signals.

Southbound buses along the route proceed from Scarborough Centre Station terminal:

westward along Triton Road;
southward along Brimley Road;
westward along Ellesmere Road;
southward along Midland Avenue;
westward along Eglinton Avenue East; and then
southward into Kennedy Station bus terminal.

Southbound buses drop off or pick up passengers only at stops

• in Scarborough Centre Station bus terminal,
• on Triton Road at Borough Drive,
• on Midland Avenue beyond Ellesmere Road and Lawrence Avenue East and
• in Kennedy Station terminal.

Northbound buses along the route proceed from Kennedy Station:

westward along Eglinton Avenue East;
northward along Kennedy Road;
eastward along Ellesmere Road;
northward along Brimley Road; and then
eastward along Triton Road into Scarborough Centre Station bus terminal.

Northbound buses drop off or pick up passengers only at stops

• in Kennedy Station bus terminal,
• on Kennedy Road at Lawrence Avenue East,
• on Ellesmere Road beyond Midland Avenue,
• on Triton Road at Borough Drive and
• in Scarborough Centre Station bus terminal.

Scarborough Centre Station (and area)

• If you arrive at the station and want to connect with Line 2 Bloor - Danforth trains, wait at platforms 9 to 13 and board whichever bus arrives first to travel southward to Kennedy Station.
• If you’re already aboard a bus operating along one of the routes that the TTC is extending, simply stay on the bus to travel to Kennedy.
• If you want to travel to the area of the [former] McCowan Station, board east- or northbound buses along one of these routes:

• 129 McCowan North;
• 130 Middlefield;
• 131 Nugget;
• 132 Milner;
• 133 Neilson;
• 134 Progress; or
• 169 Huntingwood.

• The stops on Triton Road at Borough Drive allow you to connect with GO Transit buses along these routes:

• 41 Hamilton / Pickering;
• 92 Pickering / Mississauga;
• 94 Oshawa / Yorkdale; or
• 96 Oshawa / Finch express.

Kennedy Station

• Buses drop off or pick up passengers at Platform B in the new terminal.

• Here’s where you’ll find buses serving passengers along all the express routes connecting Scarborough Centre and Kennedy at Platform B:

• 38 Highland Creek - Bay 14;
• 129 McCowan North - Bay 13;
• 131 Nugget - Bay 13;
• 133 Neilson - Bay 14;
• 903 Scarborough - Kennedy Stn express - Bay 11;
• 938 Highland Creek express - Bay 14;
• 939 Finch express - Bay 12; and
• 985 Sheppard East express - Bay 11.

Other changes

• 21 Brimley

• The TTC is relocating the northbound stop at Brimley and Ellesmere roads to the southeast corner to avoid conflicts with express buses along the priority Line 3 bus-replacement corridor.

• 43 Kennedy

• The TTC is relocating the northbound stop at Kennedy and Ellesmere roads to the northeast corner to avoid conflicts with express buses along the priority Line 3 bus-replacement corridor.

• 134 Progress

• The TTC is cancelling the 134C branch between Centennial College’s Progress campus and Scarborough Centre Station. Buses along the 903 Scarborough - Kennedy Station express route replace service along branch 134C.

• 343 Kennedy overnight

• The TTC is relocating the northbound stop at Kennedy and Ellesmere roads to the northeast corner to avoid conflicts with express buses along the priority Line 3 bus-replacement corridor.

• 903 Scarborough - Kennedy Station express

• The TTC has renamed the former 903 Scarborough Centre - Kennedy route.
• It’s extending the path for buses along the route so that they operate to and from Centennial College’s Progress campus every day, except early Monday-to-Friday mornings and every evening after 10 p.m. Board buses along the 134 Progress route to travel between the campus and Scarborough Centre during those times.
• It’s cancelling all service along the route Mondays to Fridays after 10 p.m.
• Early Monday-to-Friday mornings and Saturday, Sunday and holiday evenings after 10 p.m., buses only operate between Scarborough Centre and Kennedy stations.
• Until Saturday, November 18, buses along route 903 were the only ones operating along the priority route. Since seven other routes now serve that corridor, the TTC is drastically decreasing the frequency of srevice along route 903. For example, Mondays to Fridays during morning rush hours, buses drop off or pick up passengers at stops every 8 minutes, instead of every minute 20 seconds previously.

• 913 Progress express

• The TTC is cancelling the route between Centennial College’s Progress campus and Scarborough Centre Station. Buses along the 903 Scarborough - Kennedy Station express route replace service along route 913.

• 939 Finch express

• The TTC is extending the paths for buses along the 939A (Finch Stn - Scarborough Centre Stn Express) and 939B (Finch West Stn - Scarborough Centre Stn Express) branches so that buses operate to and from Kennedy Station.

• 954 Lawrence East express

• Westbound buses no longer drop off or pick up passengers on Lawrence Avenue East. Instead, they serve passengers at new stop on Midland beyond Lawrence East on the priority Line 3 bus-replacement corridor.

• 985 Sheppard East express

• The TTC is extending the path for buses along the 985A (Don Mills Stn - Scarborough Centre Stn) branch so that buses operate to and from Kennedy Station.

• 996 Wilson express

• The TTC is extending the path so that buses operate to and from Scarborough Centre Station. Buses no longer operate through (former) Ellesmere Station bus terminal.

Background

Scarborough RT cars were more than 30 years old, so the TTC had already planned to replace service along Line 3 with buses starting this Sunday, November 19. But then, Monday, July 24, the last car of a southbound train separated from its train-set and derailed after leaving Ellesmere Station. Five passengers suffered minor injuries during the incident.

That day, the TTC started operating frequent shuttle buses between Scarborough Centre and Kennedy stations. Thursday, August 24, the TTC confirmed that it had cancelled Line 3 service permanently.

Starting Sunday, September 3, the TTC formally introduced Line 3 bus-replacement service by resuming buses along the former 903 Scarborough Centre - Kennedy. Buses along route 903 operated Progress Avenue, instead of Brimley and Ellesmere roads. They picked up or dropped off passengers at stops every one to three minutes during all times, except overnight.

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From the Transit Toronto archives, read:

• “The Rise and Fall of the Scarborough RT” by James Bow, here.
• “The Scarborough Rapid Transit Extension (1990s Proposal)” by Peter Drost and James Bow, here.
• “The TTC’s McCowan Yard” by Geoffrey Mallion and James Bow, here.
• Video: “A Funeral for the SRT” by Damian Baranowski, here.