Before the New Looks

A Brief History of the TTC Bus Fleet Before 1959

by James Bow

92 Years of Buying Buses

In October 2012, the TTC arranged to purchase 27 articulated buses from NovaBus. It was the first bus purchase the TTC made since 1999 that hadn’t been with Daimler Bus North America or its predecessor, Orion Bus Industries. Since 2002, the bulk of the TTC’s bus purchases has been with a single manufacturer with almost half being of a single model, the Orion VII “Next Gen”. This has given the TTC bus fleet a fairly consistent and modern look, but for some fans, it has made the system less interesting.

The history of the TTC’s bus fleet has seen cycles of diversity and consolidation. In the 1980s and the 1990s, a number of companies from Flyer to Nova to Ontario Bus Industries (later known as Orion) vied for bus contracts throughout North America. Before that, from 1959 to the 1980s, the bus market was dominated by a single player. General Motor’s “New Look” bus model was so common, it was the look of public transportation across North America, and in Toronto.

The histories of public transportation sometimes overlook the contribution buses have made. Through the history of Toronto, they sometimes overlook the contributions of buses that operated before the New Look standardized the appearance of the TTC.

This article attempts to describe the history of Toronto’s bus fleet up to the launch of GM’s “New Look” model. This is a history spanning 38 years, describing the emergence of a new technology and its gradual increase from obscurity to become the backbone of Toronto’s transit fleet.

The First Buses

In 2013, the TTC agreed to purchase over 150 articulated buses to add to the original order of 27. Since 2005, the TTC has made annual purchases of 100 buses buses or more on most years. With such a brisk business in buses, it’s strange to think that the TTC’s first year buying buses netted them just five vehicles. In that year, 1921, streetcars outnumbered buses by over 100 to 1.

In some ways, buses are an older concept than streetcars. Horse-drawn wheeled vehicles, like stagecoaches, started carrying passengers as early as 1662 in France, and they helped open up the American west. However, the primitive wheels (often solid rubber tires on wood) and the lack of smooth roads made for bumpy and uncomfortable rides.

Toronto’s first public transit operation was a stagecoach line set up by a cabinet maker named Burt Williams. In 1849, he built a type of stagecoach he called an omnibus that could sit four passengers in comfort. Horses pulled these omnibuses between St. Lawrence Market and the Village of Yorkville via Yonge and King Streets.

But in spite of everything Williams did to aid the comfort of his passengers, he couldn’t control the road conditions in Toronto. The streets of Toronto were paved either in cobblestone or not paved at all. There were ruts and deep potholes that jounced passengers going at any speed. When competing business interests convinced the City of Toronto to grant a 30 year franchise for the Toronto Street Railway company to build streetcar routes throughout the city, the fact that horse-drawn streetcars could smooth out these rides through the use of rails gave them a competitive advantage. In 1862, one year after the TSR started operating, Williams sold off his omnibus service and returned to cabinet making.

The pairing of streetcars with electric operations gave streetcars another competitive advantage at the turn of the 20th century. However, the invention of the internal combustion engine and refinements to the design would prove to be the buses’ greatest ally in the long term. With the invention of the Model T automobile by Ford Motor company in 1908, the automobile started to become an affordable luxury. The increased demand for improved roads across North America made rides smoother for cars and buses alike. The improved engine technology gave buses better pulling power. The competitive advantage that streetcars enjoyed over buses started to be reduced.

The Toronto Transportation Commission Turns to Rubber

The predecessor to the Toronto Transportation Commission, the Toronto Railway Company, had never operated buses. In September 1921, when the TTC took over operations from the TRC, the TTC was charged with not only unifying transit operations within Toronto’s city limits, but also replacing the dilapidated tracks and properties, and increasing service to underused areas. As a result, within three weeks of the start of the TTC’s mandate, TTC buses started to operate.

And while the TTC pushed out its streetcar network to the edges of the new City of Toronto, some areas of the city were unsuitable for streetcar expansion. The Rosedale neighbourhood, for instance, lacked the riders to justify a full streetcar route, had old bridges that could not handle new tracks and, in any event, opposed the construction of tracks into its neighbourhood. In the West Toronto Junction, the old single-tracked CRESCENT streetcar route operated by the Toronto Suburban Railway was lightly patronized. Although the TTC planned to build a streetcar line along Humberside and Annette between Dundas and Jane, other areas of the city needed attention, and so the streetcar line was delayed. To bring service to the area in the short term, the TTC turned to rubber tire buses.

The question was, where would they get the buses from?

Many Manufacturers

The first four TTC buses were gas powered “Class A” double decker buses built by the Fifth Avenue Bus Company of New York City. These buses were numbered 1, 2, 3 and 4. This was followed by bus #5 from Leyland, a British manufacturer. There may have been problems with this vehicle, however, as notes indicate that it was not accepted by the TTC.

The first four buses arrived in time to serve the new HUMBERSIDE (route #1) bus route, which launched September 20, 1921. On December 24, 1921, gas powered vehicles were needed to serve MOUNT PLEASANT (route #2) until that route was converted to trolley bus operation on June 19, 1922. ROSEDALE (route #3) started operation on April 26, 1922, and continues to this day as route 82 — the longest continuously operated bus route in Toronto. To service this small but growing network, the TTC ordered three more double decker buses, numbered 6, 7 and 8, from Veteran, Associated Equipment Company and Tilling-Stevens, respectively

These would be the last double-decker buses the TTC would buy. The open air top deck was seen as too chilly for Toronto’s climate. Buses #9 and 10, built by the Fifth Avenue Bus Company and which arrived in April 1922, were single level vehicles, as were buses #11 (built by Pierce-Arrow company of Buffalo, NY) and buses #12-15 (also built by Fifth Avenue).

The First Million Miles

The buses of the 1920s were very different from the buses of today. The buses the TTC bought were all gasoline powered, using an internal combustion engine like an automobile. The engine was often placed in a hood that stuck out the front of a bus. The tires were often made of solid rubber, which sometimes produced a jarring ride. But the technology was improving. Engines were getting more powerful, and the buses were getting bigger, and able to handle bigger loads.

The growth of the TTC’s bus network was slow, at first. A number of routes appeared and vanished, as temporary services while streetcar lines were built, or experiments that didn’t pan out. But by December 31, 1926, the TTC’s had eight bus routes in regular operation. These were:

ROSEDALE (route #3) - From Rosedale loop at the end of the CHURCH streetcar on Sherbourne to Summerhill Avenue.
WINCHESTER (?) - Along Winchester Avenue from Parliament to Riverdale Zoo.
ASHBRIDGE (?) - Operating into the Portlands from King and St. Lawrence streets.
LANSDOWNE (?) - A night bus service replacing streetcars on Lansdowne Avenue between College and St. Clair.
OAKWOOD (route #6) - A short shuttle service operating from Davenport and Oakwood to St. Clair.
JANE (route #7) - A service replacing the original HUMBERSIDE route, operating on Jane, Annette and Runnymede streets from Bloor to Dundas.
RUNNYMEDE (?) - A service replacing another portion of the old HUMBERSIDE route, operating on Runnymede and Annette from Bloor to Dundas
FOREST HILL (?) - A service operating north from St. Clair into the village of Forest Hill.

It wouldn’t be until 1927 that bus operations passed the million mile mark, but the TTC was ordering more buses. Some came from the White Motor Company of Cleveland, Ohio (#16-18 & #24-26). Four more (#20-23) from Packard. The TTC’s orders really picked up in 1927 when the TTC established Gray Coach. This agency would provide intercity bus service throughout southern Ontario until sold off by the TTC in the late 1980s. As the TTC’s city bus operations grew, there was some switching between companies, with formerly gray-bodied vehicles painted to the TTC’s “city” red colours, and vice versa.

Pre-1940 Bus Models Image Archive

	Another view of TTC Tillings-Stevens bus #8 on Merton Street near the end of gasoline bus service on MOUNT PLEASANT in June 1922. Photo courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	The only Pearce-Arrow bus that the Toronto Transportation Commission owned is out on a training run on the ROSEDALE route. Toronto's bus routes were originally numbered sequentially as they were started, but route numbers were dropped some time in the 1930s. When numbers were again used starting in 1956, the ROSEDALE bus was the only original numbered route still running, making it Toronto's oldest numbered bus route. (TTC Photo)
	TTC Fifth Avenue Bus #1 is seen at Sherbourne Garage, under a tarp, on July 24, 1955. The bus has been long out of service, but is being kept for preservation. Photo by James Victor Salmon, courtesy the Toronto Public Library.
	The crew at Dundas Carhouse pose in front of the TTC's first four buses, all double-deckers, on September 19, 1921. Image courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	TTC White Motor Company bus #5 (the second to bear that number, after a test bus from Leyland was retired a few years earlier) poses for the photographer at Hillcrest Shops on February 22, 1928. Photo courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	TTC Tilling-Stevens double decker bus #8 is seen here in front of one of the early TTC trolley buses at the Merton Street shed east of Yonge Street, likely near the transition of the MOUNT PLEASANT bus route to trolley coach operation, in 1922. Photo courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	TTC Tilling-Stevens bus #8 poses for photographers in this early 1920s shot courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	TTC Fifth Avenue coach #9, seen here at Sherbourne Garage in May 1954, under a tarp. The MIMICO route sign is mismatched to the destination sign -- this model had cavities for both. Photo by James Victor Salmon, courtesy the Toronto Public Library.
	TTC Fifth Avenue bus #9 rests at Sherbourne Garage bearing an ORIOLE rollsign in this 1955 shot by James Victor Salmon. This photograph is courtesy the Toronto Public Library.
	TTC Fifth Avenue bus #9 rests at St. Clair Carhouse in this November 1968 shot. The photographer is unknown and the image is courtesy the John Knight collection.
	TTC Fifth Avenue bus #10 sits at the temporary Wellesley yard bearing a rollsign for the 3 ROSEDALE route on October 1, 1923. The photographer is unknown and the image is courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	TTC Fifth Avenue bus #11 operates in ROSEDALE service circa 1925. Image courtesy the Toronto Public Library.
	TTC Fifth Avenue bus #12 picks up a crowd of passengers at Davenport and Oakwood on June 6, 1927. Image courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	Another view of TTC Fifth Avenue bus #12 picking up passengers at Davenport and Oakwood on June 6, 1927. Photo courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	TTC Fifth Avenue Coach Company bus #13 operates in service on the ROSEDALE route on November 8, 1928, at Glen Road and South Drive. Photo courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	TTC Fifth Avenue Motor Coach Company bus #13 is seen here at Glen Road and South Drive, in service on the 3 ROSEDALE route on November 8, 1923. The photographer is unknown and the image is courtesy the John Knight collection.
	TTC White Motor Company 50A-class bus #16, bearing an ASHBRIDGE route sign, is seen in a TTC garage on February 23, 1932. Photo courtesy the Toronto Archive.
	TTC White Motor Company 50A-class bus #17 sits in the scrap yard at the Levy Auto Parts factory in Weston on Buttonwood on July 19, 1954, still bearing a LAMBTON rollsign. This photo is by James Victor Salmon and is courtesy the Toronto Public Library.
	TTC Yellow Coach Z-AQ-273 bus #76 poses on Davenport Road bearing a ORIOLE rollsign exposure on July 27, 1927. This TTC photograph was donated from the Pete Coulman collection.
	TTC Commercial Cars RC-4 bus #211 poses at what is likely Hillcrest, bearing an OAKWOOD BUS rolling on April 2, 1929. This TTC photo was donated by Pete Coulman.
	TTC White Motor Company bus #214 pauses on Davenport Road at Oakwood, likely in OAKWOOD bus service, on September 7, 1934. This image is courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	TTC Mack-built AL-class bus #235 poses at High Park bearing a JANE rollsign on January 3, 1928. This TTC photo is courtesy the Pete Coulman collection.
	On March 1, 1933, the TTC snapped this picture of TTC bus #565, bearing a FOREST HILL exposure. Bus #565 was one of only four vehicles the TTC purchased from REO Motors Inc., of Lansing, Michigan. REO was the maker of a number of cars, buses and trucks from 1905 to 1975, including the REO Speed Wagon that was immortalized by an American rock group in the late 1960s.
	Wartime factory workers pile onto LEASIDE buses on Brentwood Road in this official TTC photograph, taken in 1943. In the lead is Mack bus #902, while an unidentified older model pulls up behind.
	A late-1920s-era TTC bus sits in Levy Auto Parts, on Weston Road between Buttonwood and Edmund on west side, awaiting its fate. In spite of the MAIN route sign, the Stibbard-Strathallen destination sign was used by the EGLINTON route in the early 1930s. The photograph was taken on July 19, 1954 by James Victor Salmon and is courtesy the Toronto Public Library.

The Depression Halts Streetcar Expansion

The Great Depression brought a sea chance to the Toronto Transportation Commission. Until the late 1920s, the TTC planned to continue to expand its streetcar network, and even replace a number of bus routes with streetcar extensions. The RUNNYMEDE and JANE routes, for instance, serving Annette Street, were to be replaced by an extension of the DUPONT streetcar. However, the Great Depression took its toll on ridership, and the TTC found that it no longer had the money to pay for such extensions of track. Especially in areas of lower ridership, the rubber tired buses had the advantage of being installed without track construction.

In the late 1920s and the early 1930s, the bulk of the TTC’s bus fleet was built by Mack Trucks Inc, White Motor Company and Yellow Coach, although other companies were getting orders as well. Just as the automobile industry had yet to really consolidate into a “big 3”, the TTC had many options. Although the vehicles were improving, getting larger, faster and more comfortable, they were likely unfamiliar to most passengers today. Consider the style and make of cars from the 1920s versus cars in the 1950s, and you can understand how buses underwent a similar change.

The Second World War, Gasoline and Rubber Rationing

Bus expansion came to a halt in 1939 with the start of the Second World War. With the government of Canada taking control of production and requiring more rubber and oil for the war effort, a number of bus routes were cut back where streetcars could provide the service. Examples included the LANSDOWNE and NORTH TORONTO night bus operations. The TTC had tried to replace the aging streetcars of SHERBOURNE with buses on evenings and weekends, but were forced to return to streetcar operation by federal edict.

A number of buses were bought during the war years, however, to serve Gray Coach and some suburban routes in and around Toronto where streetcars could not go. Companies included Ford Motor Company of Windsor, which had plenty of experience building motor vehicles, and Twin Coach Company of Kent or Fort Erie, Ontario. These buses lasted into the 1950s and saw the early part of the TTC’s modern era.

The first diesel-powered buses start to appear in the early 1940s as well. Previously, buses relied on gasoline, just like other cars. Diesel offered better mileage, albeit at the expense of a more complicated engine. Diesel also offered more power, albeit at less speed. It was well suited for larger, heavy vehicles like trucks or buses, while most cars stuck with gasoline.

During and after the war, the TTC ordered diesel buses from Mack Trucks Ltd, Twin Coach Company, the Canadian Car & Foundry company (which had produced many of the TTC’s streetcars and trolley buses), and a name that would become familiar to Toronto bus fans in the years to come: General Motors Corporation (GMC).

GMC had bought a majority stake in Yellow Coach company in 1925 and operated it as a subsidiary until 1943, when it bought the company outright and merged it with the GM Truck Division. In 1940, Yellow Coach Company introduced the TG-3201, a streamlined vehicle resembling the curved shape of the Presidents Conference Committee streetcar introduced two years earlier. Versions included 25, 28, 30, 35 and 40 foot long models. Over 38,000 of these models were built between 1940 and 1969. The TTC bought over 140. In 1959, when GM introduced its wildly popular modern “New Look” bus, it rechristened the older models, the “Old Look”.

On the Verge of a Rubber Tire Boom.

As the forties ended, the balance had shifted away from streetcars towards buses. The streetcar networks across North America emerged from World War Two battered from lack of maintenance, and the companies that ran them were in financial difficulties due to competition from the private automobile. Toronto was no different. Most of its resources were being poured into the construction of the Yonge subway, and the streetcar network was starting to contract, even as urban sprawl pushed demand for transit service further and further from downtown.

In 1953, the TTC’s bus network accounted for less than 10% of the commission’s total operated mileage. Between 1953 and 1955, however, the TTC’s total annual bus mileage increased from 3,351.673 to 12,243,168. The TTC’s buses were worlds ahead of the slow, cramped, solid-rubber-tired vehicles the commission had invested in in the 1920s. The new buses had powerful, efficient engines, and modern rubber tires that produced a comfortable ride on Toronto’s now-smooth roads. The Twin Coach Company and General Motors were battling for the Toronto market, now (although Canadian Car & Foundry and Flxible Company managed to sell 20 or so buses in the late 1940s). But through the 1950s, most designs harkened back to the previous decade, with rounded edges and small windows similar to the wartime PCC streetcars.

The time had come for a more modern vehicle and, in 1959, General Motors introduced it. The /bus/8523.shtml was sleek, bright and fast, and it would become the mainstay of the TTC’s bus fleet into the sixties and the seventies. The annual mileage operated by Toronto’s buses would pass that of Toronto’s streetcars in 1964 and the rest, as they say, is history.

Canadian Car Image Archive

	TTC Canadian Car & Foundry CD-44A bus #1948 rests at Hillcrest bearing a VAUGHAN rollsign in this 1950 shot. The photographer is unknown and the image is courtesy the Rob Pineault collection.
	TTC CC&F buses 1912 and 1905 lay over at Luttrell loop in September 1963, in service on 43 KENNEDY and 67 PHARMACY respectively. This image is from the Anthony Hall collection and was donated by William Paul.
	A TTC Canadian Car & Foundry bus crosses Bathurst Street, westbound on Davenport Road, likely returning to Davenport Garage. This shot was taken by Richard Glaze circa September 1971.
	TTC CC&F coach #1107 lays over at Humber Loop in 13 BERRY ROAD service in this July 1958 shot. The photographer is unknown and the image is courtesy the John Knight collection.
	This TTC photograph, dated May 30, 1953, shows TTC CC&F-built bus 1111 at Parkdale garage, bearing a QUEENSWAY rollsign. In behind are CC&F-built buses 1101 and 1103. 1101 is bearing a rarely photographed GILBERT (Weston Rd-Gilbert Loop) rollsign.
	TTC Canadian Car & Foundry C-36 bus #1159 poses at Eglinton garage in 1948, bearing a SUNNYBROOK rollsign exposure. The photographer is unknown, but comes to us from the Bill Hood and Pete Coulman collections.
	TTC Canadian Car & Foundry C-36 bus #1165 pulls into Danforth loop at Coxwell and Danforth, in service on the BROADVIEW route, bearing the unusual BROADVIEW-DANFORTH rollsign exposure. This TTC photograph, taken in the late 1940s or early 1950s, was donated by Pete Coulman.
	TTC Canadian Car & Foundry CD-44A bus #1900 crosses Victoria Park Avenue eastbound in 12 KINGSTON ROAD service. This shot was taken by Richard Glaze circa June 1970.
	Mitchell Libby shot this view of TTC CC&F CD44A "Brill" coach #1900 heading south on Yonge Street near Eglinton in the early 1970s.
	TTC Canadian Car & Foundry bus #1901 rests at Parkdale Garage, bearing a "Jane-Laurel" KINGSWAY exposure in this early 1955 shot. This TTC photograph was donated from the Pete Coulman collection.
	In the early days of operation on KEELE, TTC bus 1904 (rollsign says ST. CLAIR-SHEPPARD) pulls up to a bus stop. John Knight submits this picture from the Toronto Reference Library.
	On the eve of the extension of the BLOOR-DANFORTH SUBWAY to Warden (May 10, 1968), a TTC Canadian Car bus Route 1905 leaves Luttrell loop and passes an arriving DANFORTH streetcar on Kelvin Avenue. Photo by David Wilson.
	TTC Canadian Car & Foundry coach #1905 picks up passengers on Main Street, south of Danforth Avenue, in service on 62 MORTIMER-MAIN in this 1963 shot. The photographer is unknown and the image is courtesy the Pete Coulman collection.
	TTC Canadian Car & Foundry CD-44A bus #1906 operates in ISLINGTON service on July 30, 1955 (a few months before route numbering would assign the line the number 44). This bus is at Bloor and Kipling, looking west. Photo by J.V. Salmon, taken from the Toronto Archives, donated by Pete Coulman.
	An old TTC Canadian Car bus #1913 waits for passengers at Bingham Loop, before heading north to Victoria Park station. The year is 1972. Photograph donated by Peter Coulman.
	TTC Canadian Car & Foundry "Brill" bus #1922 heads northbound on Brimley Road, approaching St. Clair Avenue East in 12 KINGSTON ROAD service. This shot was taken circa April 1972 by Richard Glaze.
	TTC Canadian Car & Foundry Bus #1924 waits on Brimley Road about to turn left onto Kingston Road at the east end of 12 KINGSTON ROAD service. This photo was taken by Richard Glaze circa June 1973.
	TTC Canadian Car & Foundry bus #1925 heads westbound on Kingston Road in 12 KINGSTON ROAD service, circa June 1973. Photo by Richard Glaze.
	TTC Canadian Car & Foundry bus #1927 turns from Brimley Road onto Kingston Road at the eastern end of 12 KINGSTON ROAD in this June 1973 shot by Richard Glaze.
	TTC Canadian Car & Foundry bus #1928 turns from Brimley Road onto Kingston Road in service on the 12 KINGSTON ROAD bus. This photograph was taken by Richard Glaze on June 1973.
	TTC Canadian Car & Foundry CD-44A Twin Coach #1931 heads northbound on Brimley Road, just north of Kingston Road, heading back to the garage. This shot was taken by Richard Glaze circa October 1971.
	TTC CC&F buses 1934, 1935 and 1954 wait to enter service at Birchmount Garage in July 1974. These vehicles are on their last days. Photo by T. Shepherd, from the John Knight collection.
	TTC CC&F CD-44A bus #1934 turns from westbound Danforth onto southbound Luttrell in 67 PHARMACY service, heading for Luttrell loop on May 20, 1966. This photograph is by Peter Cox and is courtesy the Pete Coulman collection.
	TTC Canadian Car and Foundry CD-44A bus #1939 sits in dead storage at the end of its days at Danforth Garage in this July 1975 shot. Photo by J.D. Morgan, courtesy the John Knight collection.
	TTC Canadian Car & Foundry Brill bus #1950 prepares to turn from northbound Brimley to westbound St. Clair as it returns to its garage. Richard Glaze took this photo circa April 1972.
	TTC Canadian Car bus #1951 is seen here near Yonge and Wellington, right behind the TTC's old Head Offices on June 22, 1956. Note the ceiling windows for sightseeing tour duties. This photo is by James Victor Salmon and is courtesy the Toronto Public Library.
	TTC Canadian Car & Foundry CD-44A-class sightseeing bus #1952 pulls out of Warden Station in 43 KENNEDY service. Richard Glaze took this photograph circa May 1971.

Ford Image Archive

	TTC Ford BB-18 bus #566 poses at Hillcrest shops, brand new on June 26, 1935. The TTC had only three of these highly distinctive Ford-built gasoline buses (this one, 567 and 568). The photographer is unknown and the image is courtesy the John Knight collection.
	TTC Ford model 19-B number 770, photographed on November 22nd, 1941. Although the bus is signed for the DAVISVILLE route, the photographer posed this brand-new bus in Davenport Loop, just half a block away from the Toronto Transportation Commission's Hillcrest shops. The photographer may have just set the blinds to the first route listed. Toronto Transit Commission photo 13961.
	Newly-delivered TTC Ford 19-B bus #782 poses at an unknown location bearing a PORT CREDIT rollsign on March 18, 1941. Photo courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	Freshly bought and painted in TTC colours, Ford 19-B class bus #782 poses for photographs while bearing a PORT CREDIT rollsign exposure on March 18, 1941. This photo is courtesy the TTC.
	TTC Ford 19B Bus #787 picks up passengers at Erindale loop for a run to Don Mills. This photograph was taken in September 1943.

Twin Coach Image Archive

	A photograph, circa 1958, of an Avenue Road bus (TTC Twin Coach 41-S #1341) on Queen's Park Circle near Wellesley. Image courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	TTC Twin 41-S-class bus #1709 (ex-Danforth Bus Lines #086) prepares to pull out of Oak loop in service on WILSON on July 19, 1954. Note that the WESTON coach behind it has new "OAK-ANNETTE" roll signs. This photo is by James Victor Salmon and is courtesy the Toronto Public Library (S1-524).
	When the Twin Coach model 23-R became available in the mid-1930s, the TTC eagerly purchased 30 of these rear-engined "low floor" buses. Another 50 arrived by 1940, allowing replacement of the Transportation Commissions collection of assorted body-on-chassis fleet, and in the process becoming Toronto's "standard" bus until the arrival of General Moors' "old look". (TTC photo)
	TTC Twin Coach 23-R bus #571 operates on the FOREST HILL route at Dunvegan and Frybrook on June 18, 1936. Photo courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	Another view of the TTC's Twin Coach 23-R bus #571 in operation on FOREST HILL on June 18, 1936. Photo courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	TTC Twin Coach 23-R class bus #586 rests at Hillcrest on June 23, 1936. This TTC photograph is courtesy the Pete Coulman collection.
	TTC Twin Coach 23-R bus #588 sits at Hillcrest, bearing an OAKWOOD rolling exposure on June 23, 1936. This TTC photo was donated from the Pete Coulman collection.
	TTC Twin 23-R coach #593 poses outside the York Masonic Temple on Eglinton Avenue, just east of Yonge Street, in service on the EGLINTON bus route on June 15, 1937. This TTC photograph was donated by Pete Coulman.
	TTC Twin 23-R coach #596 sits at Davenport garage, having suffered an accident on November 2, 1937. It is bearing a rarely photographed LANSDOWNE night bus exposure. This TTC photograph was donated from the Pete Coulman collection.
	TTC Twin 23-RL Coach (in Gray Coach colours) #641 operates through Forest Hill on the HILL COACH route on September 29, 1936. Image courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	TTC Twin 23-RL Coach (in Gray Coach colours) #646 poses at a garage, bearing the HILL COACH roll sign on September 24, 1936. Photo courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	TTC Twin Coach 23-R bus #711 poses for the camera on May 21, 1946, bearing a MIMICO linen. Photo submitted courtesy Pete Coulman and the TTC Archives.
	TTC Twin Coach 23-R bus #722 in operation on the King-Munition branch of the ASHBRIDGE bus in 1942. Photo courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	TTC Twin Coach model 23-R no. 730 on the DAVISVILLE route. Photo courtesy Alan Gryfe and the Toronto Transit Commission.
	TTC Twin 41-S bus #910 poses at Sherbourne garage on May 9, 1966, bearing a 56A LEASIDE rollsign exposure. This image was taken by Peter Cox and donated by Pete Coulman.
	TTC Twin 41-S bus #915 poses at an unknown location on October 23, 1947, bearing a LEASIDE exposure. This TTC photograph was donated by Pete Coulman.
	TTC Twin 34-S bus #970 operates northwest along Yonge Boulevard on Armour Heights service on March 6, 1954. You can see Yonge Street in the background. Photo courtesy the Toronto Reference Library Collection.
	TTC Twin 34-S bus #971 poses at Glen Echo loop, in service on ARMOUR HEIGHTS in this TTC photo, taken in 1953.
	Brand new TTC Twin Coach 41-S bus #1300, displaying a SPADINA rollsign, sits ready to run in this 1950 shot by the Toronto Transportation Commission. Image donated by Pete Coulman.
	TTC Twin Coach 44-S bus #1300 waits at Eglinton Station, in service on the 59D NORTH YONGE (Via Senlac) route in this 1968 shot. The photographer is unknown and the image is courtesy the John Knight collection.
	TTC Twin-built 44-S bus #1319 operates eastbound on Eglinton at Elmsthorpe in service on 32 EGLINTON WEST in this wintry 1964 shot. The photographer is unknown and the image is courtesy the Pete Coulman collection.
	TTC Twin 44-S class bus #1319 heads northbound on Leslie, past North York General Hospital in this December 1969 shot. This image is courtesy the North York General Hospital Archive.
	TTC Twin 41-S Coach #1705 poses at Parkdale Garage bearing a BERRY ROAD sign in this 1955 shot. This TTC photograph is courtesy the Rob Pineault collection.
	TTC Twin Coach 41-S Bus #1713 waits at Parkdale garage before entering service on KEELE, circa 1954. Image courtesy the Toronto Public Library.
	TTC Twin Coach 41-S Bus #1714 is posed at the southeast side of the old Dufferin Gates at the Canadian National Exhibition on July 13, 1956, bearing a KEELE rollsign exposure. This was one of the last times the TTC could pose any vehicles at the Dufferin Gates. The building behind the bus was torn down soon after to make way for the construction of the Gardiner Expressway. The image is courtesy the Toronto Reference Library.
	TTC Twin FL-35 Coach #1731 pauses at Gilbert Loop in service on the 32B EGLINTON WEST EXPRESS in this 1960 shot. The photographer is unknown and the image is courtesy the Rob Pineault collection.

GM Old Look Image Archive

	TTC GM TG-3608 "Old Look" #939 poses at Hillcrest shops, bearing a SCARBORO rollsign, in this early-to-mid 1950s shot. This photo is courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	TTC GM TDH-5105 "Old Look" bus #2150 operates southbound on Yonge Street, passing Albert Street in service on 27 DOWNTOWN in this 1971 shot. The photographer is unknown and the image is courtesy the Pete Coulman collection.
	TTC GM TDH-4512 "Old Look" bus #1956 pulls off of Keele Street into Keele loop in service on 71 RUNNYMEDE on July 17, 1973. A ST. CLAIR streetcar can be seen in the distance, departing. Photo by Bob Hussey.
	TTC GM "Old Look" TDH-4512 bus #1982 heads westbound on Bloor, approaching Royal York in 3 KINGWAY service, with a badly misaligned front rollsign. This photo was taken on May 21, 1974 by Cyril A. Butcher.
	TTC GMC "Old Look" TG-3608 bus #930 poses alongside other GMC Old Look buses, including #934 and #958 at Sherbourne Garage in May 1954. This photograph is by James Victor Salmon and is inscribed by him as follows: "T.T.C. 930 SPECIAL SCHOOL BUS EQUIPPED WITH RINGS FOR SAFETY BELTS / FOR CRIPPLED CHILDREN. FREDERICK ST. MAY 1954." Image is courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	A trio of TTC "Old Looks", TG-3609s #1508, #958 and TG-3608 #936, pose at Sherbourne Garage in this early-to-mid 1950s shot, courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	TTC General Motors TDH-3610 "Old Look" bus #985 operates westbound on Commissioners Street, in service on the 3 ASHBRIDGE route. This photo was taken by Anthony Holt and comes courtesy of the Pete Coulman collection.
	TTC GM TDH-3610 "Old Look" bus #989 poses at Sherbourne Garage, bearing a 3 ASHBRIDGE rollsign in this September 1965 shot by Neil McCarten. This photo was donated by William Paul.
	TTC GMC "Old Look" #1175 heads southbound on Yonge Street, approaching Eglinton Avenue on March 7, 1954. This is the first day NORTH YONGE service extended south of Glen Echo loop to Eglinton, as YONGE streetcars had been cut back. Photo by James Victor Salmon, courtesy the Toronto Public Library.
	TTC Old Look #1543 pauses at Sheppard station on a retirement charter on August 30, 1976, bearing a 55 SENLAC rollsign. This photo is by Dave Morgan and is from the Pete Coulman collection.
	TTC GMC TDH-5105 "Old Look" bus #1543 sits at Runnymede loop during a retirement charter on August 30, 1976. The ISLINGTON rollsign from the early 1950s is a reproduction produced specifically for this charter. J.D. Morgan photographer. This image is courtesy the Pete Coulman collection.
	TTC GM "Old Look" TDH-5105 bus #1558 turns from southbound Victoria Park onto eastbound Lawrence in a diversion on the 67 PHARMACY route on February 12, 1976. The photographer is unknown and the image is courtesy the Pete Coulman collection.
	TTC GM TDH-4512-class "Old Look" bus #1563 pauses at the old Sunnyside Gray Coach terminal at Queen and Roncesvalles, in special RACES service on June 27, 1973. The photograph is by P. Bateson and the image is courtesy the Pete Coulman collection.
	TTC GM "Old Look", painted for Christmas, poses with a SPADINA rollsign outside the Princes' Gates on December 15, 1956. Image courtesy the Toronto Transit Commission, donated by Pete Coulman.
	TTC GM Old Look 1592 heads away from the Anglesey bay at Jane Loop. Image courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	TTC GMC TDH-4512 "Old Look" bus #1955 picks up passengers at Jane Loop, in service on the 2C "Erindale" branch of 2 ANGLESEY in this 1962 shot. The photographer is unknown and the image is courtesy Pete Coulman.
	An unknown photographer caught TTC GM "Old Look" bus #1958 at a busy scene at Humber Loop, while in service on 55 MIMICO. This late 1950s shot is courtesy the Eric Binns collection.
	TTC GM TDH-4512 "Old Look" bus #1963 picks up passengers at Runnymede loop, in service on 44 ISLINGTON on a cold day in 1962. Anthony Holt took the photograph, which comes courtesy of John Knight's collection.
	TTC GM "Old Look" bus #1966 pulls through Runnymede loop, westbound in service on 30 LAMBTON in this July 1970 shot. The photographer is unknown and the image is from the John Knight collection, donated by Pete Coulman.
	TTC GM "Old Look" bus #1971 heads northbound on Avenue Road, having just departed Roe Loop and is approaching Brooke Avenue in 1 ARMOUR HEIGHTS service in this winter 1969 shot by Anthony Holt. Photograph courtesy the Pete Coulman collection.
	TTC GM TDH-4512 "Old Look" bus #1973 pauses at Long Branch loop, in service on 87 WEST MALL in this May 1973 shot. P. Bateson took this photograph, which was donated by Pete Coulman.
	TTC GM "Old Look" bus #2113 sits at Hillcrest bearing a 94 WELLESLEY rollsign exposure in this June 1965 shot. The photographer is unknown and this image comes to us via Pete Coulman.
	TTC GM "Old Look" #2126 sits at the vacuum island at Birchmount Garage in March 1958, bearing a 34 EGLINTON EAST sign. This photo is courtesy the TTC.
	TTC GM "Old Look" leaves a bus bay at Eglinton station in service on the 34 EGLINTON EAST route, circa 1957. Photo courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	TTC GM TDH-5105 "Old Look" bus #2128 is seen in this TTC photograph in service on 56 LEASIDE at Eglinton subway station on January 16, 1958. Image donated from the Pete Coulman collection.
	TTC GM "Old Look" bus #2133 pulls up to Brimley Road, westbound on St. Clair Avenue East in 86 SCARBORO service. This photo was taken by Richard Glaze circa June 1971.
	TTC GM "Old Look" bus #2139 heads westbound on St. Clair Avenue East, passing Brimley Road in 86 SCARBORO service. This photo was taken circa April 1972 by Richard Glaze.
	TTC GM "Old Look" bus #2143 pauses northbound on Bingham Avenue in 12 KINGSTON ROAD service, passing A6-class all-electric PCC #4300 in KINGSTON ROAD streetcar service. This shot was taken circa July 1970 by Richard Glaze.
	TTC GM TDH-5105 "Old Look" bus #2143 heads westbound on St. Clair Avenue East, crossing the Lakeshore GO Train tracks and Laurel Avenue in 86 SCARBOROUGH service. This July 1976 photo was taken by Richard Glaze.
	TTC GM "Old Look" TDH-5105 bus #2144 heads westbound on St. Clair Avenue East, crossing Brimley Road with a GM "New Look" in behind. #2144 is operating in 86 SCARBOROUGH service. This photo was taken circa November 1972 by Richard Glaze.
	TTC GM "Old Look" bus #2151 has crossed Adelaide and is operating northbound on 77 SPADINA service on March 11, 1974. The photographer is unknown.
	TTC GM "Old Look" bus #2159 poses bearing a 7 BATHURST rollsign exposure in this late 1950s shot courtesy the Toronto Archives.
	A GM Old Look in TTC colours sits waiting the scrapper's torch. Photo donated from the collection of Scott Richards.

References

Pursley, Louis H. The Toronto Trolley Car Story, 1921-1961. Los Angeles: I.L. Swett, 1961. Print.

	In this April 1954 shot, TTC Mack Buses #908, 909, 906 and 907 wait with Gray Coach bus #170 and others at Sherbourne Garage. The photographer is unknown and the photo is from the John Knight collection.
	Mack-built demonstrator bus #504 operates in service on 77 SPADINA north of King Street on February 19, 1956. This TTC photo is donated from the Pete Coulman collection.
	On February 19, 1956, the TTC snapped this photograph of the Mack-built demonstrator bus #504, running westbound on Bernard, about to turn south onto Spadina. TTC photo S1-3413B.
	TTC Mack RB-3G bus #905, fresh from the factory on August 26, 1942, is seen here bearing a ROSEDALE rollsign exposure, although the route configuration is for SHERBOURNE-ROSEDALE. Photo donated by Pete Coulman.
	TTC Mack Bus #909 (left) in service on LEASIDE shares Starrett Loop near Eglinton and Yonge with an unknown EGLINTON WEST bus on November 11, 1943. Note Eglinton carhouse in the background. The photographer is unknown, and the image is courtesy the Rob Hutchinson Collection.
	TTC Mack Bus #909 is still picking up passengers on a LEASIDE run after an EGLINTON WEST bus has departed from Starrett Loop on November 11, 1943. This TTC photo was donated from the Pete Coulman collection.
	TTC Mack C-50-DT bus #1198 rests at Davenport Garage bearing a 77 SPADINA rollsign in this 1970 shot. This photograph was taken by William Harvey.
	TTC Fitzjohn Coach #1770 is seen here at the former Hollinger Bus Lines terminal near Coxwell and Danforth, in service on O'CONNOR on March 24, 1955. Photo by James Victor Salmon, courtesy the Toronto Public Library.

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