Route 504 - The King streetcar - Transit Toronto

504A	K I N G	504A	K I N G
	TO DUNDAS WEST STN		TO DISTILLERY
7 days a week, 18 hours a day
504B	K I N G	504B	K I N G
	TO DUFFERIN GATE		TO BROADVIEW STN
7 days a week, 18 hours a day
304	K I N G	304	K I N G
	TO DUNDAS WEST STN		TO BROADVIEW STN
7 days a week, owl service

Text by James Bow.

The Route

From July 1, 1923 to October 6, 2018, the 504 King streetcar operated as a U-shaped route serving King Street running from Dundas West station to Broadview station, making it one of the longest serving unchanged routes on the TTC network. Effective Sunday, Octobery 7, 2018, the route was split into two branches. Route 504A operates from Dundas West station south on Dundas Streeet, parting company with the Dundas Streetcar at Dundas and Roncesvalles. From there, it runs down Roncesvalles, past East European restaurants and stores within a long-established neighbourhood to Queen Street before running onto King Street and heading southeast and east through Parkdale, the Fashion District, the Entertainment District and downtown Toronto, making connections with the University and Yonge Subways. After passing between some of the tallest buildings in Toronto, the streetcar enters the old Town of York and Corktown before angling northeast towards Queen Street. Before it gets there, it turns south onto Sumach Street, running onto Cherry Street at Front and continuiing two blocks south to the railway tracks and Distillery Loop near the Distillery district. Route 504B starts from Broadview station and heads south on Broadview Avenue, passing Riverdale Park and East Chinattown before parting ways with the Dundas streetcar at Dundas Street. Continuing south on Broadview, it turns west onto Queen and then southwest onto King, meeting the 504A car at Sumach and overlapping the route through the downtown core to Dufferin Street. There, cars turn south onto Dufferin and continue to Dufferin Loop at the western gates of the Canadian National Exhibition.

Both branches of the King streetcar travel through some of the busiest neighbourhoods in Toronto, with a strong mix of residential, commercial and industrial properties. Two of the neighbourhoods the King car passes are experiencing major revelopment, as they change from aging industrial sectors to hip locations filled with condominiums and upscale stores. All of these trips are connected to two busy Bloor-Danforth subway stations (Dundas West and Broadview) and two downtown stations on the Yonge-University line.

This has resulted in the King streetcar being one of the most frequent and well travelled surface routes on the system, especially during rush hours. Cars operate from as early as 5 a.m. in the morning until 1 a.m. at night, seven days a week. Night service was offered until February 15-16, 1992 before being cut, with the Broadview and Roncesvalles segments replaced by portions of other night bus routes. On September 6, 2015, night streetcar service -- named and numbered 304 KING -- was restored. Even with the rotue split, this route continues to follow the traditional Dundas West-Broadview station alignment.

Early History of Streetcars on King Street

(Above) A map of the 504 KING streetcar and additional King services, circa 2012.

(Below) An official map of the 504 KING streetcar, effective December 2017.

When the Town of York became Toronto, King Street ran through the heart of the new city. Thus, when the streetcars arrived in 1861, it wasn't long before King received service. A separate King Car began operations in 1874, as the third streetcar route in the city. It ran from the Don River via King Street to Bathurst. It was soon extended to Niagara Street (1876) and Strachan Avenue (1879) and then south on Strachan to Wellington during the Exhibition season (1879). On May 27, 1891, every second car was operating on new track running beneath the CP railroad underpass, to Dufferin Street.

At the same time, two other routes with influence on King were building. The Belt Line began operations in 1891 operating both ways in a circle along by King, Spadina, Bloor and Sherbourne. This streetcar route would remain a significant player on King Street until 1923. Also, a new route started to the east end of the city in 1889. Labelled "Lee Avenue", this line started at the St. Lawrence Market and ran east on King and Queen to Lee Avenue in the Toronto Beach district. alternate cars turned back at Woodbine. On September 9, 1891, night car service started serving King and Queen Street from Yonge, east to Greenwood.

On September 21, 1891, the King, Lee Avenue and Woodbine streetcars were combined to produce a new King route that ran from King and Dufferin, via King and Queen to Woodbine Avenue. Every fourth streetcar continued on to Lee Avenue at first, but by May 18, 1892, all day service was operated east to Lee Avenue. The route was split again on September 5, 1892 when the portion from George Street west to Dufferin was electrified. Horse cars, again signed "Lee Avenue" continued to provide service on the remainder of the route until electrification arrived in phases (to the Don River on September 26, 1892, to Woodbine on April 4, 1893 and finally to Lee Avenue on May 15, 1893). On June 30, 1893, summer service was extended to Balsam Avenue.

On the west end, service was extended from Dufferin to Roncesvalles Avenue on October 28, 1892. Special service to the Exhibition was routed down Dufferin Street to the western entrance. This arrangement remained fairly constant (barring extensions on the east end) throughout most of the Toronto Railway Company's tenure. In 1897, there was a dispute with Beach residents over the extension into Munro Park, and this is covered in more detail in the History of the Queen Streetcar. Night service was extended west of Yonge in 1905.

By the end of the TRC era, King streetcars looked more like the current Queen route than the King streetcars of today, operating from a wye at Neville Park Boulevard, via Queen and King to Sunnyside Loop. Additional service was provided by the Belt Line operating both ways along King, Spadina, Bloor and Sherbourne. The Roncesvalles leg was being handled by, of all things, the Queen Streetcar, operating south for a wye at Boustead Avenue while, at the other end, Broadview Avenue was being served by the Broadview Streetcar, operating from a wye at Bloor Street.

The Toronto Transportation Commission Takes Over

When the Toronto Transportation Commission took over, King cars continued to operate into the Toronto Beach district for another two years. Alternate cars wyed at MacLean Avenue and Neville Park. This was changed to all cars operating to Neville Park on September 12, 1921 and then, on July 2, 1922, all cars looping through the new Neville Park Loop. On July 26, 1922, west end cars were extended over newly laid double track along Lakeshore Road to Humber Loop, increasing the line's similarity to today's Queen service.

Finally, on July 1, 1923, a general rerouting program took place that changed the King service into something that closely matched today's route. Through service was established on Queen Street and service on Roncesvalles was handed to the King streetcar. The Broadview streetcar route was merged into the King Car, giving it its classic U-Shape. Even the loops at each end of the line were close to their current locations. At the east end, King Cars turned around at Erindale loop, very close to today's Broadview Station. At the west, cars turned around at Vincent loop, located across the street from today's Dundas West station. Additional rush-hour service was extended north on Dundas to Runnymede Loop, or west on Bloor to Jane Loop, and these services continued until soon after the Yonge Subway opened.

A 1969 King car heads northbound on Broadview, passing the Don Jail. Photo by R. Hill; donated by Rob Hutch.

From here, the King streetcar settled into a routing that has not seen significant changes to this day. King cars provided base service along the U-shaped route while other streetcars provided supplementary service. Dovercourt streetcars were often extended from their terminus at Shaw and King to run downtown. When the Dovercourt cars were replaced by Ossington trolley buses, the Kingston Road Tripper began a decades long relationship as a companion to the King car, providing additional service from the Broadview/Queen intersection west through the downtown core. More recently, a handful of Long Branch streetcars were extended east from Humber Loop, along the Queensway and King Street to loop through the downtown. When the Long Branch streetcar was absorbed by the Queen route, these tripper cars along King Street were formalized into their own service, named 508 Lake Shore.

Through all this, the King cars remained constant. When the Bloor subway opened between Keele and Woodbine stations in 1966, the King streetcar line operated into Broadview station and Dundas West station. Erindale Loop, which had been on the site of Broadview station's bus and streetcar terminal, had been replaced months before. Vincent loop had been located across the street from Dundas West station's streetcar terminal, and it too stopped seeing King cars months before the subway opened. Initially, the TTC cut service dramatically on King Street, believing that many passengers which had been transferring from the Bloor streetcar to King cars would use the subway to get downtown instead, but the TTC discovered that it had underestimated how many people would continue to use the line. Through 1966, streetcars were added back on the line until service returned to near pre-Bloor subway levels.

(Above) Exhibit 1: A TTC diagram showing the widened sidewalks, the lane arrangement and the free moving streetcars proposed for its King Street transit mall proposal

(Below) Exhibit 2: An artist's rendition of the current situation at King and John, looking west.

(Above) Exhibit 3: Artist's rendition of how King and John could have looked under the transit mall proposal. The pubs and restaurants along King Street should benefit from the extra sidewalk space, and delivieries are not hampered.

Struggling With Congestion

The King streetcar may have been a stable service, but King Street itself has been changing. The properties along King Street between Dufferin and Strachan and around the King/Parliament intersection used to be industrial warehouses and factories. Through the 1970s, these warehouses and factories started to die out, reducing ridership on the line. Starting in the late 1980s and accelerating through the latter half of the 1990s, however, these old industrial lands along King were redeveloped into new housing and condominiums for a primarily young urban professional set. These gentrified neighbourhoods have been supplying the King streetcar with more and more riders, to the point that King Street and its streetcars are beginning to choke on the excess.

By 1999, the King streetcars moved 52200 passengers per weekday through a diverse cross-section of the city of Toronto. A more recent TTC study showed that the number of streetcar passengers outnumbered car passengers and drivers on the street to the tune of two to one. With these numbers, the need for streetcar service on King is hardly in doubt; however, the line is so heavily used, and traffic on King Street is so congested, that the TTC and its riders are growing very concerned about the reliability of service.

The TTC already schedules a streetcar to operate down King Street at two minute intervals during rush hours. At 30 streetcars per direction per hour, this is well below the 50 or so streetcars that used to operate on the line in its heyday before 1966, but with automobile traffic well above what it was in the 1960s, the streetcars are finding themselves caught in traffic, and the TTC is unable to schedule more streetcars down King Street with any hope of maintaining reliable service.

In 1993, the TTC attempted to establish streetcar-only lanes during rush-hours between Dufferin and Parliament Streets. These were not effectively enforced, with parked cars sending traffic onto the streetcar tracks and delaying service. In the year 2000, the TTC spent almost $100,000 to pay the Toronto police force to 'blitz' King Street and crack down on illegally parked cars and other obstructors to traffic. This venture failed as well, leading the TTC to conclude that far more drastic measures are required.

Looking for Solutions

In a 2000 report, the TTC identified a number of obstacles to providing reliable service on King Street. These included the narrow roadway the streetcars operated on (which precluded the construction of Spadina-style right-of-way), the lack of short turn loops on the line, and streetcar congestion at Broadview and Dundas West stations, where streetcars operating on 504 King and 505 Dundas often blocked each other, creating delays that could cascade across both lines.

With the attempt to enforce the painted-on streetcar-only lanes between Dufferin and Parliament proving to be a failure, the TTC proposed a number of solutions, ranging in scope from the cheap and possibly ineffective, to the ambitious but expensive, including:

Removing two seats near the CLRVs' rear doors in order to increase the standee area and encourage more passengers to move to the back of the car.
Expanding Dundas West station and Broadview Station Loops, adding passing tracks so that delays at these points don't delay both routes. This would require considerable construction.
Restoring Parliament Loop on Parliament Street south of King, giving King Cars a quick short-turn loop in order to restore service. This loop was to have been re-installed in 1996, but the project was cut back due to budget cuts.
Rerouting either the King or Dundas cars. King Cars might operate up Parliament and over new track north of Carlton into Castle Frank station (A new, less frequent, Broadview streetcar route might have to be created to serve the areas which would lose King service) or Dundas cars could be rerouted via Broadview and Gerrard and over new track on Carlaw, Riverdale and Pape into Pape Station in order to relieve congestion at Broadview Station. Either project would require a lot of new track and the cost would be into the millions.
Removing automobile traffic from King Street, creating a transit mall.

The ALRVs were the easiest and quickest solution to implement. On March 1, 2001, the TTC changed weekday service on the 511 Bathurst route so that eleven CLRVs replaced seven ALRVs. These seven ALRVs were then pressed into service on King, replacing seven CLRVs and increasing the capacity of the line.

The King Street Transit Mall Proposal

In March 2001, a proposal came forward to close King Street to automobile traffic from Spadina to Church during rush-hours. One month later, the TTC approved in principle an even more dramatic idea: closing King Street permanently to automobiles between Dufferin and Parliament, constructing a transit mall through Toronto's downtown core.

Transit malls have been proposed before. In the late 1980s, Councillor Jack Layton suggested that Queen Street be closed to car traffic between Spadina and Sherbourne in order to create a "poor-man's subway" through the downtown. The idea never bore fruit as it ran into stiff opposition from local merchants upset at losing parking spaces and having deliveries made more difficult.

To address this, the TTC proposed leaving a single lane open to car traffic on King Street. This lane would be located at the curb and would alternate between the southern and northern sides of King Street from block to block. This lane would be entered from a side street via a right-turn only. Cars on the lane would have to depart King Street at the next intersection, again via a right-turn only. Cars would be allowed to pull into the streetcar lane to pass cars and taxis parked at the curb. On the other side of the street, the sidewalk would be extended out to the streetcar lane, preventing car traffic from running along King Street for more than one block.

Unfortunately, the plan could not mollify the concern of local businesses, and the idea was dropped. In 2004, it was proposed that a few blocks of King Street could be closed to car traffic in this fashion for a few weeks in the summertime, but the pilot project did not materialize. It would take another thirteen years before concrete action was taken.

New Loops at Dundas West and Broadview

The TTC was more successful in implementing its proposal to revamp the loops at Dundas West and Broadview stations, giving the King and Dundas cars separate loading platforms. Work on Dundas West loop began on Labour Day, 2002 and the loop was reopened to the public on Sunday, November 24, 2002. Work on Broadview station began in 2003, and was coupled with elevator work, and new stairwells to provide a second exit from the subway platform. This renovation took much longer, and residents complained about the loss of the local parkette next to the station, as the TTC used it as a staging ground for construction equipment. Although the streetcar loop quickly reopened for service, work on the rest of the station lingered until 2008.

As for the other proposals, Parliament loop never received its renewed streetcar tracks. In fact, the property was given up by the TTC for redevelopment, in exchange for a parking lot on Broadview Avenue just north of Queen Street. The TTC intends to place the short turn loop there although, for now, the property remains in use as a parking lot. Plans to reroute King cars to Castle Frank station or Dundas cars to Pape station have been quietly shelved.

As the TTC moved into the second decade of the 21st century, ridership increased to the highest level in the commission's history, and residential development in the Liberty Village area added tens of thousands of residents and jobs along the route. By 2015, the 504 KING streetcar was the most heavily used surface route on the TTC, carrying 65,000 passengers on an average weekday -- almost three times the number of people carried by competing automobile traffic. In spite of investments in tripper service, the line was operating beyond capacity during rush hours, and many riders reported that it was quicker to walk. The TTC and the City of Toronto knew they had to do something.

The first step was to implement streetcar service on Cherry Street. Starting in 2013, a stretch of track on private right-of-way had been built south from the King/Sumach intersection to just north of where Cherry Street passed beneath the railway tracks, serving the Distillery District. On June 19, 2016, service began on the 514 CHERRY streetcar. This route, operating from Distillery loop via north on Cherry, west on King and south on Dufferin to Dufferin loop, returning via the reverse route, would use Flexity streetcars (as they arrived) to bring accessible transit service to the busiest part of the King Street route. The TTC had hoped to implement this service in addition to the service currently on King, but the City of Toronto did not agree to increase the TTC's budget by the needed amount, so the TTC had to implement the changes by reducing 504 KING service slightly, effectively reducing service on the portion of the route that wasn't operated in common with 514 CHERRY.

King Gets its Transitway At Last (Temporarily)

Then, in 2017, the City of Toronto, backed by Toronto mayor John Tory, agreed to implement a pilot program to give streetcars priority on King Street between Bathurst and Jarvis. Rather than implement a full transit mall, the City of Toronto instead eliminated left turns, and made it illegal for car drivers to drive straight along the street. Cars could only turn right onto King between Bathurst and Jarvis, and had to turn right to leave King within a few blocks. In addition, streetcar stops were moved from the near-sides of their intersections across to the far-side of their intersections, and these stops were moved forward from the sidewalk to the streetcar lane and protected from traffic with the use of planters and concrete barriers. Special temporary wheelchair ramps from the roadway to the sidewalk were added at these stops to ensure accessibility. This way, cars could not pass in front of streetcars at these stops, ensuring that the streetcar had a clear road ahead of it when it started again.

The year-long pilot project launched on Sunday, November 12. Some car drivers and some business owners complained about the disruption to the street, but streetcar riders raved that their commutes were several minutes faster. Studies released by the City of Toronto a month into the project showed that the commute times had decreased by a clear amount, with only a small amount of increase to car travel times. Commuters also reported that while the rides were faster, the service was proving so popular that the streetcars got even more crowded. The TTC acknowledged that capacity problems remained an issue, especially with continuing delays to Bombardier's delivery of the Flexity streetcars, and that the space provided by new streetcars added to the route were quicklky taken up by new riders. They promised that more service would be added as soon as more streetcars became available.

Route Split

In the summer of 2018, the TTC had to alter the King route due to trackwork taking place at the Broadview/Gerrard intersection. To maintain and increase service through the King Street Transitway Pilot project, the TTC temporarily ended service on the 514 CHERRY streetcar and routed all 504 King cars between Dundas West station and Distillery Loop on Cherry Street. Shuttle buses covered the route on Broadview Avenue, and special service was added to the 503 KINGSTON ROAD streetcar, operating initially from Charlotte Loop at Spadina Avenue to Victoria Park (then to Queen and Kingston Road outside of rush hours and midday weekday service), before extending these cars all the way west to Dufferin Loop.

Although this was not intended to be a permanent change, the TTC were impressed by how the split alignment improved reliability on King Street. The TTC had previously tried splitting the long 501 QUEEN route, but was produce terminals on either side of the downtown that could reliably handle turning streetcars. However, with the King route, they had Dufferin and Distillery Loops which were able to allow a number of streetcars to lay over before re-entering service -- something that wasn't possible at either Dundas West or Broadview stations, even after both loops' expansion.

In August 2018, even as the TTC planned to restore regular operation following the completion of trackwork on Broadview, the TTC service department announced plans to end service on the 514 CHERRY streetcar and to permanently split the 504 King streetcar. The western "A" branch would operate from Dundas West station to Distillery Loop while the eastern "B" branch would operate from Broadview station to Dufferin Loop, allowing service to overlap between Dufferin and Sumach, and allowing both loops to stage cars to enter service empty at either side of the busiest part of the King route. The last unified operation of the daytime King car took place on Saturday, October 6, 2018. Following the end of night service on the morning of Sunday, October 7, split service began. On Sunday, May 12, 2019, 304 KING night service was temporarily increaesd to every 15 minutes, as a result of insufficient storage capacity at Leslie Barns and Roncesvalles carhouse.

The Future

By the end of Summer 2018, it was clear that the King Street Transitway pilot project was a success. Studies indicated that travel times had been reduced for most people. Moreover, the promise of more reliable service had increased ridership on the King and Cherry cars from 65,000 passengers per day to nearly 84,000. On April 17, 2019, Toronto City Council voted 22-3 to make the transitway pilot permanent. With this vote, the City of Toronto committed to renovate King Street, installing curb bump-outs at stop areas, planters, street-scaping, and provision for patio space and other pedestrian-friendlly features. Future consideration may even be given to extend the transitway east to Parliament and west to Dufferin.

The development boom continues along what used to be the industrial areas that surrounded King Street. More and more people are flocking to these revitalizing areas that promise a vibrant urban lifestyle, and no auto dependence. This means that the demand for transit service along King Street is going to increase, even though the street itself is operating almost at capacity.

King Street will choke on its success unless steps like the transitway pilot project are taken and made permanent to increase its capacity. With 504 KING streetcars carrying more than three times the number of people than competing automobiles on average weekdays, it's obvious which mode of transportation requires more attention in order to move people more efficiently. The merchants' concerns over their business are understandible, but nothing short of a total disaster is going to keep the people away from King Street, and it is the streetcars, not the automobiles, which move the people along this street the best.

504 King Image Archive

	TTC air-electric PCC 4037 has left Erindale Loop and is heading south on Broadview in KING service, circa May 1953. Photo courtesy Richard Glaze.
	TTC air-electric PCC #4025 heads westbound on King Street having passed Peter Street in KING service. This photo was taken by Richard Glaze on May 31, 1953.
	In January 1947, to relieve congestion at the King-Queen intersection near the Don River, the TTC routed every third KING streetcar via Parliament and Dundas to Broadview during the afternoon rush hour. Special "VIA PARLIAMENT" window cards were used. Here we see TTC air electric PCC #4286 operating north on Parliament in KING service on August 10, 1963. Photo by Robert McMann, from the John Knight collection.
	TTC air-electric PCC #4250 departs Erindale Loop and heads southbound on Broadview on November 13, 1965. This would be the last day of operation for Erindale loop, as construction on Broadview Station loop was well underway. Photo by John Bromley, courtesy the John Knight collection.
	John F. Bromley snapped this shot of TTC air-electric PCC #4095 pulling out of old Erindale loop on its last day of service (November 13, 1965) before its replacement by Broadview Station Loop.
	TTC A6-class all-electric PCC #4344 heads westbound on King, having crossed Strachan Avenue in this summer 1967 shot. The "Broadview Station" destination sign suggests the vehicle is about to hurt turn. This photograph was taken by Robert McMann, and comes to us courtesy the John Knight collection.
	TTC A6-class all-electric PCC #4335 enters KING service westbound on Queen, just west of Connaught on May 30, 1969. This photograph was taken by John F. Bromley.
	TTC A7-class all-electric PCC #4498 heads westbound on King Street, approaching Queen, the Queensway, and Roncesvalles, in KING service circa July 1969. Photo by Richard Glaze.
	TTC A6-class all-electric PCC #4325 pauses westbound on King Street at Bay in KING service circa September 1969. Photo by Richard Glaze.
	TTC A6-class all-electric PCC #4397 crosses Church Street, westbound on King Street in KING service, with St. James Cathedral in the background. This photo was taken by Richard Glaze circa July 1970.
	TTC A6-class all-electric PCC #4318 heads westbound on King, passing beneath the CN railway tracks near Atlantic Avenue in this September 1970 shot. The photographer is unknown.
	Joseph Testagrose caught PCC 4406 northbound on Roncesvalles, crossing Constance on June 26, 1971. This scene hasn't changed much; the streetcars are now CLRVs and no longer run night service, but the stores are still here, as is the King route.
	A PCC in KING service heads southward along Roncesvalles Avenue at Dundas Street West. This early 1970s shot is by Mitchell Libby.
	TTC A6-class all-electric PCC #4398 turns from eastbound Queen onto northbound Broadview in KING service, circa May 1973. Photo by Richard Glaze.
	TTC A6-class PCC #4307 pulls up to a stop at Queen Street, southbound on Broadview in KING service. This photo was taken on August 15, 1973, by Richard Glaze.
	TTC A9-class ex-Cincinnati all-electric PCC #4572 turns from eastbound Queen to northbound Broadview in KING service. This photo was taken by August 15, 1973, by Richard Glaze.
	In downtown Toronto, streetcars are dwarfed by some of the tallest buildings in the British Commonwealth. Here, A7-class all-electric PCC 4417 picks up passengers at King and Bay on July 4, 1974. The photograph is by Joseph Testagrose.
	Joseph Testagrose caught this shot of PCC 4701 running westbound on King Street, past Duncan. The date is July 6, 1974. On the left is the Royal Alexandria Theatre. Twenty-five years later, the Royal Alex has become the anchor of a much expanded entertainment district, which the King cars serve.
	TTC A-7 class all-electric PCC 4460 operates eastbound on King, crossing Shaw Street, on July 7, 1974. This scene has changed significantly, since this shot was taken. The Massey Ferguson plant has closed and been demolished, and the area is slowly revitalizing itself as a residential neighbourhood. This photograph was taken by Joseph Testagrose.
	TTC A11-class ex-Cleveland all-electric PCC #4647 lays over at Dundas West station in KING service in front of another PCC on the night of November 27, 1979. The photographer is unknown.
	TTC A7-class PCC #4428 along with a comrade, waits at its stop at Dundas West Station in 504 KING service in this March 1980 shot by Richard Glaze.
	An A6-class (right) and A7-class (left) all-electric PCCs pass each other on Broadview Avenue crossing Danforth Road in 504 KING service. This shot was taken by Richard Glaze circa September 1981.
	W.N. Carr caught this photograph of TTC CLRV #4000 approaching Roncesvalles Carhouse along Roncesvalles Avenue in November 1982.
	TTC CLRV #4100 exits Dundas West Station, heading to Broadview Station. Trolley bus overhead wires and industrial facilities, seen in the background, no longer exist here. This picture was taken from almost the same location as the photo of 40 JUNCTION trolley bus a decade earlier. Photo by W.N.Carr in November 1982.
	TTC class A6 all-electric PCC #4332 operates westbound on King in 504 KING service, crossing York, on September 2, 1983. Photo by William J. Madden.
	TTC CLRV #4155 heads southbound on Roncesvalles, crossing Queen Street in 504 KING service. This mid-1980s shot was taken by John Calnan.
	TTC PCC car #4323 -- an all-electric class A6 -- heads southbound along Broadview Avenue, having just crossed Gerrard Street East in 504 KING service. Heading northbound is its younger colleague, CLRV #4156. This June 1986 shot is from Mitchell Libby.
	Mitchell Libby supplied this shot of TTC A8 all-electric PCC #4520 along the 504 KING route on Roncesvalles Avenue at Grenadier Road in June 1986.
	TTC A-15-class rebuilt PCC #4500 poses for fans on October 30, 1999, facing westbound at Erindale Avenue, just north of Broadview station. Photo by James Bow.
	King angles up to meet Queen Street at both its eastern and western ends. At its east end, it must jog along Queen to reach Broadview. Here TTC CLRV 4095 prepares to move onto Queen Street. Rob Hutchinson caught this photo in the year 2000.
	TTC CLRV #4162 crosses the Queen Street bridge over the Don River. This stretch between King and Broadview used to be a bottleneck for streetcars. Sadly, reduced service solved the problem. This 2000 photograph is by Rob Hutchinson.
	Before 2002, the 504 KING and the 505 DUNDAS cars were in danger of outgrowing their loops at Dundas West and Broadview stations. As this shot taken in the year 2000 of the Broadview station loading platform illustrates, the single track through the loop was a point of delays. By 2003, both stations had two sets of tracks and separate loading platforms for each route. Photo by David Cavlovic.
	In the year 2000, a CLRV runs northbound along the curving Broadview Avenue in service on 504 KING. Photo by David Cavlovic.
	In March 1999, the TTC opened a new loop at King and Spadina, with cars looping clockwise via Adelaide and Charlotte. Although built for 510 SPADINA cars, the line also proved useful in short turning 504 KING cars. Here we see TTC CLRV #4010 turn east onto King Street, about a year after the loop opened. Photo by Rob Hutchinson.
	PCC 4500 pauses in Dundas West station, emulating the KING NIGHT car during a nighttime charter on May 27, 2000. Photo by Rob Hutchinson.
	TTC CLRV #4169 runs along Kings Street West, heading to Roncesvalles Carhouse to loop. The carhouse was used by King streetcars for short-turn trips during construction works on Roncesvalles Avenue. The photo was taken by Roman Fomin on February 2, 2010.
	TTC CLRV #4150 moves south along Broadview Avenue on the sunny day of March 19, 2010, in service on 504 KING. This photograph was taken by Roman Fomin.
	TTC CLRV #4127 runs along King Street East, heading to Dundas West Station. This picture was taken by Roman Fomin on April 24, 2010.
	TTC CLRV #4168 just passed the bridge over the Don River, meeting a "colleague" CLRV #4055 on its way to Broadview Station. Caught by Roman Fomin on December 19, 2011.
	TTC CLRV #4178 pauses near the bridge over the Don River in service on 504 KING on December 25, 2011. Photo by Roman Fomin.
	Here, TTC CLRV #4035 drops off passengers at Church Street and King Street West on its way to Dundas West Station. Photo by Roman Fomin on August 17, 2012.
	TTC CLRV #4168 makes its way through the snow on February 8, 2013. The car operates short turn, looping north on Church St, west on Richmond St East and south on Victoria St. Photo by Roman Fomin.
	TTC CLRV #4128 pockes out between two TTC buses - Orion V 7020 and Orion VII 8034. Buses replaced subway between St. George and Union Station during resignalling the University section of the 1 Yonge - University - Spadina subway. Note signs for 1 YONGE-UNIVERSITY-SPADINA on both buses. Roman Fomin, March 2, 2013.
	TTC CLRV 4126 running south from Broadview Station on 504 KING meets its counterpart CLRV 4085 at Danforth Ave and Broadview Ave. The building, seen in the background, is one of the local architectural gems built in 1918 concurrently with the opening of the Prince Edward Viaduct. Photo by Roman Fomin on June 2, 2013.
	As Christmas Eve service already began in the church, TTC CLRV 4107 heads away from St James Cathedral at King Street East and Church Street. This photograph was taken by Roman Fomin.
	TTC CLRV streetcar 4192 passes St Lawrence Hall on its way to Dundas West Station. Photo by Roman Fomin on December 24, 2013.
	Two TTC CLRVs #4074 and #4193, both operating short-turn on 504 KING, take a break on Adelaide Street East. In order to loop, short-turn KING cars run north along Church Street first, then turn left onto Richmond Street East, turn left onto Victoria Street, left to Adelaide Street East (having a stopover here), and finally turn right back onto Church Street. This photo was taken by Roman Fomin during morning rush-hour on January 21, 2014.
	A glimpse of CLRV 4048 streetcar caught at King Street East and Church Street in service on 504 KING route. Photo by Roman Fomin on May 6, 2015.
	An official map of the 504 KING streetcar and its 304 KING NIGHT counterpart, effective September 6, 2015.
	TTC CLRV #4108 heads eastbound in 504 KING service, about to cross Shaw Street, while Flexity LRV #4427, in 514 CHERRY service, turns from westbound King to northbound Shaw for a diversion. This shot was taken on the afternoon of February 16, 2017. The area has completely transformed from the industries that used to provide the line's ridership fifty years before. Now shops and condominiums abound. Photo by James Bow.
	TTC ALRV #4245 makes a run on 504 KING, heading southbound on Broadview, approaching Gerrard, on the afternoon of March 29, 2017. Photo by James Bow.
	As trackwork closes the 501 QUEEN streetcar to streetcars, ALRVs were moved off to 511 BATHURST and 504 KING. Here, an ALRV heads westbound, crossing University, while TTC Flexity LRV #4435 heads eastbound in 514 CHERRY service. This photo was taken on the evening of May 26, 2017 by James Bow.
	Eastbound CLRV #4029 approaches westbound CLRV #4093 at the King/Bay intersection during the King Street Transitway Pilot Project on November 23, 2017. Photo by James Bow.
	A woman waits by the Yonge eastbound stop on the King Street Transitway as CLRV #4029 approaches. This photograph was taken by James Bow on November 23, 2017.
	Eastbound TTC CLRV 4057 meets Flexity LRV 4428 at the King/Yonge intersection during the King Street Transitway Pilot on November 23, 2017. Photo by James Bow.
	TTC CLRV #4135 heads eastbound approaching Bay Street in 504 KING service. Note the wheelchair ramp set up for the westbound stop as part of the King Street Transitway Pilot Project. This photo was taken by James Bow on November 23, 2017.
	A bicyclist speeds past as TTC Flexity LRV #4436 heads eastbound to the King/Yonge stop on the King Street Transitway. This photograph was taken by James Bow on November 23, 2017.
	TTC CLRV #4154 pauses westbound on King having just crossed Bay, picking up passengers on the King Street transit way. This photo was taken by Edward Brain on July 19, 2018
	TTC Flexity LRV #4445 pauses to pick up passengers westbound on King Street, just west of Bay Street on July 19, 2018. This photo was taken by Edward Brain.
	During an typical evening of September 26, 2018, TTC Flexity LRV #4406 departs Broadview station spotted at Erindale Avenue stop on route 504 KING heading westbound to Dundas West station. This photograph was taken by Jelo Gutierrez Cantos.
	TTC Flexity LRV #4430 heads eastbound through the King Street underpass near Atlantic Avenue in 504 KING service on September 30, 2018. Photo by Damian Baranowski.
	TTC Flexity LRV #4437 prepares to leave University Avenue operating westbound in 504B KING "Broaddview Stn-Dufferin Gate" service. Kevin Nicol took this photograph on October 13, 2018, soon after the route split.
	TTC Flexity LRV #4450 picks up passengers westbound on King at University Avenue, in service on the 504A KING "Distillery-Dundas West" branch. Kevin Nicol took this photograph on October 13, 2018.
	TTC Flexity LRV #4439 turns from northbound Bathurst to westbound King, returning from a short turn on the morning of June 26, 2019. Photo by James Bow.
	TTC Flexity LRV #4503 pulls up to the drop-off stop at Dundas West station. 504 KING streetcars are using the 505 DUNDAS loading bay during renovations at the Dundas West station terminal. This photograph was taken by James Bow on the morning of June 28, 2019.
	TTC Flexity LRV #4429 heads westbound on King Street East, having just turned from Queen Street in 304 KING NIGHT service. Steven Sun took this shot on July 25, 2019.
	Official TTC map of 504 KING service, effective February 1, 2020.
	TTC Flexity LRV #4467 heads eastbound on King, rounding the curve as it approaches Dunn Avenue on August 23, 2020. Photo by James Bow.
	TTC Flexity LRV #4593 heads eastbound on King Street, crossing University Avenue in 504 KING service. This shot was taken by Edward Brain on June 12, 2021.
	Due to track and sewer work along King Street west from Shaw in the spring of 2024, streetcars on the 504B KING branch (Broadview Station to Dufferin Loop) were diverted to operate in both directions via Shaw, Queen and the Queensway to call at Humber Loop. Photographer Roman Fomin captured TTC Flexity LRV #4464 heading westbound on the Queensway, crossing Colborne Lodge on its way to Humber.
	Roman Fomin snapped this picture of TTC Flexity LRV #4480 departing the southbound stop on Roncesvalles at Queen Street in 504A King (Distillery Loop) service. This shot was taken on May 20, 2024.
	During sewer work that closed off King Street between Shaw and Roncesvalles, service on the 504B KING streetcar (Broadview station branch) was diverted west from Dufferin Loop to Humber Loop. Roman Fomin captured TTC Flexity LRV #4512 in Humber Loop on May 20, 2024.

Special thanks to Jack Knowles for supplying me information from the books Street Railways of Toronto 1861-1921 and The Toronto Trolley Car Story, both by Louis H. Pursley. Special thanks also to John Bromley and Ray Corley for corrections to this web page and further information.

References

Bromley, John F., and Jack May Fifty Years of Progressive Transit, Electric Railroaders' Association, New York (New York), 1978.
Filey, Mike, Not a One-Horse Town: 125 Years of Toronto and its Streetcars, Gagne Printing, Louiseville (Quebec), 1986.
Mallion, Godfrey, 'Operational Improvements on the 504 King', Transfer Points, April 2000, p4, The Toronto Transportation Society, Toronto (Ontario).
Pursley, Louis H., Street Railways of Toronto 1861-1921, Ira Swett, INTERURBANS, Los Angeles (California), 1958.
Pursley, Louis H., The Toronto Trolley Car Story, INTERURBANS, Los Angeles (California), 1961.

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Route 504 - The King streetcar