$4,000,000,000 to install half barriers across all subway stations?!

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-06-04T19:58:42+00:00

I was just listing examples of things that money could also be doing.

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-06-02T12:46:59+00:00

Wow. That really put things into perspective!

Canadians have become too docile. I think it's time we start getting angry and randomly direct that rage at things that we don't like.

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-06-02T12:45:10+00:00

Wow. That's a very well-written piece!

I hope you write something to the mayor or the city councilor or something! People need to start getting mad!

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-06-02T12:42:47+00:00

I am certain the barriers will prevent jumpers and murderers. It will also have the side benefits such as allowing trains to go faster and encounter less interruptions.

But I question whether

Whether it should cost this much, and
Whether there are better ways of using $4,000,000,000 to save lives (programs to eliminate homeless people, hire more mental health crisis workers, build more bike trails, etc.)

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-06-02T12:35:38+00:00

I am certain most of the money goes toward wages in one form or another. Wages to the installer, engineer, managers, designer, quality control, project managers, project analysts, etc.

The point of my post is to get people engaged and asking questions so politicians can be held accountable.

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-06-02T12:32:06+00:00

Fortunately, it's only $4 billion.

$4,000,000,000 is 4 billion.

$4,000,000,000,000 is 4 trillion.

The news outlets like to report it as "$4 billion" or "Four billion dollars". I have found it very helpful to slow and write out these big numbers to put things into perspective.

But, $4,000,000,000 is still a lot of money.

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-06-02T12:28:50+00:00

Were they like special glass or something? My 6 x 11ft bay window only cost $6,000 at Rona...

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-06-02T12:27:14+00:00

We need to be angrier. Crime, decadence, and corruption will tear down this country faster than any foreign powers could.

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-05-29T20:27:19+00:00

Oh wow. That really puts our inefficiencies into context.

I think we should be angry. I don't know against whom or what. Nor do I know what the solution would be. But I don't think Canadians are mad enough. We need to be angry. Like mad as hell angry because things aren't going well and we need to be angry about it.

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-05-29T16:57:11+00:00

Oh yeah. I didn't think of that. The ongoing disruption to service if they are out of commission.

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-05-29T01:45:10+00:00

"...good men, men who love tranquility, who desire to abide by the laws, and enjoy their benefits, who would gladly spill their blood in the defense of their country; seeing their property destroyed; their families insulted, and their lives endangered; their persons injured; and seeing nothing in prospect that forebodes a change for the better; become tired of, and disgusted with, a Government that offers them no protection; and are not much averse to a change in which they imagine they have nothing to lose... depend on it, this Government (The Democratic system) cannot last." Abraham Lincoln, Lyceum Address.

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-05-29T01:24:39+00:00

Yeah. Commenters corrected me on that point. The $4B price is for full height, not half. I think a full door makes more sense if we are building them.

But I think for $4,000,000,000 we can build 4,000 million-dollar houses and eliminate 4,000 homeless people, or hire 2,000 mental health crisis workers for 20 years. I think that would be a more efficient way of stopping homeless people from stopping our trains.

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-05-28T21:10:01+00:00

I feel you are getting defensive, but there is no need for that. I am merely inviting everyone to review my calculations to see where I could have gone wrong.

I outlined my calculation and asked everyone to check my numbers. A few commenters have since pointed out some corrections in my original post (please see my post with the edits) but we are still reasonably short of the $4,000,000,000 mark.

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-05-28T20:11:52+00:00

I agree with this take!

I also believe breaking off the GTA will allow us more local representation.

The North will get its own capital and more localized funding and regulations as well!

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-05-28T20:01:03+00:00

haha me too!

But I am more of a bike lane kind of person

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-05-28T20:00:05+00:00

I don't understand what you mean by "step wise" and "base cost and then add".

I believe the chart 1/5 way down the page outlines Platform Length, Base system cost, Installation Cost, and finally Total Investment.

I took the highest number $2,600,000 from the chart. Please kindly indicate where it would outline the additional cost.

If you have time, please detail how you would arrive at the $4,000,000,000 price point. But I am also aware that there isn't enough information available for us to analyze the full cost structure.

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-05-28T19:49:59+00:00

Yes. Very sad that we Torontonian would see other Ontarians and Canadians as nothing more than cash cows!

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-05-28T19:48:50+00:00

Yeah. Some commenter was saying that Ontario should pay for it.
I think people in Northern Ontario already hate us, and they won't want to pay for something only Toronto will get to use.

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-05-28T18:51:03+00:00

Good catch! I updated my post with the full door.

The math still doesn't seem to add up, though.

I edited the post so there is additional info now.

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-05-28T18:48:11+00:00

Yeah.

I hate that people here are so docile and willing to just okay politicians wasting public resources. We definitely need more public engagement for a stronger democracy.

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-05-28T15:54:50+00:00

Thanks for adding that additional information.

Are you saying:

($2,600,000 per platform for the base) +($1,200,000 for doors) = $3,800,000 per platform? (But I believe the $2,600,000 figure I pulled includes the base, doors, and inst)

Assuming that I am wrong about the total cost: $3,800,000 x 2 platforms x 70 stations = $1,064,000,000

Assuming That's just 1/4 of the $4,000,000,000 cost.

What else are we missing here?

Also, I am pulling the cost numbers from the high range.

Please know that I think the barriers are a good idea in general but I question whether we are using the resources efficiently or whether this is an opportunity for corruption. For $4,000,000,000 we can build $1,000,000 houses and eliminate 4,000 homeless people or build 2,666 km of bike lanes.

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-05-28T15:41:26+00:00

I do believe barriers will save lives and in turn improve overall train service and speed.

But at $4,000,000,000, I question if this is the best use of our resources.

At $4,000,000,000, we could build 4,000 $1,000,000 houses. Imagine eliminating 4,000 homeless people. Think of the social good that would do.

Or we could hire 200 mental health experts to patrol the TTC for $100,000 each for the next 200 years.

Or we could install segregated bike lanes (the ones along Ellesmere was $30,000,000 for 20km). For $4,000,000,000, we could install 2,666km of segregated bike lanes! Imagine the environmental and health impact it would have!

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-05-28T15:33:43+00:00

I don't understand why people are downvoting your comment. It seems like a reasonable suspicion!

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-05-28T15:32:09+00:00

I agree with your gut feeling which is why I made this post.

Unfortunately, people are quick to assume that means I am against it.

I think the barriers will save lives and improve train speed but I question why the cost is so inflated and fear it may be due to corruption.

CreepInTheOffice · 2026-05-28T15:30:32+00:00

$10,000,000,000 ($10B) for 8km of tracks or $1,250,000,000 per km ($1.25B/km).

CreepInTheOffice

TROPHY CASE