The TTC released new information Wednesday on the emergency alarm system in the subway system. The report, and subsequent campaign, plans to inform passengers of when it is appropriate to press the yellow button.
The report claims that 2,677 passenger assistance alarms have been activated this year. On average, the report says, two thirds are non-emergency. To address this issue, the TTC plans to unveil a new “emergency alarm decal” which explains that the alarm is only to be used in cases of emergency.
To accompany the new changes, new posters have been added to subways featuring a Toronto police officer, fire fighter, and paramedic. In addition, the TTC also released a video titled “TTC – In Case of Emergency” featuring Chief Executive Officer Andy Byford.
“It’s there for emergencies,” Byford said in the video. “Think of it as 911. It’s used for emergency situations only. While you wait for emergency services to arrive, the train will be stationed in the platform. This means the train behind is delayed as well.”
TTC says that the button, when activated, can take between two and 20 minutes to respond to, adding more time in a traveller’s route and causing numerous delays.