Public access & time

When Toronto Has to Go

Toronto’s documented public washroom network does not fade gradually after work. It falls off a cliff while scheduled transit keeps moving.

The 10 p.m. finding

6 unrestricted washroom access points remain documented open for 7,994 grouped transit points with scheduled activity. Only 18 of those transit points are within a 400 m pedestrian-network walk.

These are Phase 1 grouped transit point counts, not raw stop-platform records, ridership, or passenger demand.

Four snapshots, one weekday

Access collapses on a clock

Each snapshot asks the same question: which unrestricted washrooms are documented open, which grouped transit points still have scheduled activity, and which of those points fall within a 400 m network walk?

  1. Noon

    324 unrestricted open access points
    8,142 active grouped transit points
    987 grouped transit points covered within 400 m

    Unit: grouped transit points

  2. 8:30 p.m.

    242 unrestricted open access points
    8,007 active grouped transit points
    623 grouped transit points covered within 400 m

    Unit: grouped transit points

  3. 10 p.m.

    6 unrestricted open access points
    7,994 active grouped transit points
    18 grouped transit points covered within 400 m

    Unit: grouped transit points

  4. 12:30 a.m.

    1 unrestricted open access points
    7,885 active grouped transit points
    8 grouped transit points covered within 400 m

    Unit: grouped transit points

13

Fare-gate washrooms are a separate network

The TTC reports 13 fare-gate facility records open at every snapshot. They require paid-area access, so they never seed the public coverage finding. Turn on “TTC rider access” in the explorer to test that different assumption.

Do not combine these denominators

Two phases, two counting grains

Phase 1 groups related stop records into transit points for the public finding above. Phase 2 retains individual GTFS stops and platforms for the intervention audit below. The explorer’s Current open count uses facility records, while the proof groups co-located unrestricted records into access points.

Late-night counts by analysis grain
Snapshot Phase 1 grouped transit points Phase 2 GTFS stops and platforms
10 p.m. 18 of 7,994 covered 26 of 8,273 covered
12:30 a.m. 8 of 7,885 covered 10 of 8,154 covered

Audited opportunities

What would close the gap?

The recommendation gate passed 25 manually audited opportunities. Change one assumption at a time, then compare the ranked places that gain scheduled transit service within the selected walk.

Results update after each choice. The URL stores time, access, walk, action, selected place, and map view for sharing.

Time
Access assumption
Network walk
Show on the map

What Toronto has

What I would change (proposals, not facilities)

Showing 6 current open facility records for 10 p.m., public access, and a 400 m walk.

Focus the map and use arrow keys to pan. Use plus and minus to zoom. Press Enter to inspect the place at the map centre. Every mapped result is also available in the ranked list.

Legend

Transit and selection

  • Ring, covered transit stop
  • Dot, uncovered transit stop
  • Amber ring, unknown or missing coverage
  • Dashed line, selected walking reach
  • Orange halo, selected place halo

Facilities and actions

  • Circle, current open facility record
  • Solid diamond, fare-paid facility
  • Square, extend hours
  • Triangle, new facility zone
  • Hollow diamond, needs verification
  • Amber cross, data missing
  • Blue plus, accessibility retrofit
Snapshot: July 21, 2026 Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. City data under the Open Government Licence - Toronto .

What Toronto has

Current open facility records at 10 p.m.

6 facility records

Open washroom results

  1. Don Montgomery Community Centre Washroom

    Open at 10 p.m. · Open to anyone, no fare required

    Read the evidence

    Action: Current open facility records

    Access condition: Open to anyone, no fare required

    Published hours: Mon Closed; Tue 8 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Wed 8 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Thu 8 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Fri 8 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Sat 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Sun 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.

    Closure evidence: No closure recorded

    Official source: Park Washroom Facilities

  2. Ellesmere Community Centre Washroom

    Open at 10 p.m. · Open to anyone, no fare required

    Read the evidence

    Action: Current open facility records

    Access condition: Open to anyone, no fare required

    Published hours: Mon Closed; Tue 8 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Wed 8 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Thu 8 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Fri 8 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Sat 8 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.; Sun 8 a.m. to 11 p.m.

    Closure evidence: No closure recorded

    Official source: Park Washroom Facilities

  3. Jack Layton Ferry Terminal Washroom

    Open at 10 p.m. · Open to anyone, no fare required

    Read the evidence

    Action: Current open facility records

    Access condition: Open to anyone, no fare required

    Published hours: 6:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.

    Closure evidence: No closure recorded

    Official source: Park Washroom Facilities

  4. L'Amoreaux Community Recreation Centre Washroom

    Open at 10 p.m. · Open to anyone, no fare required

    Read the evidence

    Action: Current open facility records

    Access condition: Open to anyone, no fare required

    Published hours: Mon Closed; Tue 6:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Wed 6:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Thu 6:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Fri 6:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.; Sat 9 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Sun 9 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.

    Closure evidence: No closure recorded

    Official source: Park Washroom Facilities

  5. Stephen Leacock Community Recreation Centre Washroom

    Open at 10 p.m. · Open to anyone, no fare required

    Read the evidence

    Action: Current open facility records

    Access condition: Open to anyone, no fare required

    Published hours: Mon Closed; Tue 8 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.; Wed 8 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.; Thu 8 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.; Fri 8 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.; Sat 8 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.; Sun 8 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.

    Closure evidence: No closure recorded

    Official source: Park Washroom Facilities

  6. Union Station

    Open at 10 p.m. · Open to anyone, no fare required

    Read the evidence

    Action: Current open facility records

    Access condition: Open to anyone, no fare required

    Published hours: Mon-Sun 5:30am-12:45am

    Closure evidence: No closure recorded

    Official source: CREM Portfolio Washrooms

Method

What the analysis actually measures

  1. Consolidate 475 in-boundary facility locations from Parks, libraries, civic buildings, museums, automated washrooms, and TTC stations.
  2. Normalize published hours while preserving unknown hours, live closures, partial service, and fare-paid access as distinct states.
  3. Read scheduled TTC activity in four 30-minute windows on Tuesday, July 21, 2026. Scheduled activity measures service supply, not use.
  4. Snap facilities and transit stops to Toronto’s pedestrian network, then include each snap offset in the 300 m, 400 m, and 500 m shortest-path tests.
  5. Publish an intervention only after the candidate geometry and material coverage gain pass manual audit.

Definitions

Terms that change the result

Unrestricted access
No transit fare or controlled-area entry is required.
Rider-conditional access
A TTC washroom is available after entering the fare-paid area.
Documented open
Published hours and live closure data support an open state at the snapshot.
Unknown hours
The source confirms a facility but does not support an open or closed conclusion.
Covered
The complete pedestrian-network distance, including snap offsets, is within the selected walk.
Active transit point
A grouped Phase 1 transit location with scheduled activity in the observation window.

Limitations

What this map cannot promise

  • Scheduled TTC activity is service supply, not passenger demand or ridership.
  • The dated result is a summer weekday analysis.
  • Investigation zones are not construction-ready sites.
  • Stops and unaudited candidates do not include reach geometry.
  • Verification actions describe potential coverage only.
  • Published hours and closures can lag real conditions. Treat every location as documented evidence, not a guarantee of entry.
  • A route within the distance threshold may still include slope, surface, curb, construction, or personal-safety barriers not represented here.

Sources

Public records behind the guide

Downloads

Inspect the evidence yourself

Credits

Publication record

Research, analysis, cartography, design, and writing by Jonathan Westberry. Built with Astro and MapLibre GL JS. Facility, pedestrian, and boundary records are from the City of Toronto. Scheduled service and station washroom records are from the TTC. Street context is from OpenStreetMap contributors.

Analysis snapshot: July 21, 2026. Page updated July 25, 2026.