TTC rider ‘scared’ and ‘upset’ after finding syringes on subway seat

Syringes found on a seat in a Line 2 subway train in Toronto on Saturday, June 28, 2025. (Supplied)

A TTC rider says seeing syringes on a subway seat Saturday morning left him scared and upset.

“I found it a little disturbing considering kids are getting on and off, people are getting on and off. That’s not the first thing you want to see in the morning,” the man, who asked to remain anonymous, told CP24 in an interview Saturday afternoon.

He shared with CP24 photos of the syringes on a subway seat.

“I was a little scared. I was a little upset,” he said.

The man, who boarded an eastbound train at Royal York Station around 8:30 a.m., said he used the SafeTTC app to report the syringes.

The man said he had used the app before to report someone in distress, broken bus shelters, and alcohol bottles on the subway train.

When he got off at Christie Station, the man said he approached a staff member to notify them about the syringes.

A TTC spokesperson confirmed that the syringes were reported by a customer to a staff member this morning.

“Staff acted quickly to locate the train and safely dispose of the syringes,” Adrian Grundy said in a statement to CP24.

“We treat matters like this, involving the safety of customers and employees, as our top concern. We can assure customers that as soon as something like this is seen, reported, or discovered, we act immediately to do a full cleanup.”

Grundy urged customers to speak to any employee, press the yellow strip, or report the incident on the SafeTTC app.

He added that subway trains are cleaned regularly throughout the day on both weekdays and weekends.

“Although it does happen in other public places as well, incidents like this are rare on transit, given how many vehicles are in service at any time,” Grundy said.

While he has encountered syringes on the TTC before, the man said he felt compelled to report it to the media due to a similar case earlier this month when a syringe was found sticking out from underneath a streetcar seat.

“I know there’s a lot of funding for fare inspectors, and I feel like some of that money could be used towards keeping the TTC a little cleaner, a little safer for people that are riding it every day,” he said.

“This (subway) car specifically, I felt kind of bad because there were kids travelling on it, and the last thing you want is for some kid to look at these syringes and be like, ‘Oh, what’s that?’”