Ontario Premier Doug Ford says his government is pushing for changes that would give special constables who patrol the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) the power to arrest riders who use illegal drugs on the city’s streetcars, subways and buses.
“One hundred per cent they should (be allowed to make arrests),” Ford said Wednesday at Queen’s Park.
“We want safe subways, we want safe transit everywhere in the city. And (if) someone’s using drugs or shooting up drugs on the subway, they need to be arrested and removed from the subway.”
When asked if the move would essentially amount to re-victimizing already marginalized members of society, Ford pointed towards his government’s investments in addiction treatment programs.
“We’ve invested over $30 million in putting up HART (Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment) hubs to help people, to get shelter (and) to make sure they have the opportunity to get their feet back on the ground and find gainful employment.”
When asked if he could see the idea expanded to GO trains, Ford said the problem doesn’t exist on the provincially-run service.
“We don’t have that problem on GO, people doing drugs on GO,” he said. “It’s a great system and I’ll tell ya Metrolinx wouldn’t tolerate it (drug use) for a minute.”
Under the proposal, The Ministry of the Solicitor General would give the special transit constables the same powers as police officers to make arrests under the Restricting Public Consumption of Illegal Substances Act (RPCISA), 2025
“The Act prohibits the use of illegal substances in public places, with limited exemptions, and allows police officers and any prescribed provincial offences officers to direct individuals to stop using illegal substances or to leave the public space,” the province’s website states.
If a person using drugs refuses to stop, they can be arrested.
“To keep families safe while commuting to work or on their way to school, our government is looking at providing transit special constables with additional tools to enforce public drug use laws on public transit,” the Solicitor General’s office said in a statement to CityNews on Wednesday.
Ontario Special Constables Association supports enhanced powers
Sarah Kennedy, president of the Ontario Special Constables Association (OSCA), told CityNews the OSCA supports the proposed changes, saying it could lead to “improvements in the efficiency of officers dealing with drug offences, less onerous penalties on offenders – which we believe would help to avoid recidivism, and a lightened burden on the court system in dealing with simple drug possession offences.”
She also acknowledged that special constables could face increased safety risks on the job if the changes are implemented.
“We can anticipate that enforcement of the RPCISA will result in enforcement-oriented interactions between special constables and drug users, which comes (with) additional risk factors. One factor is that when a person is under the influence of illegal substances they often have a diminished capacity to make decisions which can result in violent behaviour or a decision not to comply with the directions of officers, resulting in a resistant and/or assaultive arrest.”
“Law enforcement carries an inherent level of risk, which is something our members are aware of and are willing to accept, but we continue to advocate for the best, most appropriate and modern tools … for officers to be able to do their jobs safely.”
Tasers could be among those tools, she adds.
“The availability of Tasers in the police context has resulted in fewer injuries to officers and subjects, and the peaceful resolution of dangerous situations, which is a trend we would expect to see replicated if the availability of Taser was expanded to special constables. Given the dangers that we have detailed above, the availability of Taser would be a meaningful step towards safer interactions between subjects and special constables.”
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Canadian Civil Liberties Association told CityNews, “we are concerned with the proposed regulations … in particular the impact on marginalized groups.”
In a report on the matter, the CCLA shared that the expanded powers could result in unreasonable search and seizures and the arbitrary detention of marginalized people.
“While maintaining safety in public spaces is a pressing government objective, expanding these police-equivalent enforcement powers to transit special constables risks further infringement of Charter rights, particularly for unhoused individuals, people who use substances, racialized communities, and individuals with mental health disabilities,” it wrote.
“These infringements risk exacerbating existing patterns of discriminatory and disproportionate enforcement targeting vulnerable and marginalized populations in public and transit spaces.”
TTC Board Chair, Councillor Jamaal Myers, has so far not responded to questions about the proposal.
TTC spokesperson Stuart Green tells CityNews the transit agency and its special constables are monitoring the ongoing discussions on the matter.
“TTC special constables are highly skilled and trained professionals who must deal with all manner of issues, including drug use,” he said.
“They will continue to keep customers and employees safe in all situations and will engage with police and specialized outreach workers as required.”
The public can give their input on the proposal here.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says his government is pushing for changes that would give special constables who patrol the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) the power to arrest riders who use illegal drugs on the city’s streetcars, subways and buses. “One hundred per cent they should (be allowed to make arrests),” Ford said Wednesday at Queen’s Local, Provincial
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says his government is pushing for changes that would give special constables who patrol the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) the power to arrest riders who use illegal drugs on the city’s streetcars, subways and buses.
“One hundred per cent they should (be allowed to make arrests),” Ford said Wednesday at Queen’s Park.
“We want safe subways, we want safe transit everywhere in the city. And (if) someone’s using drugs or shooting up drugs on the subway, they need to be arrested and removed from the subway.”
When asked if the move would essentially amount to re-victimizing already marginalized members of society, Ford pointed towards his government’s investments in addiction treatment programs.
“We’ve invested over $30 million in putting up HART (Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment) hubs to help people, to get shelter (and) to make sure they have the opportunity to get their feet back on the ground and find gainful employment.”
When asked if he could see the idea expanded to GO trains, Ford said the problem doesn’t exist on the provincially-run service.
“We don’t have that problem on GO, people doing drugs on GO,” he said. “It’s a great system and I’ll tell ya Metrolinx wouldn’t tolerate it (drug use) for a minute.”
Under the proposal, The Ministry of the Solicitor General would give the special transit constables the same powers as police officers to make arrests under the Restricting Public Consumption of Illegal Substances Act (RPCISA), 2025
“The Act prohibits the use of illegal substances in public places, with limited exemptions, and allows police officers and any prescribed provincial offences officers to direct individuals to stop using illegal substances or to leave the public space,” the province’s website states.
If a person using drugs refuses to stop, they can be arrested.
“To keep families safe while commuting to work or on their way to school, our government is looking at providing transit special constables with additional tools to enforce public drug use laws on public transit,” the Solicitor General’s office said in a statement to CityNews on Wednesday.
Ontario Special Constables Association supports enhanced powers
Sarah Kennedy, president of the Ontario Special Constables Association (OSCA), told CityNews the OSCA supports the proposed changes, saying it could lead to “improvements in the efficiency of officers dealing with drug offences, less onerous penalties on offenders – which we believe would help to avoid recidivism, and a lightened burden on the court system in dealing with simple drug possession offences.”
She also acknowledged that special constables could face increased safety risks on the job if the changes are implemented.
“We can anticipate that enforcement of the RPCISA will result in enforcement-oriented interactions between special constables and drug users, which comes (with) additional risk factors. One factor is that when a person is under the influence of illegal substances they often have a diminished capacity to make decisions which can result in violent behaviour or a decision not to comply with the directions of officers, resulting in a resistant and/or assaultive arrest.”
“Law enforcement carries an inherent level of risk, which is something our members are aware of and are willing to accept, but we continue to advocate for the best, most appropriate and modern tools … for officers to be able to do their jobs safely.”
Tasers could be among those tools, she adds.
“The availability of Tasers in the police context has resulted in fewer injuries to officers and subjects, and the peaceful resolution of dangerous situations, which is a trend we would expect to see replicated if the availability of Taser was expanded to special constables. Given the dangers that we have detailed above, the availability of Taser would be a meaningful step towards safer interactions between subjects and special constables.”
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Canadian Civil Liberties Association told CityNews, “we are concerned with the proposed regulations … in particular the impact on marginalized groups.”
In a report on the matter, the CCLA shared that the expanded powers could result in unreasonable search and seizures and the arbitrary detention of marginalized people.
“While maintaining safety in public spaces is a pressing government objective, expanding these police-equivalent enforcement powers to transit special constables risks further infringement of Charter rights, particularly for unhoused individuals, people who use substances, racialized communities, and individuals with mental health disabilities,” it wrote.
“These infringements risk exacerbating existing patterns of discriminatory and disproportionate enforcement targeting vulnerable and marginalized populations in public and transit spaces.”
TTC Board Chair, Councillor Jamaal Myers, has so far not responded to questions about the proposal.
TTC spokesperson Stuart Green tells CityNews the transit agency and its special constables are monitoring the ongoing discussions on the matter.
“TTC special constables are highly skilled and trained professionals who must deal with all manner of issues, including drug use,” he said.
“They will continue to keep customers and employees safe in all situations and will engage with police and specialized outreach workers as required.”
The public can give their input on the proposal here.
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