Those who read last summer’s kids issue surely will remember Cole, the young Toronto Transit Commission enthusiast. Taddle Creek is happy to report Cole’s love of public transit continues a year later, as does his ever-growing fame. Cole’s mother, Teresa, recently sent Taddle Creek the following message, which she allowed the magazine to share here:
“This Saturday, we waited for close to twenty minutes for a new streetcar, which Cole had yet to ride, to roll into Spadina station. A fare inspector and two enforcement officers had been watching us as Cole steadfastly refused to board until a “new” streetcar arrived. When it finally did, the inspectors and officers hopped on and had a word with the driver about this kid who has been waiting. The driver very kindly opened the door to his sanctuary and answered a few of Cole’s questions. Next thing I know, we’re leaving the station and Cole is standing at the driver’s elbow (talking his ear off) in the driver’s compartment. We continued like this all the way down Spadina, along Queens Quay, and into Union Station. As we emerged from the Union underground, I heard the driver say in a loud voice, “Hey—wait a minute! Are you Cole?” Cole nodded and asked, “How did you know my name?” The driver said, “We talked about you at a meeting. You’re famous at the T.T.C.” Cole turned back to me (sitting in the first window) and beamed. At the next stop, the driver let Cole sit in his seat and I took a photo. He said to me, “I can’t believe I’ve actually met Cole!” and went on to tell Cole to look for him “every time” and he’d bring him up to drive with him.
“Another memorable T.T.C. outing!”