Toronto Transit Commission seeking ways to 'decolonize' wayfinding using animal icons

The TTC board is exploring integrating 'Indigenous knowledge systems' into TTC station navigation as a form of reconciliation.

On Friday's live stream, Tamara Ugolini reacted to footage from a Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) board meeting showing members debating using pictures of animals like bears or wolves to replace or supplement traditional signage in stations.

The proposal centred around the concept of 'decolonizing how people orient themselves,' and treating Indigenous knowledge as "infrastructure". It was delivered to the board through a presentation by Cameron Stewart, a fellow in TTC Chair Jamaal Myers’ office, on June 3.

The ideas faced significant pushback, particularly from IntegrityTO Executive Director Daniel Tate.

He argued that no serious transit system in the world uses animal pictures, emphasizing that the TTC has far more pressing problems, such as broken escalators, elevators, and bathrooms, and unreliable/safe service.

Tate urged the board to ignore the "diversity department" and focus instead on delivering a high-quality, reliable, and safe transit system.

“The bottom line is, why are we talking about decolonizing wayfinding. Like, what does that even mean? We have stations that don’t have working escalators, elevators, bathrooms," he said.

IntegrityTO describes itself as a "coalition of citizens committed to restoring integrity-driven leadership to make Toronto a world-class city once again."

The TTC board has yet to announce funding or a pilot project to further pursue the Indigenous wayfinding proposal and usage of animal icons in stations.

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COMMENTS

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  • Bernhard Jatzeck
    commented 2026-06-08 14:41:00 -0400 Flag
    Years ago, I saw how “EXIT” signs were being replaced by pictures of someone going through a door. I’ve been baffled as to why that’s even necessary as the word “exit” is unambiguous. The sign is easily recognizable, with its purpose clear, even for people who aren’t fluent in English.

    I suppose the next thing is to change “STOP” signs, lest the octagonal shape and the red colour be considered offensive.