Toronto's Underground Labyrinth: The Path Toronto's downtown is a bustling commercial hub with dense transit connections including metro lines, suburban railways, buses, highways, and North America’s largest remaining tram network. This convergence results in heavy congestion during peak times, with pedestrians, bikes, cars, and public transport all competing for limited space. Origins and Development of the Path Early 20th century innovation: Toronto businesses built pedestrian tunnels connecting offices to metro stations, allowing employees smooth flow underground and shelter from harsh winters. Expansion and network effect: As initial tunnels proved valuable, more businesses created their own links, combining into a vast interconnected system. Current scale: Known as the Path, it extends over 30 kilometers, linking almost all central metro and rail stations with major office buildings. Characteristics of the Path Ownership: The Path is divided into about 35 segments, each managed by different property owners rather than a single authority. This decentralized ownership means many tunnels end inside office lobbies functioning as public metro entrances. Ambiance: Unlike typical gloomy underpasses, the Path is well maintained, brightly decorated, and closely policed by private security. It resembles a high-end shopping mall and was a thriving retail space before the pandemic. Usage: Despite retail setbacks, it remains heavily used by hundreds of thousands of commuters on weekdays, easing street congestion and complementing public transport. Urban and Transport Implications Pedestrian tunnels and street life: While pedestrian tunnels often reduce street-level vitality, Toronto’s extreme density means sidewalks remain busy. The Path helps alleviate surface pedestrian congestion, benefiting cyclists, buses, and trams by freeing up space. Unique transport economics: Pedestrian tunnels provide high value to individual landowners, incentivizing initial investments without waiting for a complete network. The pedestrian mode is spatially efficient, accommodating high capacity without congestion in the tunnels, unlike roads or railways that require unified planning. Comparisons: Similar pedestrian networks exist in cities like Montreal, Tokyo, Osaka, Seoul, Hong Kong, Singapore, Houston, Helsinki, Stockholm, and Munich. Other major cities like Manhattan, Boston, Shanghai, Vancouver, Paris, and London lack comparable pedestrian metros, potentially due to different regulations, soil conditions, or urban layouts. Broader Insights Downtowns present unique transport challenges due to concentrated movement. Toronto’s Path demonstrates a successful, privately-driven pedestrian metro system that effectively complements larger transit infrastructure. Lessons from the Path raise questions about the feasibility and desirability of pedestrian metros in other urban contexts and whether regulatory or infrastructural barriers could be addressed to encourage similar developments. --- Author: Samuel Hughes, editor at Works in Progress, specializing in urbanism. Publication Date: August 29, 2025. Images Map of Toronto’s Path (credit: City of Toronto) Early construction around 1900 (credit: Toronto Financial District) Modern underpass section of the Path (author’s collection) --- Selected Comments from the Discussion the wub: Notes the City of London’s unsuccessful skyway system (Pedways) and parallels to Canary Wharf’s underground malls linked to Toronto-based developers. Nicholas Weininger: Describes Minneapolis’s skyway network driven by cold climate needs with parallels to Toronto’s privately pieced-together system. --- This exploration of Toronto’s underground pedestrian labyrinth offers valuable perspectives on urban transport innovation, private sector collaboration, and pedestrian infrastructure's role in