Toronto-gauge railways

Track gauge

By transport mode
Tram Rapid transit Miniature Scale model
By size (list)
Minimum   Minimum   Fifteen inch 381 mm (15 in) Narrow   600 mm Two foot Two foot three inch 600 mm 610 mm 686 mm (1 ft 11+5⁄8 in) (2 ft) (2 ft 3 in)   750 mm Bosnian gauge Two foot six inch 750 mm 760 mm 762 mm (2 ft 5+1⁄2 in) (2 ft 5+15⁄16 in) (2 ft 6 in)   Swedish three foot 900 mm Three foot Italian metre 891 mm 900 mm 914 mm 950 mm (2 ft 11+3⁄32 in) (2 ft 11+7⁄16 in) (3 ft) (3 ft1+13⁄32 in)   Metre 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in)   Three foot six inch 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)   Four foot 1,219 mm (4 ft)   Four foot six inch 1,372 mm (4 ft 6 in)   1432 mm 1,432 mm (4 ft 8+3⁄8 in)   Standard 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) Broad   Italian broad gauge Dresden gauge 1,445 mm 1,450 mm (4 ft 8+7⁄8 in) (4 ft 9+3⁄32 in)   Leipzig gauge 1,458 mm (4 ft 9+13⁄32 in)   Toronto gauge 1,495 mm (4 ft 10+7⁄8 in)   1520 mm Five foot 1,520 mm 1,524 mm (4 ft 11+27⁄32 in) (5 ft)   Pennsylvania gauge Pennsylvania gauge Five foot three inch 1,581 mm 1,588 mm 1,600 mm (5 ft 2+1⁄4 in) (5 ft 2+1⁄2 in) (5 ft 3 in)   Baltimore gauge 1,638 mm (5 ft 4+1⁄2 in)   Iberian gauge Five foot six inch 1,668 mm 1,676 mm (5 ft 5+21⁄32 in) (5 ft 6 in)   Six foot 1,829 mm (6 ft)   Brunel 2,140 mm (7 ft 1⁄4 in)   Breitspurbahn 3,000 mm (9 ft 101⁄8 in)
Change of gauge
Break-of-gauge Dual gauge Conversion list Bogie exchange Variable gauge
By location
North America South America Europe Australia

Toronto-gauge railways are tram and rapid transit lines built to Toronto gauge, a broad gauge of 4 ft 10+7⁄8 in (1,495 mm). This is 2+3⁄8 in (60 mm) wider than standard gauge of 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) which is by far the most common track gauge in Canada. The gauge is unique to the Greater Toronto Area and is currently used on the Toronto streetcar system and the Toronto subway (three heavy-rail lines), both operated by the Toronto Transit Commission. Several now-defunct interurban rail systems (called radial railways in southern Ontario)^[1]: 7 also once used this gauge. The Halton County Radial Railway, a transport museum, located on one of these former interurban line, uses the Toronto gauge.

This unique gauge has remained to this day because it is easier to adapt new rail vehicles to fit the gauge than to convert the entire system to standard gauge.^[2] An alternate name for Toronto gauge is TTC gauge, named after the Toronto Transit Commission, the only operator currently using the gauge;^[3] however, the gauge existed prior to the creation of the TTC in 1921.^[4]