Betweenovercrowding,technical issues, hours-longdelaysandmore, Torontonians usually have a lot to complain about as far as the TTC is concerned — or at least did during the pre-COVID era when more of us were riding the rocket.

But the things going on behind the scenes in at least one portion of the system that is on its way out may be worse than commuters even know.

According to a report about the aging Line 3 Scarborough RT that was recently obtained in partby CTV News, the line has well surpassed its purported service life of 30 years, leading to some haphazard bandaids before it is decommissioned in a few years' time to be replaced bya proper subway.

So Scarborough RT users are now facing seven years on the bus, and that's assuming the subway extension opens on time. Stunning that leaders at all levels have allowed this to happen.

— Ben Spurr (@BenSpurr)February 4, 2021

The document cites "heavily worn" brakes, parts of which "display signs of corrosion," as well as other components that are "in poor condition" and need "urgent attention."

This includes the wiring of the trains, some of which is actually currently being held together and poorly sealed with duct tape, the report reveals — part of the "piecemeal approach used in maintenance" of the six-station (including both terminuses), 6.4 km-long, 36-year old line.

Details like this are part of the reason that TTC staff are asking that the RT be taken out of useearlier than planned, even if it means residents have to ride buses for years in the interim before the Scarborough Subway Extension is completein 2029-2030.

Anyone who says that#Scarboroughis not ignored and is not an afterthought, needs to take a ride on the RT and try and get out to the Malvern Town Center using just the TTC.

— Dave (@DaveMugford)March 15, 2021

It is also noteworthy that the report, titled Integrity Assessment for Life Extension, is from all the way back in 2016, begging the question of whether things have deteriorated even more since.

City Councillors who support the idea of trying to replace the line with new LRT infrastructure rather than build the subway, which will be more expensive and service less of the area, are now demanding it be released to the public.

.@JoshMatlow's motion, backed by Scarborough-area councillor@cllrainslieasks staff to look at all other feasible options, including building the original Scarborough RT that council scrapped under Rob Ford.

— Jennifer Pagliaro (@jpags)March 10, 2021

Despite this somewhat scary news of the true state of Line 3, things in general for TTC riders have been looking up lately, withmultiple new lines in the works, contactless card payment and other solutionspotentially on the wayanda young new commissioner in charge.

As for the RT, we may also be seeing its raised trackseventually turned into some cool new public green spacereminiscent of New York City's High Line.