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canada-rail

Toronto and York Radial Railway No reporting mark

The Toronto and York Radial Railway (TYRR) was an interurban electric line that provided service to portions of the city of Toronto and several surrounding communities.

Like most interurban railways, the TYRR started as a merger of several smaller companies. It began operating in 1904 and provided service to Richmond Hill, Aurora, Schomberg, Mimico and Scarborough (both now part of Toronto). Within a few short years service was expanded to include Newmarket and Sutton West.

In 1922 the railway became part of the provincial electric system, under the Hydro Electric Railways. That lasted until 1927 with the formation of the Toronto Transportation Commission (now Toronto Transit Commission), which covered of the greater Toronto area.

Following the loss of the TYRR, service to the townships of Markham, Vaughan, Richmond Hill and North York (now part of Toronto) was picked up by the North Yonge Railways. That lasted until 1948. Those areas are now served by a combination of York Region Transit and GO Transit.