The subject of Long Branch Loop has come up in this weblog once before, as an offhand reference to a sentence that was eventually included in my story "Restrictions Management," but without much background. Situated in the former village of Long Branch, since 1967 a part of Etobicoke, Long Branch Loop is the western terminus of the Toronto streetcar network. No rails on any road go farther than it; none of the rest even come close. Here the 501 Queen streetcar turns around for its long roll east to Neville Park Loop, and it's from here the 508 Lake Shore cars, seemingly rare as leprechauns, run east to carry rush-hour commuters to their offices downtown.
Long Branch Loop is also distinguished by its sign. The Toronto Transit Commission was not always steeped in the penury it's had to run under for the last ten years or so. A few sites around the network have their own signs, but they're rare today; the only ones I'm aware of can be found at Hillcrest Complex on Bathurst Street, the Queensway Bus Garage, and Long Branch Loop itself.
In a sterling example of typos that predate spellcheckers, I must remind you all that there's no such place in Toronto as "Longbranch."
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Nice you picked up on the sign, I had never noticed when I went out there.
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