Twitter is a communications tool - one of many at our disposal.

During service disruptions, we use public address announcements, platform video screens, news releases, website updates, e-Alerts, and on-air updates with local media.

If the TTC used Twitter exclusively to communicate with customers, I would agree with your assessment. But I think one has to also assume that those on Twitter receiving updates, eagerly pass them onto friends and co-workers not on Twitter either by email, phone, text, facebook or simply face-to-face. After all, Twitter is about communicating and sharing information.

One other benefit: listening. I share updates and other TTC news with those who follow me on Twitter, but I also listen to concerns and criticism people have with the TTC - concerns that are most certainly shared by non-Twitterers. It's a tremendously useful way of hearing about what the TTC is doing right and, yes, wrong.

Brad Ross Toronto Transit Commission

You're kidding, right? Because not many people use twitter yet the TTC shouldn't be bothered with it? You ask where the mass communications around the incident were? You're funny. I'm a twitter user, but I found out about the incident from a co-worker who got the story from an on-line newsfeed. She told me about it face-to-face, with her mouth.

You folks, of all people, should understand the concept of media fragmentation. Twitter, and other similar communication vehicles, is not going to replace mass media anytime soon, but it does have its benefits. You might consider embracing it yourselves. Or at the very least chill with your slagging those who have simply in an effort to better serve our city.

As my mother used to say, "What the hell is the matter with you?"

It seems pretty clear that both Brad Ross and Pamerella are missing the key point of this opinion piece. Joshua is not saying that the TTC shouldn't be on Twitter - in fact, he's commending them for incorporating new technologies into their operating structure. What he is saying is that, with a zillion potential mass communications vehicles out there, it's important to understand and prioritize each based on their reach - especially in times of high-demand.

Given that far more people are likely to go to www.ttc.ca for transit info than are on Twitter, prioritizing in this situation would have meant posting updates to the website well before considering Twitter. It's communications strategy 101, and it's also common sense.

Not to nitpick, but TTCupdates it NOT an official TTC project. A few points:

- I created it to provide a service to the community you mention. It has very few updates at the moment because it was launched just under a month ago. The number of users currently sits at 428. Not bad for less than a month of service.

- It wasn't updated until 3pm because the TTC failed to update the RSS feed their provide. Because TTCu uses that feed to update the Twitter account and the website (http://ttcupdates.com), it didn't get updated either. I'm working on a fix, but it's not a simple problem to solve.

To defend Brad a little bit, the TTC's new e-alerts service, which you fail to mention in your article, also went to the 8000+ people who are currently subscribed to them. I follow the TTC very closely throughout the day and the site's main page was updated fairly quickly. Not to mention the many, many news outlets that reported the story. It's not perfect, but it's a darn good start.

I understand your frustration, but saying that the TTC ignored mass communication outlets in favour of Twitter is just plain wrong.

Plus the number of followers is irrelevant. Lots of the TTC updates are retweeted to others, so there is a ripple effect that happens beyond the initial number of followers.

Twitter as a service is a fairly new thing. But it is growing fast and making a big impact. When the plane went down in the Hudson River, the first pictures of it were transmitted via twitter and twitpic. If there is a problem on the TTC, I will hear about it on twitter before anywhere else (and not just from the TTC, but from other tweeps as well).

Twitter is growing at a phenomenal rate. It will be "mass" very soon. The TTC is to be commended for getting into it and using it early.

You're kidding, right? Because not many people use twitter yet the TTC shouldn't be bothered with it? You ask where the mass communications around the incident were? You're funny. I'm a twitter user, but I found out about the incident from a co-worker who got the story from an on-line newsfeed. She told me about it face-to-face, with her mouth.

You folks, of all people, should understand the concept of media fragmentation. Twitter, and other similar communication vehicles, is not going to replace mass media anytime soon, but it does have its benefits. You might consider embracing it yourselves. Or at the very least chill with your slagging those who have simply in an effort to better serve our city.

As my mother used to say, "What the hell is the matter with you?"

Here's the thing, though. I doubt it's the TTC chair and the communications officer who directly update the TTC webpage, as they do with their own Twitters. Meaning that they can easily update that themselves in real time as they receive new information whereas there is probably some lag on updating the website as the command flows through the various channels.

This is not to say criticism about the length of that lag isn't valid, just that I find your corresponding argument about their tweets rather unrelated.

Eck, sorry for the double post. Twas accidental.

Just wanted to respond to Neil. Neil, the article posed this question..."Mass transit, though, is nothing without the mass. And where is the mass communication in this situation?"

Implicit in the question is the intimation that mass communications were ignored or at least not prioritized. Which is horse shyte. The message was out everywhere and almost immediately. Twitter was the icing on the cake.

Plus the number of followers is irrelevant. Lots of the TTC updates are retweeted to others, so there is a ripple effect that happens beyond the initial number of followers.

Twitter as a service is a fairly new thing. But it is growing fast and making a big impact. When the plane went down in the Hudson River, the first pictures of it were transmitted via twitter and twitpic. If there is a problem on the TTC, I will hear about it on twitter before anywhere else (and not just from the TTC, but from other tweeps as well).

Twitter is growing at a phenomenal rate. It will be "mass" very soon. The TTC is to be commended for getting into it and using it early.

I think that Joshua missed an opportunity here to compare what's happening on Twitter with other social medium. Not only did Adam Giambrone update his twitter, but he was also updating his Facebook statuses at the same time to his 2,195 friends (not fans).

Does that mean that updating his FB status was pointless as well, since he didn't reach 8,000 TTC riders through the website? I would strongly disagree with that statement, along with any statements that invalidate using Twitter.

Suggesting that the Twitter base under 500 is unimportant really does miss the reach that Twitter has. A lot of people are not attached to the Internet during the day, and as such, may not have known about the shooting.

I'm willing to bet, however, that the strong majority of Twitter followers knew within an hour (if not earlier), because that is the nature of Twitter. Take those few hundred people, add in some SMS messaging, and using the facebook Twitter application, and I think that the base on Twitter would have communicated to a larger number of people than the TTC updates did, in real time.

It is interesting watching software and institutions trickle online and developing an online presence that extends beyond the expected web site. I've noticed that Twitter accounts for software applications are quite interesting - developers can scan twitter and if people are complimenting or trash talking the product they can engage the user and manage the semi-public interaction. If a service is right there to ask a frustrated user "What is the problem, can I help you?" or to provide informational updates it is very inclusive.

Beyond that, there is an entire world of "talking infrastructure" where objects and services are able to share their data on the web. It would be foolish for the TTC not to take advantage of this platform for further engaging riders.

Besides, we might as well get all those street car drivers on twitter since they are sending text messages while they drive right? ;)

Joshua is right. All TTC service disruptions should be printed weekly in NOW.

;P

I think using new technologies in this way and talking and updating information on twitter is really very awesome.I hope officials of other authorities will also use twitter for updating people about any plan change.