TTC halts Relief Line planning because of Doug Ford's transit plans
The TTC is stopping Relief Line subway expansion plans, apart from work that can be applied to the Ontario Line Premier Doug Ford proposed two months ago.
The Relief Line was first proposed in 1986. Since then, the transit plans have changed significantly, but the objective remains the same: to address overcrowding at the Bloor-Yonge subway intersection and along the Yonge Line more generally.
The most recent plan was a 7.4-kilometre subway line that would travel south from Pape station on the Danforth, veer west to Queen Street and end at University Avenue, intersecting with the existing subway network at Osgoode station.
Pop quiz: Which transit project has best chance of being built in next 10 years?
— TTCriders (@ttcriders) June 19, 2019
Ontario Line:
✗ Mystery technology & alignment
✗ No timeline, cost breakdown
✗ 2% design #ReliefLine:
✓ Years & millions$ on planning
✓ enviro assessment
✓ 15% designhttps://t.co/yG0iK3nrZm
In January, John Tory proposed accelerating construction plans so that the transit line could be completed within a decade.
In April, Ford proposed a 15-kilometre subway line that would travel from the Ontario Science Centre at Eglinton Avenue and Don Mills Road to Ontario Place.
Ford said the Ontario Line could be finished by 2027, earlier than the projected completion of the Relief Line. His plan is to construct parts of the line above ground and implement small trains.
The TTC and city officials say the province has given them no information to back up their proposed budget or timeline for the Ontario Line. I have also asked for this information, and the province hasn't provided it.
— Ben Spurr (@BenSpurr) June 19, 2019
The Ontario Line has “some positive aspects that could improve the TTC’s rapid transit” the chief executive officer of Infrastructure and Development Services said in a recent review of Toronto transit.
Sections of the Relief Line and Ontario Line overlap — the part from Osgoode to Queen stations on Line 1 to Pape station on Line 2. Both proposed using the existing Go Rail corridor for additional tracks.
The province wants the federal government to pay for up to 40 per cent of the project and provide the same financial support for a Yonge North subway extension, Scarborough subway extension, and Eglinton West LRT.
"The TTC and city officials say the province has given them no information to back up their proposed budget or timeline for the Ontario Line." This is what happens when @fordnation start meddling in transit planing. https://t.co/jJaoN0ec3O
— Jessica Bell (@JessicaBellTO) June 19, 2019
If the federal government refuses to fund the project, Ford said the province will pay the $28.5 billion cost.
