It looks like Toronto's cursed LRT is going to be delayed yet again

In a break from the elation of the Toronto Blue Jays' surprising playoff run, there has been an entirely unsurprising development with the beleaguered Eglinton Crosstown LRT.

The delay-plagued transit line has been in development for over a decade, facing numerous technical, logistical, and legal challenges along the way that have repeatedly pushed back its timelines.

Everything seemed to be finally moving in the right direction when it was announced that the line's 30-day revenue demonstration service had begun, and an opening this year was starting to seem possible.

However, a Thursday collision between two light rail vehicles at the line's Mount Dennis Yard, first reported by the Toronto Star, could be the latest case of the universe conspiring to thwart the line's opening.

Transit rider advocacy group TTCriders has taken a vocal stance against the continued opacity of behind-the-scenes developments and woes on the Crosstown project, and issued a statement on Tuesday expressing outrage following the news of the crash.

August Puranauth, the group's Campaigns Manager, says that the LRT's saga "is beyond frustrating and it's a betrayal of public trust."

"What are they actually doing here?" asks Puranauth, who goes on to call for "a full public inquiry into what went wrong, an end to the privatization of public transit projects, and real transparency from both Metrolinx and TTC leadership. Riders deserve answers."

The group argues that never-ending delays on the project are evidence that the public-private partnership model used to deliver transit projects in the region is not the answer to getting the city moving.

"Transit is a public service," said Puranauth. "After over a decade of construction, the people who live in the community and will rely on this line deserve honesty, accountability, and a transit system that actually works."

TTCriders cites local resident and transit user Andrew Ilersich, who calls the Eglinton Crosstown debacle "insulting," venting that, "We've lived through years of construction, noise, and road closures, and now we're told again to just wait."