Province beginning next phase of Ontario Line subway project

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Published June 2, 2020 at 10:33 pm

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The Province has announced it is moving forward with the Ontario Line subway project—the province’s biggest subway expansion to date.

On June 2, Minister of Transportation, Caroline Mulroney, and Associate Minister of Transportation (GTA), Kinga Surma, announced the government is working on determining who will design, build and maintain the new line—construction of the new line will be under three separate contracts.

“Under the leadership of Premier Ford, our government is taking historic steps to expand subway service and reduce traffic congestion across the GTA,” Mulroney said in a news release. “By issuing these first RFQs we are one step closer to realizing our transit vision and helping to generate economic activity and create tens of thousands of jobs as the province recovers from COVID-19.”

The 15.5 Ontario Line will extend from Ontario Place to the Ontario Science Centre. It will include 15 potential stations, as well as 17 connections to GO Transit, existing TTC subway stations and streetcar lines, and the Eglinton Crosstown Light Rail Transit line.

“Investments in infrastructure projects, like the Ontario Line, will be essential for getting people back to work and improving the quality of life for people throughout the GTA,” Surma said in the same release. “To build projects of this magnitude, however, we need everyone at the table. We are calling on the federal government to commit to paying their fair share, at least 40 per cent of the four nationally-significant subway projects.”

The Ontario Line is one of the Province’s four priority transit projects, which also include a three-stop Scarborough Subway Extension, the Yonge North Subway Extension, and the Eglinton Crosstown West Extension.

“The Ontario Line is one of the most significant transit infrastructure projects for Ontario in a generation,” Laurie Scott, Minister of Infrastructure, said.

“Moving forward with these procurement contracts signals the government remains committed to building much needed transit infrastructure to reduce congestion and contribute to the economic recovery and renewal of our province,” she continued.

Cover photo courtesy of Caroline Mulroney’s Instagram

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