Eglinton Crosstown will open no earlier than mid-2025, TTC chair says
Coun. Jamaal Myers says TTC working on internal timeline for June 1 opening
The chair of the TTC says the long-delayed and over-budget Eglinton Crosstown will not open for service before mid-2025.
Coun. Jamaal Myers said Wednesday the TTC is "working internally with the date of June 1" as the earliest possible day the 19-km light rail line could be up and running.
While the provincial transit agency Metrolinx is building the megaproject, the TTC will be responsible for its operation.
The TTC has identified operators for the Crosstown but still needs to finish training them before the line can open to the public. That includes a "30-day, non-revenue service" — effectively a trial run to identify any lingering problems on the line.
That process will take until at least June, Myers said, adding opening day could be later than that.
"We have not gotten any confirmation from Metrolinx whether that's a realistic timeline or not," Myers said, referring to the June 1 target.
The 25-stop line was initially set to open in 2020, but a series of technical problems and associated cost overruns have plagued the project and repeatedly delayed its completion.
Two Toronto city councillors whose wards are impacted by the ongoing construction have called for a public inquiry into the transit quagmire.
Construction began in 2011, when the province estimated it would cost about $9.1 billion to build and maintain the Crosstown. Documents obtained by CBC Toronto in 2022 showed the project costs had jumped to at least $12.8 billion.
In the spring of 2023, former Metrolinx president and CEO Phil Verster revealed the consortium building the Crosstown were still working to address some 260 quality control issues on the line.
Under increasing scrutiny of Metrolinx's public communications about the project, Verster later said the transit agency would announce an opening date for the Crosstown three months ahead of time.
Verster abruptly resigned his post at Metrolinx on Monday after seven years on the job for a new role in the rail industry outside of Canada.
Michael Lindsay, CEO of Infrastructure Ontario, was appointed by the province to take on an interim leadership role at the transit agency. Premier Doug Ford said Lindsay's top priority will be opening the Eglinton Crosstown.
Speaking at an unrelated news conference Tuesday, Lindsay declined to say when he believes the line will be up and running. But he said he will be looking with "fresh eyes" at ways to hasten the opening.
Cameron MacLeod, executive director of the transit advocacy group CodeRedTO, said he is skeptical about the TTC's internal date for a possible opening.
"There have been a lot of false starts and lack of communication about this project," he told CBC Toronto.
"Unfortunately, we're in a situation where even June 1 feels optimistic."
MacLeod said the Crosstown debacle has seriously harmed the public's trust in the province's ability to deliver transit.
"I have friends who live not too far from the future Eglinton Crosstown line whose children were in elementary school when construction began and now they may graduate university before they will ever use this line," he said.