Ontario Line tunnelling begins in Toronto

Ontario Line tunnelling has begun in Toronto. Work is now under way on the planned rapid transit route across the city. This is reported by the railway transport news portal Railway Supply.

Ontario Line tunnelling from Exhibition Station

A Government of Canada release says two tunnel boring machines now operate from Exhibition Station. They are driving twin tunnels east towards the Don Yard. The site lies near the Don Valley Parkway and Lakeshore Boulevard. The tunnels will reach depths of up to 40 metres. From the Don Yard, trains will then continue above ground across the Lower Don Bridge.

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The Ontario Line is planned to run 15.6 kilometres between Exhibition Place and Don Mills Road. There, it will connect with the Eglinton Crosstown light rail line. Plans for the project include 15 stations. They also include more than 40 links to existing transit services. Around 230,000 people are expected to be within walking distance of rapid transit once the line is completed.

Premier Doug Ford said:
The start of tunnelling is a historic milestone for the Ontario Line which, once complete, will help cut travel times for commuters across Toronto by 40 minutes. Our government will continue to fight gridlock and keep workers on the job by leading the largest expansion of public transit in North America.

Stations, passenger demand and funding

Work is continuing at Exhibition Station. Platforms and entrances are being built on both sides of the track. The station is expected to connect with GO Transit services and serve Liberty Village. Forecasts suggest that more than 12,000 passengers could use the station during peak periods. Many of them are expected to transfer between services.

In central Toronto, excavation has been completed at several future stations. These include King West, Moss Park and Distillery District. Meanwhile, work at Chinatown is nearing completion. The province has also confirmed updated station names intended to reflect well-known local neighbourhoods.

The Ontario Line forms part of a broader provincial public transport investment programme. Total spending is estimated at nearly 70 billion CAD. Other projects in that programme include the Scarborough Subway Extension. They also include the Eglinton Crosstown West Extension and the Yonge North Subway Extension.

The Government of Canada is contributing more than 4 billion CAD to the Ontario Line. Once in service, the line is projected to support nearly 390,000 daily passenger journeys. It is also expected to reduce crowding on existing routes. This should happen on the busiest sections of Toronto’s Line 1 subway.

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