Tunnelling is officially underway for the Ford government’s signature Ontario Line subway project, sending two tunnel boring machines from Exhibition Place toward the Don Valley Parkway.
On Thursday, Premier Doug Ford, Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow and a series of politicians and officials gathered at the site of the Ontario Line’s southern terminus to mark the occasion.
“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,” Ford said. “Our government will continue to fight gridlock and keep workers on the job by leading the largest expansion of public transit in North America.”
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The government said the machines would go as deep as 40 metres below the surface as they tunnel the southern section of the line.
The subway will also feature a section broadly integrated into existing GO train lines and another elevated section toward its northern hub at Don Mills and Eglinton.
“This project is part of a historic investment in public transit to fight gridlock, cut commute times and keep people moving across our city,” Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow said.
The Ontario Line will run for almost 16 kilometres when it is finished through downtown Toronto, connecting to routes like the Eglinton Crosstown LRT, TTC lines 1 and 2, as well as the GO train.
It is expected to wrap construction in the early 2030s, although there is no official opening date for the project.
The Ontario Line was announced in 2019 with a promise that it “could open by 2027” and a $10.9 billion price tag.
It was designed to act as a relief valve for the city’s Yonge/University subway line, offering an alternate way to get from north to south through new neighbourhoods. It broke ground in March 2022.
Since then, the cost of the project, which has been updated to include operating costs, has exploded to more than $27 billion, and the opening date has been removed. The $27 billion figure captures all major contracts that need to be handed out.
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