What to know
- Councillor Josh Matlow is calling on Metrolinx for transparency after the Eglinton-Crosstown LRT completed its final day of testing, citing multiple delays and a recent collision between vehicles.
- Matlow, joined by ATU Local 113 President Marvin Alfred, demands a public report on the October 16 collision and testing issues to ensure rider and worker safety.
- The Eglinton LRT, originally scheduled to open in 2020 with a $8.2B budget, has faced years of delays and cost overruns, now totaling $12.8B.
- Residents and transit users express frustration over ongoing delays, emphasizing the need for accountability to restore public trust ahead of the line’s opening.
Councillor Josh Matlow is calling on Metrolinx to be more transparent about the opening of the Eglinton-Crosstown LRT, after the line passed its last day of testing.
On Tuesday, Matlow held a press conference along with Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 113 President Marvin Alfred, demanding the transit agency release information about issues during the LRT’s testing period, including multiple delays and a recent collision between vehicles.
On Oct. 16, a week into its 30-day revenue service demonstration (RSD), two light rail vehicles reportedly collided at Mount Dennis train yard. At the time, transit advocates revealed concerns over the incident, calling on Metrolinx for a full report of what might have gone wrong.
While ensuring safety as a priority, Metrolinx never revealed specific details of the incident or what might have caused it.
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Matlow tells Now Toronto that transparency over the incident is essential for Torontonians to feel safe using the new line when it opens, and is calling on Metrolinx to release details.
“Metrolinx has never been transparent about why it happened, how it happened, and what they did to fix it, and that’s not acceptable. We need to know, both the people who work on the TTC and all the many Torontonians who will use the line every day, just to make sure that it is safe and that they understand what went wrong, so it doesn’t happen again,” he said on Tuesday.
The councillor is calling for a public inquiry, where Metrolinx could clarify questions about the collision, as well as the reason behind the line’s years-long delay and budget adjustments.
When it was first approved by the TTC Board and Council in 2009, the Eglinton LRT had a budget of $8.2 billion and an initial completion date set for 2020, with construction officially kicking off in 2011. The project has been delayed several times since then, with an adjusted budget of $12.8 billion, according to media reports.
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“It has [had] such a big impact on businesses and communities alike for so many years because of the delays. Metrolinx, which is a provincial and public transit agency, has never been transparent or accountable about all the different problems that they’ve had over many years,” Matlow said.
“Given that they are tasked to deliver the Scarborough line, the Ontario line and other expansion projects, once again, if they’re not willing to be open and honest about the many mistakes that have happened and the problems that they’ve experienced. Then, how does the public have any confidence that they won’t repeat them?”
EGLINTON LRT APPROACHES END OF TESTING PERIOD
On Monday, during an unrelated press conference, Metrolinx president and CEO Michael Lindsay said he “believed” the Eglinton LRT had entered its last day of testing.
Metrolinx has confirmed to Now Toronto on Tuesday that RSD has been successfully completed, and said the LRT is now moving “toward substantial completion.” The transit agency did not reveal a specific date for the line’s opening.
Matlow says the opening would come as positive news for many who have been long awaiting the opening, but urges Metrolinx to release information about the October collision and delays to ensure confidence in the service.
The councillor also called on Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who told reporters at an unrelated press conference last week that he is pushing for the opening of the line.
“Doug Ford has recently been saying, ‘Oh, this has been such a headache, and I want this to open.’ Well, nobody has more power to make sure that there is a public inquiry and that these mistakes don’t happen again than Doug Ford, who’s the Premier of Ontario,” Matlow said.
“If somebody in your life screws up, makes a mistake, you want to hear them be accountable, you want them to demonstrate to you that they’ve learned from those mistakes, so that you can rebuild that trust. And we should expect no less of our government.”
Responding to Matlow’s concerns, Metrolinx reinforced its commitment to safety.
“We continue to work with the TTC to ensure safety remains at the forefront as we get closer to Crosstown project completion,” a spokesperson said.
TRANSIT RIDERS FRUSTRATED
When Chloe Tangpongprush moved to the Yonge and Eglinton area a few years ago she often joked that Metrolinx was building a “portal to hell” due to the busy construction area that plagued the intersection for years.
However, the jokes turned to excitement when the construction at the intersection wrapped last year, but now that excitement has turned to frustration and disappointment.
“It’s approaching maybe two years that most of the construction is wrapped up, and yet I’m still not riding that line,” Tangpongprush tells Now Toronto.
Tangpongprush says she rides the 32 Eglinton West bus route from to Cedarvale Station for work, a commute that would be made much easier when the line opens connecting Eglinton Station to Cedarvale Station.
“That bus has been very unreliable, and it’s just so frustrating to have to be on that bus stuck in traffic and watching all these shiny stations sit there unopened,” she said.
After five years of delay, Tangpongprush says she has lost trust in Metrolinx.
“There’s nothing they can’t do at this point to regain that… I’ve never seen anything be this poorly executed before,” she said.
