Finch West Line opens two years late, $1.2B overbudget

Article content

The TTC’s delayed and overbudget Finch West Line opened to the public Sunday with a ceremonial first run filled with elected officials and free fares for riders throughout the day.

Article content

The 10-kilometrte LRT project is the city’s first new transit line since 2002, but has cost about $1.2 billion more than the original estimate from Metrolinx and opened about two years later than its initial 2023 start date.

Article content

Article content

But that didn’t stop the TTC from celebrating the moment with Mayor Olivia Chow, Etobicoke North MP John Zerucelli, Ontario Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria, TTC chair Jamaal Myers, Metrolinx CEO Michael Lindsay and TTC CEO Mandeep Lali boarding a train for a ceremonial first run.

The TTC also handed out commemorative coins to the first 100 customers at Finch West Station and the first 50 customers at other stations along the route.

‘Great day for transit users,’ Chow says

Chow said the new line means residents can get home and to work faster.

Article content

Article content

“Today is a great day for transit users, especially those in the northwest of the city who now have a dedicated transit line to connect them to work, school and home,” Chow said in a news release.

Line 6 services 18 stations between Humber College and Finch West Station, while connecting to the Line 1 subway system, 30 bus routes and regional transit lines like GO Transit, Mississauga MiWay, York Region Transit and Brampton Zum.

Rush-hour trains to run every 6 1/2 minutes

Trains are expected to depart every 6 1/2 minutes during weekday rush hours and every 10 to 12 minutes at other times.

“We’re very excited to be opening Line 6 Finch West today, the most significant expansion of Toronto’s transit network since the Spadina subway extension,” said Myers, who is also the city councillor for Scarborough North. “Thousands of riders will now benefit from faster connections to communities, jobs and schools.”

Article content

RECOMMENDED VIDEO

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

Play Video

Project faced numerous delays since 2007 proposal

The line was first proposed in 2007 — during then-mayor David Miller’s tenure at City Hall — but was delayed by years of political debates, changes in funding and repeated construction setbacks, which generated criticism from locals in the area, The Canadian Press reported.

Construction on the LRT system began in 2019 and it was originally slated to open in 2023.

A report by Metrolinx earlier this fall said the line’s total cost was $3.7 billion, including life cycle, operating and maintenance costs, putting the project wello above the initial $2.5-billion estimate.

The same report also showed the Eglinton Crosstown LRT — a delay-plagued project also first proposed in 2007 — has incurred a cost of over $13 billion.

Premier Doug Ford said earlier this week the Eglinton Crosstown system is expected to open in 2026.

Construction began on that line in 2011 and it was first expected to open in 2020. September was later touted as a possible opening date, but performance issues pushed that timeline back further.

— With files from The Canadian Press.

Article content