Construction work on the first of the Ontario government’s planned four major GTA transit projects is officially underway.

Premier Doug Ford, Infrastructure Minister King Surma, Metrolinx president and CEO Phil Verster, Toronto Mayor John Tory and Infrastructure Ontario president and CEO Michael Lindsay were among a host of dignitaries to attend the June 22 groundbreaking ceremony for the Scarborough Subway Extension.

“For far too many decades, the people of Scarborough have waited for better transit. Today, our government is getting shovels in the ground and delivering on our election promise to bring fast, convenient subway service into Scarborough,” said Ford. “This long overdue project will create thousands of jobs, significantly increase ridership capacity and cut down daily travel times for more than a hundred thousand Scarborough commuters.”

The project will extend the Toronto Transit Commission’s (TTC) Line 2 7.8 km further into Scarborough, with stations at Lawrence Avenue and McCowan Road, Scarborough Centre, and Sheppard Avenue and McCowan Road.

The extension is expected to provide an estimated 38,000 people with walking distance access to rapid transit and see 105,000 daily boardings by 2041. It is also estimated to reduce the number of vehicle kilometres travelled during rush hour by 30,000 kilometres, reducing traffic congestion and auto-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 10,000 tonnes annually.

In May, the province announced that Strabag was the winning team to design and deliver the tunneling work for the Scarborough Subway Extension. With preparatory work now complete, the construction team will build the launch shaft, where the tunnel boring machine will be lowered into the ground to start tunnelling the extension next year.

“Since our government took office, we have prioritized building much-needed transit for the people of Ontario. Our multibillion-dollar priority subway projects for the Greater Toronto Area will not only deliver improved transit but spur economic activity and help support our recovery efforts as the province looks towards a more prosperous and brighter future,” said Caroline Mulroney, Minister of Transportation. “Both the federal and municipal governments have endorsed Premier Ford’s historic subway plan, and Ontario is now pushing full steam ahead.”

The project is estimated to create as many as 3,000 jobs annually during construction and unlock better access to employment spaces, schools and other key destinations throughout the city for Scarborough residents.

To expedite work on the Scarborough Subway Extension, tunnelling for the 7.8-kilometre extension from Kennedy Station to McCowan Road and Sheppard Avenue will take place first. Advanced tunneling will be followed by contracts for the balance of the work.

“Our government tabled a very clear plan to deliver better, faster transit for neighbourhoods that have long been neglected. Scarborough was at the top of our list,” said Stan Cho, Associate Minister of Transportation. “This ground-breaking is about our government’s unwavering commitment to get critical transit built faster to make life easier and more affordable for Ontarians.”

The Scarborough extension is one of four priority transit projects for the GTA announced by the Ford government in April 2019. In addition to the Scarborough Subway Extension, this plan includes the all-new Ontario Line, the Eglinton Crosstown West Extension and the Yonge North Subway Extension. The projects are planned to cost more than $28 billion, and last month, the federal government announce it would contribute up to 40 percent of the overall cost.

Featured image: Drills prepare the tunnel shaft site for construction. (Metrolinx)