Province commits to Brampton, Milton transit plans
Premier Doug Ford announced on Thursday that his government plans to extend the Hazel McCallion Light Rail Transit (LRT) line by building the Mississauga loop and bringing the line into downtown Brampton.
While speaking at the Mississauga Board of Trade today, Ford also committed to extend GO train service along the Milton line with two-way all-day service.
“Our government is investing more than $70 billion over the next decade to lead the largest expansion of public transit in North America, including across Peel and Milton regions,” Ford. “Alongside Highway 413 and the Bradford Bypass, our government has a plan to move Peel and Milton regions’ people and economy forward.”
The government says it has accepted the initial business case for the expansion of the Hazel McCallion LRT and will move forward with the project.
The LRT will include a four-kilometre extension of the line into downtown Brampton via Main Street from the Brampton Gateway Terminal and a two-kilometre extension with a loop in Mississauga. The loop will connect LRT service to Square One with additional stops through to Confederation Parkway.
The current Hazel McCallion LRT project includes approximately 20 km of new rapid transit connecting with local and regional transit networks.
Once in service, the extended line will provide one of Canada’s quickest-growing cities with faster, more frequent and more reliable transit than the existing bus service.
The province is also calling on the federal government to agree to a cost-sharing partnership that will deliver all-day, two-way GO rail service along the Milton GO rail corridor by building a fully separated passenger rail line.
The Milton GO rail corridor is the fourth busiest line on the GO network and serves as a vital transit connection between Milton, Mississauga and the rest of the Greater Golden Horseshoe.
By 2041, the Milton corridor is expected to have up to 94,000 overall daily riders.
The province is aiming to reinstate train trips, improve stations with new customer amenities, and advance the planning and design work to support future two-way, all-day service. The move is part of the province’s commitment to introduce a two-way, all-day GO train service every 15 minutes in key corridors across the Greater Golden Horseshoe.
“Everyone in Ontario deserves access to reliable transit options that connect them to good-paying jobs and housing," said Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria. “The extension of the Hazel McCallion LRT and Milton GO rail corridor are essential next steps in our mission to get commuters where they need to go, when they need to be there. We urge the federal government to share in the cost of this critical project in Milton to meet the growing needs of this region.”
Over the next decade, Ontario is investing $70.5 billion to transform public transit in the province, the largest transit investment in Canadian history.