Province, Metrolinx move ahead with Yonge North Subway extension project

Canada.constructconnect.com
March 22, 2021

The Yonge North Subway Extension project has taken a step forward with Metrolinx releasing the initial business case and supplementary analysis for the project.

The updated plans, issued March 18, call for roughly eight kilometres of new subway service of the Toronto Transit Commission’s Line 1 subway from Finch Station to Richmond Hill. The extension would continue the line to York Region centres including Markham, Vaughan and Richmond Hill.

The Ontario government and Metrolinx will be moving forward with further analysis on a route that will provide access to transit within walking distance to 26,000 more people and reduce commute times to downtown Toronto by up to 22 minutes, states a release, adding the project is expected to create thousands of jobs.

According to the Metrolinx website, one of the noticeable changes in the updated plan is how the line runs at ground level in the northern part of the extension, linking up with the CN railway corridor in the area of Langstaff Road.

“The alignment that is moving forward for further study places the northern section of the extension at the surface along the existing CN Railway corridor, instead of tunnelling all the way to Richmond Hill,” states the website description.

“This approach eliminates the need for time-consuming and disruptive tunnelling and station excavations through the northern segment of the extension and limits the need for large, disruptive excavation sites for underground stations and exit buildings.

“By using a dedicated railway corridor that already exists, the project can be finished sooner with fewer hydro, natural gas, and water service disruptions for the community during construction.”

The province and Metrolinx will continue to work together on the project, however, the hope is that all levels of government, including municipal and federal governments, get on board.

“With economic benefits totalling over $3.6 billion, along with new investment in the region and the benefit of creating thousands of jobs during construction, this project makes sense,” said Kinga Surma, associate minister of transportation (GTA), in a statement. “However, to build projects of this magnitude, we need everyone at the table. We continue to call on the federal government to commit to paying their fair share, at least 40 per cent of these four nationally-significant subway projects.”