Transit City

This article is about the Canadian public transport development plan. For the type of city, see Transit city.

Promotional billboard indicating the original seven proposed LRT lines.

Transit City was a plan for developing public transport in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was first proposed and announced on 16 March 2007 by Toronto mayor David Miller and Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) chair Adam Giambrone. The plan called for the construction of seven new light rail lines along the streets of seven priority transit corridors, which would have eventually been integrated with existing rapid transit, streetcar, and bus routes.[1] Other transit improvements outlined in the plan included upgrading and extending the Scarborough RT line (Line 3 Scarborough), implementing new bus rapid transit lines, and improving frequency and timing of 21 key bus routes.[2][3] The plan integrated public transportation objectives outlined in the City of Toronto Official Plan, the TTC Ridership Growth Strategy and Miller's 2006 election platform.

By 2009, preliminary engineering work and environmental impact assessments had been done for the construction of the light rail lines.[4] Construction of one of the lines began in December 2009.

On 1 December 2010, Rob Ford took office as the city's new mayor based on an election promise to expand the subway system, instead of implementing light rail lines. As a result, he cancelled the Transit City initiative.[5] However, in early 2012, Toronto City Council voted in favour of motions to resume work on the Sheppard East LRT, Eglinton Crosstown LRT and Etobicoke–Finch West LRT lines and to replace the Scarborough RT, defeating Rob Ford's campaign for subways.[6][7] The master agreement for these lines was signed on 28 November 2012. While these projects were originally proposed under Transit City, they became part of Metrolinx's implementation of The Big Move regional transportation plan.[8]

In 2016, the City of Toronto directed its staff to resurrect and update the 2009 Transit City plan for the Scarborough Malvern LRT, renaming the project as the Eglinton East LRT. Until 2021, the city considered making the EELRT an eastward extension of Line 5 Eglinton (a.k.a. the Eglinton Crosstown LRT), but by 2022, it decided that the Eglinton East LRT should be a standalone line.[9]: 11, 12  By 2018, the province had decided to abandon the Sheppard East LRT, instead proposing to extend Line 4 Sheppard to McCowan Road in Scarborough,[10] after which the city decided to incorporate the eastern portion of the Sheppard East LRT into its proposal for the Eglinton East LRT.[9]: 22 

As of 2023, two light rail lines originally proposed as part of Transit City are under construction: Line 5 Eglinton and Line 6 Finch West.

  1. ^ Kalinowski, Tess (24 April 2009). "TTC picks Bombardier to supply streetcars". Toronto Star. Retrieved 25 April 2009.
  2. ^ Kalinowski, Tess (21 August 2009). "TTC unveils proposal to improve bus service". Toronto Star. Retrieved 21 August 2009.
  3. ^ "Transit City Bus Plan" (PDF). Toronto Transit Commission. 21 August 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 August 2021. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  4. ^ "Transit City Light Rail Plan: Status Update for February 2009" (PDF). Toronto Transit Commission. 18 February 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 July 2017. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  5. ^ "Rob Ford: 'Transit City is over'". CBC News. Toronto. 1 December 2010. Archived from the original on 4 October 2013. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  6. ^ Church, Elizabeth (8 February 2012). "TTC chair defeats Rob Ford, wins bid to bring transit above-ground". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. Retrieved 8 February 2012.
  7. ^ Church, Elizabeth; Kelly Grant (23 March 2012). "Transit defeat leaves Ford on rocky ground". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
  8. ^ Tess Kalinowski (28 November 2012). "TTC, Metrolinx finally sign off on LRTs". Toronto Star. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
  9. ^ a b City of Toronto; Toronto Transit Commission (May 2023). Eglinton East Light Rail Transit (EELRT)–Functional (10%) Design Phase (PDF). Eglinton East LRT: Public Consultation. Phase One Virtual Public Meetings. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 May 2023. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
  10. ^ "How Doug Ford's $28.5-billion transit overhaul compares with Toronto's existing plans". Toronto Star. 10 April 2019. Retrieved 16 October 2019.