A new poll shows a majority of Toronto voters would like to see a downtown relief line built ahead of a planned Scarborough subway extension.
According to the poll released by Forum Research Wednesday, 61 per cent of those surveyed in a random telephone survey said they want the relief line built ahead of the planned $3 billion Scarborough subway extension. Some 28 per cent of respondents said the Scarborough subway extension should be built first. Six per cent don’t think either should be built and five per cent had no opinion.
Of those surveyed in Scarborough, 52 per cent said the Scarborough extension should be built first.
Long talked about, but still unfunded, a downtown relief line would take pressure off the crowded Yonge-University-Spadina Line. The TTC and provincial transit agency Metrolinx have identified it as a priority for the city’s transit future and the TTC has undertaken initial planning work, but no start date has been set for the project.
While a light rail line (LRT) was originally planned to replace to the ageing Scarborough RT system, the issue became a political hot potato during the last term of council, with council and the province eventually committing to scrap the LRT line and build a three-stop subway extension of Line 2 instead.
“It’s clear the city as a whole sees the need to unburden the spine of our transit network, the Yonge-University line, while residents of Scarborough want to see the promise of their subway fulfilled,” Forum Research President Lorne Bozinoff said in news release. “Despite this, many Scarborough residents want to see the subway decision reopened by council, but I doubt it is because they want it cancelled.”
The poll also found that 44 per cent of Torontonians feel subways would best meet Scarborough’s transit needs, as opposed to 39 per cent who favour light rail lines. Roughly half of respondents (48 per cent) said the city should reopen the Scarborough subway issue. The poll found 34 per cent don’t want to see the matter reopened.
The poll surveyed 892 randomly selected voters Aug. 1 – 2. It is considered accurate to within plus or minus three percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
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