TTC board members have endorsed a plan for a new downtown relief subway line, paving the way for the matter to be brought before city council next week.
The endorsement came in a meeting Wednesday afternoon, during which board members also decided to make construction of a downtown relief line a condition required for any further expansion of the Yonge-University-Spadina line.
“I think a downtown subway line is critical because we know the line is at capacity right now and we can’t add any additional riders onto the line until we find out a way to accommodate the increase in ridership,” TTC Chair Karen Stintz told CP24 during a break in the meeting. “The way we do that is through a downtown relief line.”
A downtown relief line is something that had been talked about for years, but a new staff report made an urgent case for one due to overcrowding on trains and congestion that is expected to worsen as the system nears the limits of its peak capacity.
Because of increasing pressure on the Yonge subway line and congestion at Bloor-Yonge station, a new line that runs through the southern portion of downtown Toronto is needed to keep pace with growing ridership, according to the report.
Employees are currently studying which route would best link downtown stations to the city’s east end at a cost of $3.8 billion.
Maps within the Downtown Rapid Transit Expansion Study suggest the proposed line should run south from Pape Station to Queen Street East, and then west to King and St. Andrew stations.
The second phase would head west to the Roncesvalles area and then north to connect with the Bloor-Danforth line.
“How it will be funded will be very much a matter for the politicians to decide but I am pleased to see commissioners took our report seriously so we can now progress to the next stage,” TTC CEO Andy Byford told CP24 Wednesday afternoon.
By 2031, transit ridership into downtown Toronto is expected to grow by 51 per cent due to the city’s growing population, the extension of the Yonge subway line into Richmond Hill, and increasing GO Transit ridership, according to the report.
Cellphone access on platforms within two years
Meanwhile, the TTC is moving forward with a plan to provide cellphone access on underground platforms at subway stations.
The agency is hoping to have all platforms cellphone-ready within two years, meaning riders will be able to use their phones when they’re waiting for a train, but not when they’re riding on one in a tunnel.
If the plan goes ahead, Broadcast Australia Pty Ltd. will shell out $25 million over 21 years to equip 61 stations with cellphone access.
Deals still have to be worked out with wireless carriers.
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