Ontario’s transportation minister says the province will go it alone on a plan to extend the Bloor-Danforth subway line into Scarborough.
“We are announcing that we are putting $1.4 billion into extending the subway to Scarborough Town Centre,” Murray said at a news conference Wednesday afternoon.
Murray said the proposed route would be 6.4 kilometres and would essentially replace the SRT line at Kennedy Station.
The plan described by Murray would undercut a plan previously endorsed by Toronto City council to build a line that would go to Sheppard Avenue.
Council voted July 17 to extend the Bloor-Danforth subway line into Scarborough rather than building a light rail line to replace the aging rapid transit system.
A new light rail line would have cost significantly less than building a new subway but subways travel faster and accommodate more commuters.
Following the July vote, Toronto Mayor Rob Ford – who championed the subway plan – told reporters it would only work if the provincial government provided $1.8 billion of the money previously pledged for the light rail plan.
Murray has always maintained the province would fund the subway plan to the tune of $1.4 billion, citing roughly $400 million in other transit infrastructure costs borne by the province in Scarborough. Aside from provincial funding, the subway plan endorsed by council also detailed a need for federal and municipal funds. A municipal property tax hike of 1.1 per cent to 2.4 per cent over three years was planned for subway expansion. The federal government has not pledged money for the project.
On Wednesday, Murray Lashed out at Toronto City Hall and the federal government, saying the province is moving ahead on its own, without the help from the city or Ottawa.
“We have subway champions coming out our wazoo; we don’t have subway funders,” Murray said. “The only people funding subways is the government of Ontario.”
Murray also took aim at Mayor Rob Ford, saying he’s failed to deliver on promises of low taxes or subways.
“I think people in Scarborough want their subway, they’re tired of talk,” Murray said. “We’ve been waiting patiently. The mayor has been mayor for almost a full term now and he hasn’t delivered five cents for a subway – none.”
Murray said after the province built the subway, it would hand over responsibility to the TTC.
Mayor’s response
Despite Murray’s harsh words for the mayor, Ford gave the plan a glowing endorsement during a community barbecue in Scarborough Wednesday night.
"I want to thank the Liberal government for helping me out. I campaigned on subways and I was the only that stuck to my guns," Ford said. "Everybody went against me. The province went against me, council went against me, the chair of the TTC went against me, but I listened to the taxpayers. They said they wanted subways and I said ‘Mark my words, we are going to get subways."
The mayor, who has in the past been a vocal opponent of the Ontario Liberal party, was alone in his praise for the minister. His Conservative counterparts in the province and the federal government were quick to criticize Murray.
“We are surprised by Minister Murray's repeated press conferences, which we believe are counterproductive,” wrote Michèle-Jamali Paquette, a spokesperson for Federal Infrastructure Minister Denis Label.
Paquette said the federal government received a letter from Mayor Ford asking them for a response on Scarborough subway issue by Sept. 30.
She said transit projects in the GTA are eligible for funds under the government’s New Building Canada Plan and pointed to a number of projects already receiving federal funding, such as the Union Station improvements and the Spadina Subway Extension.
Progressive Conservative MPP and former deputy mayor Doug Holyday also chimed in, saying the Liberals were “backpedalling” on their commitment to the previous Scarborough subway plan.
“After forcing Toronto Council to hold a vote, campaigning on a new subway and telling the people of Scarborough they would finally have world-class transit, Glen Murray has shown that this was nothing more than a tactic to buy votes during the byelections,” Holyday said in the news release.
“It’s pretty simple: The Liberals promised one subway route, and now they’re backtracking,” he said.
It wasn’t immediately clear how many stations the line would have, now that the plan calls for a shorter route but Murray said in a tweet that there would be more than two. He said if the other levels of government would like to contribute to the project, it may be possible to extend the line to Sheppard or to add additional stations.
Murray said he’s showed the plan to Metrolinx president Bruce McCuaig, TTC Chair Andy Byford and Pennachetti. None of them have publicly commented so far.
TTC Chair Karen Stintz told CP24 Wednesday she was not notified about Murray’s announcement. She did not immediately comment on Murray’s plan.
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