Latest news with #EglintonCrosstown
CTV News
a day ago
- Business
- CTV News
When will the Eglinton Crosstown LRT open? Place your bets
"Out of Service" signs are shown on the Eglinton Crosstown LRT in Toronto on Friday, May 5, 2023. Nearly 15 years after construction began, there's a possibility the long-awaited Eglinton Crosstown LRT will open this coming September. If you'd like to place your bets on that, you actually can. Online sportsbook FanDuel has a novelty betting offer on when the Eglinton LRT will be open. 'At FanDuel, our team of dedicated Canadian Traders are on the ground building novelty markets that touch on the most topical storylines across sports, entertainment, local news and pop culture,' the FanDuel Canada Trading Team told CP24 in a statement. 'Our goal is to engage in the conversations our customers are already having, offering odds on the moments that resonate.' The site has been taking wagers for a month now and following last week's announcement from Metrolinx about the current timeline for the Crosstown LRTs opening, it has seen a surge of activity. 'We have seen increasing interest in this market with 35 per cent of all bets being placed this week,' FanDuel Canada said. The top two most popular opening timelines receiving bets are 'On or after November 1st' and 'Before or on August 31st.' If correct, bettors will earn +550 for the former or +1100 for the later. The favourite however—at +195—is for the LRT to launch between Sept. 16 and Sept. 20 There are three other dates available to wager on as well. LRT bets Online sportsbook FanDuel has a novelty betting offer on when the Eglinton Crosstown LRT will be open. 'At FanDuel, we are committed to promoting responsible gaming, ensuring that our customers can enjoy these unique betting opportunities with responsible play in mind. That is why our novelty markets, including the Eglinton LRT market, carry low bet limit restrictions.' Construction on the Crosstown began in 2011 and the nearly-$13 billion line was originally expected to be complete by 2020.
CTV News
3 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
Ontario promotes interim Metrolinx CEO to permanent position
Michael Lindsay is the new CEO of Metrolinx. (Metrolinx) The interim head of Metrolinx has been appointed as the transit agency's permanent chief executive officer. Ontario Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria announced Michael Lindsay's appointment to the permanent position on Wednesday. 'Michael has done an outstanding job in his role as acting CEO, and I have complete confidence that he will continue to lead with the same dedication and vision,' Sarkaria said in a statement. 'His leadership is critical at a time when we need to protect Ontarians and support workers, while delivering the largest transit expansion in Canadian history.' When Lindsay was named interim CEO in December, the government said his top priority would be opening the long-delayed Eglinton Crosstown LRT. Lindsay revealed in a news conference last week that the province was in the process of transferring control of the Crosstown vehicles to the TTC. The province has not announced when the Crosstown, which will be called Line 5, will open but Premier Doug Ford recently said it could open as early as September. Lindsay was previously the president and CEO of Infrastructure Ontario and served as a special advisor to the Ford government in 2019 on the upload of the TTC.
CTV News
17-06-2025
- Automotive
- CTV News
‘Major milestones': Here's what needs to happen before the Eglinton Crosstown can open
Science Centre Station on the Eglinton Crosstown LRT is shown in Toronto on Friday, May 5, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn The province has transferred movement of the Eglinton Crosstown vehicles to the TTC and the project is now proceeding with 'relentless' testing, the interim head of Metrolinx says. 'Major milestones have been met in respect of the progress on Eglinton Crosstown,' Michael Lindsay, the interim CEO of Metrolinx, told reporters at a news conference about a separate transit announcement Tuesday. He said control of the vehicles on the line was switched from a backup control centre to the TTC's command centre last week and all civil infrastructure for the project is now complete. 'As of today or tomorrow, movement of trains on the line is actually governed by the TTC, as it will be when the line is in revenue service.,' Lindsay said. All the TTC drivers who will be operating the vehicles are now trained as well. 'I would also note that we are relentlessly stress testing both the system and vehicles, and this really is the phase of the project that we're in right now,' Lindsay said. 'We're doing the things for this line that, frankly, were not done for projects like the Ottawa LRT, demonstrating to ourselves collectively that it's going to perform the way we want it to on the day that it opens.' Lindsay also provided more clarity Tuesday about exactly what still needs to happen for the line to open. Here's what will happen: Vehicles being tested now 'If you're out on the Eglinton Crosstown alignment today, you will see as many as 28 trains, the full complement, moving on the line to test how the vehicles are performing,' Lindsay said. 'What's their maintenance profile? What systems upgrades ultimately have to happen? That's going pretty well.' Two trial periods He said after the system achieves 'a certain amount of stability' in those tests, testing will move to the next stage. The first will be a two-week formal trial. That will be followed by a 30-day Revenue Service demonstration. 'We will literally run the system as it will run when it's open to the public, with no passengers on it, just to satisfy ourselves that it performs the way that it needs to,' Lindsay said. 'Bedding-in' period 'We've added a further measure, which comes directly from the report on the Ottawa LRT, to have a bedding-in period post substantial completion of the project to continue with this testing, to make sure that when it opens, it will be safe and it will be reliable,' Lindsay said. As defined by the final report into the Ottawa LRT project, 'bedding-in' refers to a period early in the life of a system in which latent problems surface. The report cited the lack of a bedding-in period and an insistence that the system be fully operational on Day 1 as contributing factors to the problem-plagued line. TTC says line must be certified as complete In a statement Tuesday, the TTC said that while it is coordinating work with Metrolinx to get the line ready for service, a full handover will not occur until it has been determined that Crosslinx Transit Solutions (CTS), the consortium responsible for building the line, has delivered the project as agreed. 'Handover comes only after substantial completion is achieved, which requires that the Project's Independent Certifier has certified that CTS has demonstrated the successful delivery of Line 5 in accordance with the requirements set out in its Project Agreement,' TTC Spokesperson Stuart Green said. September opening possible If all that testing goes according to plan, Lindsay said, a September opening could be possible. 'But I want to stress that we cannot open that system if it is not going to perform, because hundreds of thousands of people will rely upon it,' he said. 'The trend-line is good, but it is always subject to revision, depending on what we find.' Ontario Transportation Ministry Prabmeet Sarkaria said he's optimistic that progress is being made toward an eventual opening. 'We're on track, as long as we ensure that it is a safe and reliable system, that we are on track for that date, and Michael has been working relentlessly with his team to ensure that we're meeting those major milestones when it comes to training or from an operational perspective,' Sarkaria said. Construction on the Crosstown began in 2011 and the nearly-$13 billion line was originally expected to be complete by 2020.
CBC
03-06-2025
- Business
- CBC
Ford says Eglinton Crosstown LRT still on track to open in September 2025
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says the Eglinton Crosstown light rail transit line is still on track to open this September. "Yes, that is what I am hearing," Ford told reporters on Tuesday at Queen's Park. He did not provide an exact date. The premier said he is hopeful that the Ontario government will hand over control of the Eglinton Crosstown to the Toronto Transit Commission in the next two weeks. "I am hearing some positive things about Eglinton track, and hopefully we will be handing it over in the next couple weeks to the TTC and they will be doing their trial runs. And thank God, that is all I got to say about that and that project." TTC spokesperson Stuart Green said the transit agency has no comment. "We have no updates at this time," he said in an email on Tuesday. CBC Toronto has reached out to Metrolinx but has not yet heard back. Former Metrolinx CEO Phil Verster previously said the transit agency would announce an opening date for the crosstown three months ahead of time. 'We'll believe it when we see it': NDP Ontario MPP Doly Begum, who represents Scarborough Southwest, said she was skeptical of the September opening date and noted the premier did not provide an exact date. "We'll believe it when we see it," Begum, who is the NDP's transit critic, said in a news release on Tuesday. "The people of Ontario are tired of getting their hopes up only for another delay, another excuse. The very least the Government can do is give them real answers about when they can finally ride the LRT," Begum said. The transit line, which has been beset by delays, is slated to have 25 stops along Eglinton Avenue, running 19 kilometres from Kennedy in the east to Mount Dennis in the west. According to Metrolinx, the provincial transit agency, the line was initially set to open in 2020, but a series of technical problems and associated cost overruns have plagued the project and repeatedly delayed its completion. Two Toronto city councillors, Josh Matlow and Mike Colle, whose wards have been impacted by the ongoing construction, have called for a public inquiry into the much-delayed line. Construction began in 2011, when the province estimated it would cost about $9.1 billion to build and maintain the crosstown. Documents obtained by CBC Toronto in 2022 showed the project costs had jumped to at least $12.8 billion.
CTV News
03-06-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Eglinton LRT on track to open as soon as September, Doug Ford says
"Out of Service" signs are shown on the Eglinton Crosstown LRT in Toronto on Friday, May 5, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn Premier Doug Ford says that he expects that the long-delayed Eglinton Crosstown LRT could be open as soon as September, with plans to hand the line over to the TTC for final testing 'in the next couple of weeks.' Ford made the comment to reporters at Queen's Park on Tuesday after he was asked about the rumored September timeline. City Coun. Josh Matlow told CP24 back in April that he believed the LRT would open by September, though Metrolinx has never confirmed the timeline. 'Yes, that is what I am hearing,' Ford said of the September target date on Tuesday. 'I am hearing some positive things about Eglinton track and hopefully we will be handing it over in the next couple weeks to the TTC and they will be doing their trial runs. Thank God, that is all I can say about that and that project.' Construction on the Eglinton Crosstown began in 2011 and was initially slated to be completed in 2020 but it has been plagued by numerous delays and is now at least $1 billion overbudget. Metrolinx has previously said that the public would be given a three-month notice before the line opens and that the company was pushing towards a 2025 opening date. The LRT spans a 19-kilometre route from Mount Dennis in the west to Kennedy Road in the east. Driver training has been ongoing on the route since last September. 'I will have to get back to you on the exact date but I understand it will be handed over to the TTC in the next couple weeks,' Ford said Tuesday.
