A Look Down the Tracks: Toronto’s New Transit Plan

Spend enough time on the Yonge subway during rush hour, desperately searching for a seat while juggling a travel mug and Metro newspaper, and you’ll soon consider the merits of walking to work instead: the congestion just won’t quit! Thankfully, change is heading down the pipeline. Here’s a look at Toronto’s New Transit Plan!

According to The Globe and Mail, plans for a much-anticipated downtown relief line (DRL) are finally materializing. The city’s planning department has stated that the route would connect from Pape Station and make its way down along Queen Street East – with stations at Sherbourne Street, Sumach Street and Broadview Avenue.

The growing congestion on the Yonge line as of late has made the DRL a top priority for both TTC CEO Andy Byford and Toronto’s chief planner, Jennifer Keesmaat. Having the relief line connect further north than earlier proposed plans will also provide city-goers with an east-west transit option that doesn’t involve the streetcar. Cue the cheers!

So what’s next? The plan is part of a larger transit package that’s to be reviewed by city council in June. The bad news: construction for the first phase could take upwards of a decade.

On a related note, city staff are looking into a revised Scarborough transit plan, which  involves a one-stop subway extension from Kennedy Station to the Scarborough Town Centre and an expansion on the Eglinton Crosstown LRT.

We’ll just have to wait and see what the rest of the year brings!