Ontario Advancing Contracts for Ontario Line Subway

Province delivering fast and reliable transit for Greater Toronto Area

April 04, 2023

Transportation


Table of Contents

  1. Content
  2. Quick Facts
  3. Quotes
  4. Additional Resources
  5. Related Topics

TORONTO — The Ontario government is issuing Requests for Proposals (RFPs) to design and build the Pape Tunnel, underground stations, and the elevated guideway and stations for the Ontario Line subway, marking another milestone in the province’s plan to deliver fast and reliable transit for the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).

“This milestone is another demonstration of our government breaking with the status quo and building the public transit system that commuters in a dense city like Toronto need to thrive,” said Caroline Mulroney, Minister of Transportation. “Building Ontario through critical public transit projects, like the Ontario Line, is vital to supporting the province’s economy, alleviating gridlock on our roads, and creating thousands of good local jobs.”

The contract for the Pape Tunnel and underground stations will deliver three kilometres of twin tunnels and two new stations – one at Cosburn Avenue and another at Pape Avenue, where the all-new Ontario Line will connect to the existing Line 2. The contract will also include the construction of two new portals, which will be where the line transitions between above-ground and underground operations.

The contract for the elevated guideway and stations includes a three-kilometre elevated guideway, emergency exit buildings, and five above-ground stations – two within Metrolinx’s existing rail corridor (Riverside-Leslieville and Gerrard) and three along the elevated guideway in the northern part of the route (Thorncliffe Park, Flemingdon Park, and the Science Centre).

Construction for the Ontario Line is currently underway at Exhibition Station, at the site of the future Corktown and Moss Park stations, and in the joint rail corridor east of the Don River. Once complete, the approximate 15.6-kilometre Ontario Line will accommodate nearly 400,000 trips each day, bringing much-needed rapid transit to more communities across the GTA.


Quick Facts

  • The Ontario Line will reduce crowding on the existing Line 1 (Yonge-University) and Line 2 (Bloor-Danforth) subways, alleviate gridlock by taking 28,000 cars off the road each day, and put more than 227,500 people within a short distance of rapid transit.
  • Ontario is investing $70.5 billion over the next decade to transform public transit in the province. The Ontario Line alone will support 4,700 jobs annually during construction over the next decade, reduce commute times, and connect more people to housing across the Greater Golden Horseshoe and beyond.
  • By 2041, the Ontario Line will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 14,000 tonnes annually and cut overall fuel consumption by more than 7 million litres a year – the equivalent to nearly 120,000 fill-ups at the pump per year.
  • On November 9, 2022, the province awarded the South contract, which includes a six-kilometre twin-bore tunnel, as well as four new underground stations (King-Bathurst, Queen-Spadina, Moss Park, Corktown), two underground stations that will integrate with the existing Osgoode and Queen TTC subway stations, and one above-ground station that will integrate with the existing Exhibition GO Station served by the Lakeshore West GO line.
  • On November 17, 2022, the province officially awarded the Rolling Stock, Systems, Operations and Maintenance (RSSOM) contract to Connect 6ix. The contract includes designing and supplying the Ontario Line fleet of trains, as well as designing and building the maintenance and storage facility and central control systems.
  • In March 2022, the province announced the official ground breaking for the Ontario Line.

Quotes

“This milestone brings us one step closer in our vision to build Ontario with the roads, bridges, highways and transit needed to move the economy forward. With 15 stations across 15.6 kilometres of rapid transit, the Ontario Line will provide more choice for commuters and improve their connections to other subway, bus, streetcar, light-rail transit and regional rail services.”

– Stan Cho
Associate Minister of Transportation

“We are building Ontario and getting shovels in the ground on critical infrastructure for the people. The new Ontario Line will be a game-changer, reducing gridlock and providing much-needed relief for commuters across Toronto. And by creating vibrant, complete mixed-use communities along the new Ontario Line, we are making it faster and easier for everyone to access reliable transit, right in their own neighbourhoods.”

– Kinga Surma
Minister of Infrastructure

“All governments are working together to make progress on transit. The Ontario Line is a key part of the province’s multi-billion dollar transit plan being built across Toronto and these RFPs help ensure this project keeps moving forward. We need to get transit built and I am committed to working with the Province of Ontario and the Government of Canada to deliver much-needed transit lines for our residents as quickly as possible.”

– Jennifer McKelvie
Deputy Mayor of Toronto

“We are excited to be moving forward with these important contracts, which will bring much-needed rapid transit to communities like Riverside and Leslieville, Pape Village, Thorncliffe Park, and Flemingdon Park. The Ontario Line will put 227,500 more people within walking distance of transit, connect to more than 40 other transit routes, and significantly reduce commute times – for example, from 40 minutes to 25 minutes from Thorncliffe Park to downtown.”

– Phil Verster
President and CEO of Metrolinx

“We received significant interest from the market in these progressive design-build contracts and look forward to seeing their proposals that will deliver more tunnels, stations and a new elevated guideway for the northern segment of the Ontario Line.”

– Michael Lindsay
President and CEO of Infrastructure Ontario


Additional Resources

Pape Tunnel and Underground Stations & Elevated Guideway and Stations Project Update

More about Ontario’s priority transit projects

Signing of the Ontario-Toronto Transit Partnership Preliminary Agreement


Related Topics

Business and Economy

Information about Ontario’s economy and how to do business here. Includes economic development opportunities, research funding, tax credits for business and the Ontario Budget. Learn more

Driving and Roads

Information about road conditions, driver’s licences, vehicle registration and commercial vehicles. Learn more

Environment and Energy

Learn more about how Ontario protects and restores wildlife and the environment. Includes information on conservation and the electricity system. Learn more

Jobs and Employment

We’ve got the resource and supports to help connect job seekers with employers. Learn more


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Media Contacts

Dakota Brasier
Minister’s Office – For Media Inquiries Only
Dakota.Brasier@ontario.ca
416-904-8384


Aruna Aundhia
Communications Branch
MTO.Media@ontario.ca