The Finch West Light Rail Transit project construction linking Humber Polytechnic’s North campus to the subway is now completed but questions remain whether it will open anytime soon.
The line is not expected to be operational until after the people who will train the drivers are trained, and that could be later this year or early next year.
In emails to Et Cetera, Metrolinx said Toronto Transit Commission trainers began their training in July and so far, only 10 of 15 trainers have completed the training.
“This will allow the TTC to validate the operator-driver training program so that driver training can commence this fall,” the transportation agency said.
The LRT has also been delayed by a lawsuit filed in August by Mosaic, the consortium building the 10.3-kilometre line.
"Our message to Mosaic is clear, get out of court and back to work," the agency told Et Cetera. "We are working closely with Mosaic to get passengers on the Finch West LRT at the soonest possible date."
Metrolinx said its CEO Phil Verster meets regularly with Mosaic Transit Group CEO Miguel Merino, and others to deal with issues that arise.
The agency said that Mosaic "signalled liquidity issues" and that Metrolinx offered financial support to finish the project.
"Mosaic has been unable to reach internal agreement on this offer," it said. "Mosaic’s recent loss of six weeks of schedule due to poor work planning and poor project management is unacceptable.
"It is time to complete the work necessary to start TTC driver training and get the line ready for opening," Metrolinx said.
Metrolinx said the $2.5 billion LRT is expected to come every five to seven minutes during peak hours and every seven to 10 minutes during off-peak hours.
“We continue to see progress in testing and commissioning work, a critical step for ensuring the line is safe and reliable for customers which will determine an opening date,” they said.
The transportation agency said the new Finch West LRT will connect the existing Finch West TTC station at Keele Street to the Humber Polytechnic North campus.
This will provide communities in northwest Toronto with more travel choices, faster commute times and more transit reliability, they said.
“With 18 stops across 11 kilometres of new dedicated light rail transit, the Finch West LRT will reduce vehicle traffic and gridlock Finch Avenue West,” Metrolinx said.
The agency said the light rail vehicles can hold up to 144 customers seated and 300 passengers standing.
“The Finch West LRT will move 46,000 passengers each weekday and bring 230,000 people closer to fast and reliable transit,” Metrolinx said.
It said it will offer connections to both local and regional transit including the TTC, GO Transit, Mississauga MiWay, York Region Transit and Brampton Züm Transit.
“Finch West Station in particular will connect riders to the TTC’s Line 1 as one of the underground stations on the line,” they said.
Metrolinx said the trips would be made even more seamless and affordable thanks to Ontario’s One Fare Program, which allows riders to transfer for free.
“The station features two elevators and an accessible platform. There is also a bike room, which can hold up to 40 bikes at a time,” they said.
Rob Kilfoyle, director of Public Safety and Emergency Management at North campus, said the construction is complete but he does not know why the startup is delayed.
"It's been so long in the making," he said. "Like, we've been waiting for this thing for five years."
Kilfoyle said they are hoping it will help alleviate some of the traffic pressures around northern Toronto but are not sure because they have the bus on the same route as well.
"The vast majority of students that come here are by transit, right? We are definitely a commuter school, so it likely will just change the way of the transit system," he said.
Saachi Kaur, a second-year Interior Design student and a content creator for @lifeathumber, one of Humber’s Instagram platforms, recently toured the Humber College Station.
“They [Life at Humber] were looking for volunteers who could go shoot and promote them,” Kaur said.
She said the people leading the tour made sure all safety measures were taken even though they did not have any safety suits, and they were not being constructed at the moment.
Kaur said the tour was organized back in March in collaboration with Humber and Metrolinx and the staff and students from various courses including sustainability were invited.
“It has typical subway tiles,” she said.
Kaur said the layout appears organized and unlike Union Station, entry and exit should be quick and easy.
Kaur said it is straightforward, one just goes in and there are Presto machines, and passengers go downstairs to the underground LRT.
“The interiors are pretty, I mean it’s just newly built, so they’re pretty clean and minimalistic,” she said.
Kaur said the LRT is supposed to be operational in the snow as well.
She said she learned that Metrolinx and TTC wanted to get the LRT going by the end of the year, but the opening date keeps changing and it could be as late as next March.
“Because of the testing and everything, …who knows how the testing is going, …because testing is like 90 per cent part of the project,” she said. Kaur said the route is currently being tested. The rapid transit would help her get to Humber in 20 minutes whereas right now it takes about an hour.
She said going downtown would be way more convenient as it would open up a new way to navigate her way there through the LRT to Finch station and further take Line 1 south.
“They have a huge parking lot for themselves with Humber, so you can just park your car here, and if you want to go downtown, you just park here and go,” Kaur said.
She said it’s about time because this would make commuting so much faster and more reliable.
