A Toronto comedian hired a mariachi band for the Eglinton Crosstown’s quinceañera
Extremely behind-schedule construction projects grow up so fast
One of the sad realities of Toronto existence is how frequently good things disappear. It makes us yearn for consistency, and in its own strange way, Eglinton Crosstown construction has given us that.
We can hardly believe the project, which first broke ground in November 2011, is entering its 15th year. (Rob Ford was the mayor and Dalton McGuinty was our premier.) But as pointed out by Toronto comedian Jacob Balshin, celebrations are in order.
Related: What’s that? Eglinton Crosstown progress?
In honour of the Eglinton Crosstown’s quinceañera, Balshin hired a mariachi band to play at Cedarvale station.
“To another 15 years of construction,” he says, blowing out a birthday candle in an Instagram Reel posted yesterday. The Eglinton Crosstown was originally set to open in 2020, but has been pushed back by years of delays.
“I can’t wait for my great-grandchildren to see the LRT!” says one of the comments on Balshin’s video. For the sake of its projected peak hourly ridership of 5,500 people, we hope it doesn’t take that long. But a positive attitude seems like the right mentality in this situation.
Related: The Finch LRT just might beat the Eglinton Crosstown to the finish line
Carly Lewis is a journalist whose work has appeared in the New York Times and the New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair, Wired, Interview Magazine, Pitchfork, Elle, and Maclean’s, where she is a contributing editor. Her work has been recognized by the National Magazine Awards and the Digital Publishing Awards. She reports on city life, culture—including what people do online—politics, art and crime. She received the Dave Greber Freelance Writers Award for “The Murder of Ashley Wadsworth,” an investigative feature about a Canadian teenager who was killed by a man she met on social media, published by Maclean’s.
