Doug Ford feels we should be more positive about the Eglinton Crosstown LRT
An inquiry isn’t necessary, according to the premier. Just be happy the line is about to launch!
If you thought the “post a photo from 2016” trend brought you way back, try remembering where you were when former Toronto mayor Rob Ford announced that the Eglinton Crosstown LRT was being called off. (David Miller, our previous mayor, had revealed the concept three years prior.) That was in 2010! To put it in perspective, this was the year that Instagram launched, indie sleaze was still very real, only we did not call it that, and the TIFF Bell Lightbox opened.
The project was later announced to be back on, and finally, this weekend, after 15 years of anticipation, the long-promised transit line is set to carry passengers as of February 8. It’ll start out with a reduced capacity, but on launch day, rides will be free.
Related: A timeline of every single Eglinton Crosstown disaster, from 2010 until today
Leading up to the announcement that this Sunday is the day we’ve all been waiting for, things seemed uncertain. First it was reported that the line would launch, then TTC CEO Mandeep Lali said actually no it wouldn’t, and then said, in the latest update, that it will.
At a track-side ceremony today, Premier Doug Ford and Mayor Olivia Chow joined transit officials to unveil a plaque commemorating the launch, which was first announced in December 2010 by Ford’s brother.
Asked by reporters whether the years of delays merited a public inquiry, Ford said it would be a waste of time to continue talking about this. “No, we aren’t going to do that. We’re going to move on and continue building the subways. We all know the mistakes and we’ve acknowledged them, and we’ve learned.”
The Eglinton Crosstown will launch six years behind schedule and significantly over budget.
Per the Toronto Star, Ford emphasized that we should celebrate the launch and not dwell on how long it took or what it cost.
“...There’s been bumps in the road,” Ford said. “But let’s look at the glass as half full. Buddy, you’ve got to be a little more positive.”
Let’s hope those bumps stay in the past, just like 2010’s original Instagram filters.
Related: Toronto drivers blocked streetcar tracks over 300 times in just 11 days this winter
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.
