Progress made on Eglinton Crosstown LRT but timeframe still uncertain: Metrolinx CEO

The head of Metrolinx says there is progress being made on the 12-year Eglinton Crosstown LRT construction project, but there still isn’t a firm, public timeframe for opening yet.

During an unrelated news conference at Scarborough’s Agincourt GO Transit station on Wednesday, CityNews asked for an update on the project after provincial officials admitted in April following a large period of little to no updates being released that there were nearly 260 deficiencies that needed to be addressed.

“[Crosslinx Transit Solutions] made a lot of progress, significant progress to rectify and improve the schedule. I’ve been pleased with it. The schedule is in a better condition. However, there’s still a lot of challenges,” Phil Verster, Metrolinx’s president and CEO, said in response.

Verster and officials said for months they had trouble obtaining a “credible schedule” from Crosslinx, the private-sector consortium building the 19-kilometre, 25-stop LRT line. The schedule was supposed to lay out dates for correcting deficiencies, training of crews, showing who is responsible for what and outlining the required resources.

He went on to say Metrolinx officials are in the process of arranging a technical update in order to provide “significantly more details about Eglinton, everything on the Eglinton Crosstown schedule.” It’s not clear when exactly that update will be held, but a detailed breakdown on the issues and the status of the project has been repeatedly asked for by reporters.

“We really want to share this with the public and with the media,” he said, adding the potential timeframe will be shared during the update.

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Ontario Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria, who replaced Caroline Mulroney during a cabinet shuffle on Sept. 4, said he’s still getting briefed on the issues surrounding the Eglinton Crosstown but “appreciate(s) that there’s a frustration” surrounding the project.

“I’ve asked Phil to provide updates on the Eglinton Crosstown to the public with respect to many of the questions and to ensure that we continue building that safe and reliable project,” he said when asked about the project.

In May, Verster said the project wouldn’t open until sometime in 2024. Crosslinx filed a notice of application with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice over a lack of an operating agreement between Metrolinx and the TTC.

CityNews contacted Crosslinx on Wednesday to ask for an update on the legal action, but a spokesperson wasn’t immediately available. This story will be updated should a response be sent.

Crosslinx previously took legal action against Metrolinx and the province in 2020, over alleged delays and cost overruns related to COVID-19. The judge sided with the construction companies and the two sides negotiated a new agreement.

Construction on the Eglinton Crosstown LRT project began in 2011 under the previous provincial Liberal government.

One of the latest visible hiccups came in April when a CityNews crew visited Sloane station, located between the Don Valley Parkway and Victoria Park Avenue, and saw a jackhammer being used to dig up and repair “an uneven layer of concrete” on the platform – work that took several weeks to complete.

It turned out that it was just one of hundreds of deficiencies. The biggest one involved sections of track, which was finished in 2021. Verster previously said certain parts were built “literally millimetres out of specification” and risked derailment. However, light rail vehicles have been spotted on parts of the corridor in recent weeks after what appeared to be a lull in testing.