[nfitz]

Trains every 90 seconds is the plan for the Ontario Line.

Ultimate perhaps. I can't see it in my lifetime.

 

[Monarch Butterfly]

Now some of the "fine print"....

Before the project can be formally transferred over, it must reach “substantial completion,” which will require the approval of an independent certifier.​

From https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/eglinton-crosstown-lrt-train-operations-have-been-transferred-to-ttc-metrolinx-interim-ceo-says/article_88de77ab-54a4-4ede-9467-2967c85a6ddb.html

The Eglinton Crosstown LRT is one step closer to opening.

Train operations for the Eglinton Crosstown LRT have been transferred over to the TTC, Metrolinx’s interim CEO Michael Lindsay and Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria confirmed Tuesday.

“Major milestones have been met,” Lindsay said at a news conference to announce the groundbreaking of the East Harbour Transit Hub. “As of today or tomorrow, movement of trains on the line is actually governed by the TTC, as it will be when the line is in revenue service.”

This doesn’t mean that the project has officially been handed over, TTC spokesperson Stuart Green explained. In order for that to happen, the project has to reach “substantial completion,” which requires the approval of an independent certifier, Green added.

“The good news, though, is that this week, train operations were transferred into our Transit Control Centre from a temporary control centre as testing, training and construction continue,” Green said.

Operator and driver training has been completed, Lindsay confirmed, adding that “we are relentlessly stress-testing both (the) system and vehicles.”

“We’re doing the things for this line that, frankly, were not done for projects like the Ottawa LRT,” he added.

The $2.1-billion Ottawa LRT, much like the Eglinton line, was plagued with delays and flaws. Problems with the project included a massive sinkhole during construction, and after the line opened in 2019, repeated derailments and even service shutdowns caused by freezing rain. ACS Infrastructure Canada and EllisDon were part of both the Ottawa and Eglinton LRT construction consortiums.

With 25 stops stretching from Mount Dennis in the west to Kennedy in the east, the 19-kilometre Eglinton Crosstown LRT was initially meant to be ready by 2020.

A pandemic and several lawsuits, as well as software glitches, have hampered the line’s opening, even after the Star received an exclusive tour of the LRT in May 2023. The completion of the LRT had been promised, then pushed back, for three years, until the transit agency declined to give a projected opening in 2023, instead announcing it would give the public three-months’ advance notice instead.

September opening for the Crosstown​

Lindsay said “if everything goes according to plan” with the testing, the LRT is expected to open for a September or fall opening, with the caveat that “we cannot, cannot open that system if it is not going to perform.”

The province will be the one to decide an opening date, the TTC’s Green added, “when we are confident the line is ready for safe and reliable operations.”

Correction – June 17, 2025​

This article was updated from a previous version that mistakenly said the Eglinton LRT had officially been handed over to the TTC. In fact, train operations for the transit line have been transferred to the TTC.

For now, it is black smoke from the Metrolinx boardroom

 

[kaptrice]

I had to use the waybackmachine to look up the factsheet as the website is now rerouting elsewhere.

View attachment 659559

Let's say it's 40 minutes end to end, this will give an average speed of 28.5km/h for the entire line. This means that one train will take 1 hour 20 minutes to complete one roundtrip journey. Having all 28 trains running at the same time, it will give an hourly throughput at any given station of 21 trains yielding a frequency of 2 minutes 51 seconds. Round it up to 3 minutes to account for other factors. Pretty respectable if you think about it.

Max capacity at opening day of roughly 8,000 pphpd!

Please feel free to correct my math if there are any errors!

The stated capacity at the planned service level in the AM peak is in fact only 75% of this, a little under 6000.

 

[TOtramz]

So after the 14 day trial they can begin revenue demonstration? The dates do not line up for a June 22 start of demonstration, which means there won’t be 2 full TTC boards.

Unless I’m very mistaken

 

[Steve X]

At 11pm this past evening, there was not a single train in sight. There was a maintenance pickup near the DVP ramp intersection what ever they are doing. The bike lane got more used than the tracks. Definitely not doing all day service trials yet.

 

[ThenWhat]

The stated capacity at the planned service level in the AM peak is in fact only 75% of this, a little under 6000.

My best guess based on the discussion and numbers is the frequency of 10 to 12 trains an hour. That's if all trains run end to end. If they start short turning at Laird (skipping the eastern part) then it will be fewer than 10 trains an hour in the above ground section.

I may be wrong of course. We will need some enterprising observers to sit by the tracks and count the trains. Or just trust the official figures as they come out.

 

[dodgeram]

I’m waiting with bated breath for the world’s most expensive, delayed, over-glorified streetcar to open

 

[nfitz]

Let's say it's 40 minutes end to end, this will give an average speed of 28.5km/h for the entire line. This means that one train will take 1 hour 20 minutes to complete one roundtrip journey. Having all 28 trains running at the same time, it will give an hourly throughput at any given station of 21 trains yielding a frequency of 2 minutes 51 seconds. Round it up to 3 minutes to account for other factors. Pretty respectable if you think about it.

Max capacity at opening day of roughly 8,000 pphpd!

Please feel free to correct my math if there are any errors!

Assuming that every 3 minutes is correct - that's 20 trains an hour. I was using 500 peak capacity for a 3-car train. So about 333 for a 2-car train. That's closer to about 6,670 pphpd. Crush capacity would be higher, but then the dwell times increase, and they can't do as quickly end to end.

The stated capacity at the planned service level in the AM peak is in fact only 75% of this, a little under 6000.

Stated where?

Though based on all our assumptions about capacity and travel time, that gives 18 trains an hour. One every 3 minutes 20 seconds.

At 11pm this past evening, there was not a single train in sight.

That sounds like normal TTC service to me!

 

[JBR]

Couldn’t snag a picture but man the glass at the outdoor stations looks like hell! They are trying to take the protective coatings off but it’s obviously been baked on by the sun siting there for how many years…will try to get a pic next time I’m in the area.

 

[Amare]

Couldn’t snag a picture but man the glass at the outdoor stations looks like hell! They are trying to take the protective coatings off but it’s obviously been baked on by the sun siting there for how many years…will try to get a pic next time I’m in the area.

Dont worry at least it's going to add a certain "je ne sais quoi" to the overall decor of the line, because those shelters are already functionally useless and offer virtually no protection from the elements.

 

[TRONto]

They're going to announce that they're changing the name of East Harbour Station to Don Valley Station.

Having 2 stations on the Ontario line called Don Valley gives us a 'Roughriders vs Roughriders' situation

 

[flonicky]

Don't give them ideas or we'll end up with names like "OrangeBlack Station" and "GreenPink Station".

 

[A 6264]

Having 2 stations on the Ontario line called Don Valley gives us a 'Roughriders vs Roughriders' situation

There is a simple fix. The Don Valley station isn't actually at or in its namesake valley, so they should change its name again, and we could have 2 stations: Don Valley (was East Harbour), and Not Don Valley.

 

[nfitz]

The Don Valley station isn't actually at or in its namesake valley ...

The station is at the Science Centre (literally there's an exit in the parking lot. Much of the Science Centre is in the Don Valley.

Ergo Don Valley station is at or near the Don Valley.

 

[Reecemartin]

I had to use the waybackmachine to look up the factsheet as the website is now rerouting elsewhere.

View attachment 659559

Let's say it's 40 minutes end to end, this will give an average speed of 28.5km/h for the entire line. This means that one train will take 1 hour 20 minutes to complete one roundtrip journey. Having all 28 trains running at the same time, it will give an hourly throughput at any given station of 21 trains yielding a frequency of 2 minutes 51 seconds. Round it up to 3 minutes to account for other factors. Pretty respectable if you think about it.

Max capacity at opening day of roughly 8,000 pphpd!

Please feel free to correct my math if there are any errors!

The table is kind of confusing (these are not end to end times, or parts of an end to end trip) but the end to end journey in test takes less than an hour but quite a bit more than 40 minutes - most of the slowdown is unsurprisingly because of slow surface ops. Call it ~50 mins.