Metrolinx CEO Phil Verster says he still cannot provide a reliable opening date for the Eglinton Crosstown LRT as new problems are being discovered weekly.
“I had every intention to predict an opening date or series or range of possible opening dates for the Eglinton Crosstown with you today,” Verster told reporters. “But I decided against doing so, based on the fact that CTS is finding and rectifying issues on a week by week basis and that this affects the opening date significantly.”
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However Verster said Metrolinx has “a really good idea” of when the line will open. He said there is also a “much better schedule” now and the provincial transit agency will be providing updates on the project every two months going forward.
The update comes as Metrolinx provides a detailed technical assessment of where the project stands. It was supposed to be substantially complete a year ago, but the consortium building the line missed the deadline. The project has been without a new target date for completion since.
The total budget for the project stands at around $12.56 billion now.
The CEO of Metrolinx will provide a detailed briefing on the status of the much-delayed Eglinton Crosstown LRT this afternoon, along with possible completion dates.
Phil Verster is set to speak at a 1 p.m. briefing at Metrolinx headquarters downtown at 1 p.m.
Work on the Crosstown was set to be substantially complete a year ago, but Metrolinx said then that they would not meet the targetand no new date has been given since.
Construction began on the line in the summer of 2011 and it was originally supposed to open in 2020.
However it has been plagued by delays, including the COVID-19 pandemic, which resulted in labour and supply chain problems. There has also been litigation between Metrolinx and Crosslinx Transit Solutions, the consortium of construction groups hired to carry out the work.
Crosslinx is a consortium made up of four large construction companies – ACS-Dragados, Aecon, EllisDon and SNC-Lavalin.
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Verster said last year that Metrolinx was doing everything it could to hold the consortium accountable.
He said in August that he would provide a tentative opening date for the line by the end of the summer.
The news conference will be live streamed on CP24.com and the CP24 App at 1 p.m.
