East Bayfront LRT

East Bayfront LRT is a proposed streetcar line that would run along Queens Quay East from Bay Street to Parliament Street, connecting Union station to the East Bayfront area of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It would complement the existing 509 Harbourfront service which connects Union Station to Queens Quay west of Bay Street.

East Bayfront LRT
Overview
Type	Streetcar
System	Toronto streetcar system
Status	Proposed
Locale	Toronto, Ontario
Termini	Union station Parliament Street
Operation
Operator(s)	Toronto Transit Commission
Technical
Line length	1.7 kilometres (1.1 mi)[1]
Track gauge	4 ft 10 ^7⁄8 in (1,495 mm) - TTC gauge
Route map Union Queens Quay 509/510 to Spadina Freeland Lower Jarvis Lower Sherbourne Small Possible future expansion: Cherry Street to King Street Queens Quay Keating Channel Commissioners Street Cherry Street to Ship Channel Munitions New Don River mouth Don Roadway Saulter Broadview Logan Carlaw Larchmount Leslie Barns Leslie To Queen Street

Route

Phase one of the line would start in the underground loop at Union Station, and proceed underground to Queens Quay. The line would then turn east and emerge from the tunnel 250 metres east of Yonge Street at Freeland Street. Both the eastbound and westbound tracks would be in a dedicated right of way along the south side of Queens Quay so as to reduce the need for rail vehicles to stop for road traffic, as there are fewer street intersections on the south side of Queens Quay than on its north side. The line would end in a temporary loop at Small Street, just west of Parliament Street.[2][3]

When multiple additional routes arriving at Union Station were under consideration, the city considered replacing the streetcar track in the 400-metre (1,300 ft) tunnel between Union Station and Queen's Quay with a driverless people-mover system, and changing the streetcar routing so it only ran along Queen's Quay.[4] On April 19, 2019, staff recommended routing the streetcar service to Union Station and expanding the platform section under Bay Street. The recommended expansion would add four platforms, with cross-over tracks, so a vehicle waiting at one platform would not block the platforms for other routes.

Cost

In 2015, the estimated cost to build the East Bayfront LRT from Union Station to Small Street was $520 million. The breakdown is as follows:[1][5]

• Building a new eastbound passenger platform at Union Station: $112 million
• Extension of Bay Street tunnel to Freeland Street: $156 million
• Surface infrastructure: $66 million
• Rolling stock: $36 million
• Queens Quay revitalization: $150 million

By June 2019, the estimated cost of the line grew to $700 million.[6]

Challenges

The underground streetcar loop at Union Station does not have the capacity to accommodate the extra light rail vehicles needed to service the new line. Thus, a new eastbound platform must be added.[7]

A sewer at Queens Quay and Bay Street will make it difficult to build an eastern portal to bring the tracks to the surface.[7]

One of the issues which has delayed progress of constructing the line is the proposed redevelopment of the waterfront properties between Jarvis Street and Parliament Street, which lie south of Queens Quay. The plans called for two access streets, which would cross the proposed light rail line at signalized intersections. However, the developer has designed a third street into the plan, likely due to the expected traffic volumes from the development, which would require an additional signalized intersection with the light rail line. Some councillors have stated this would negatively affect service along the proposed route, possibly adding as much as an extra three minutes travel to a line that would only require ten minutes to traverse.

Demand

George Brown College's campus in the East Bayfront has opened and there are development plans for several apartment and condominium complexes on Queens Quay East and, in future years, in the West Don Lands. Thus, there will be roughly 20,000 residential units in the area, plus 8,000 jobs and 3,500 students.[7]

According to transit advocate Steve Munro, developers in the area, particularly for commercial properties, are concerned that without good transit, a better connection to the core area than the Sherbourne and Bay buses, developments are not marketable.[8]

A project called the Waterfront Transit Reset was set up to study possible streetcar system upgrades along the waterfront from Long Branch to Leslie Street. That study included the East Bayfront. A WTR report dated November 13, 2017, stated that:

While three bus routes currently serve the area, adding higher-quality, higher-capacity streetcar service is an urgent priority for the TTC, the City, and Waterfront Toronto. Projected peak demand in 2041 on this section is approximately 2400 people per hour, and serving this very high level of demand requires high-quality streetcar service in a dedicated right of way.[9]

In January 2019, the Waterfront BIA (a neighbourhood business group) estimates a $1.2 billion loss of productivity and a $20 billion loss of federal, provincial and local tax revenue if the opening of the East Bayfront LRT were delayed from 2025 to 2045. The BIA hopes that the line will open by 2025 which according to the BIA would stimulate commercial and residential development providing 135,000 new jobs and housing 67,000 residents along the proposed line.[10]

Bus alternative

A bus service running in the former streetcar's dedicated right of way has been considered as an alternate service. The challenge for such a service to the eastern waterfront is the connection at Union Station for transferring passengers. There is limited sidewalk space for both pedestrians and transit stops along Bay Street. Buses would have to compete with other traffic through the Bay Street underpass and the mixed traffic south to Queens Quay.[11]

History

On April 5, 2006, the first Public Forum for the Environmental Assessment for the Eastern Waterfront transit proposals was held.[12]

In February 2012, Emily Jackson of the Toronto Star reported that budget over-runs on the Queens Quay West line had not left enough funds to start the Queens Quay East line.[11][13]

On August 29, 2014, The Globe and Mail reported that senior City of Toronto officials had gone over the head of City Council, and made an appeal for funding for the line right to more senior levels of government.[14][15] TTC General Manager Andy Byford and City Manager Joe Pennachetti had made their proposal to their opposite numbers in the Provincial bureaucracy. According to The Globe and Mail, they had not yet approached provincial and federal politicians.

In September 2015, the TTC Budget Committee passed the following motion regarding the Capital Budget:

Request TTC staff, working with the City of Toronto manager, and Waterfront Toronto, to prioritize the East Bayfront LRT project, and to report back to the TTC's Budget Committee on how to expedite the work, starting with the planning and engineering work.[8]

In May 2016, condominium developers expressed concern about a lack of activity on the East Bayfront LRT project. Sam Crignano, president of Cityzen, a developer with three projects along the eastern waterfront, said that having two or three bus lines in the area won't be enough to handle the future influx of new residents and employees. Niall Haggart, executive vice-president of the Daniels Corp., urged action on the LRT project. Daniels has started a $700-million mixed-use development which will add about 7,300 people to the area by day and 2,500 at night. The Toronto Star reported that the project had been stalled because of a lack of funding and piecemeal transportation planning.[16]

A report about the Waterfront Transit Reset project dated November 13, 2017, stated that: "The City, Waterfront Toronto, and the TTC would carry out the approved plans for a new streetcar line along Queens Quay East [to Parliament Street] in the East Bayfront area."[9]

Since the provincial election of June 2018, when there was a change in government, the province has made no promise to fund the Easy Bayfront LRT. In January 2019, the provincial Ministry of Transportation said it had not received a formal request for funding from the City; thus, the province remains uncommitted.[10]

In June 2019, Sidewalk Labs offered $100 million in "credit support" to build a portion of the East Bayfront LRT between Cherry Street and Broadview Avenue, which would pass through its proposed development in Toronto's Portland area. The estimated cost of that portion of the line was $406 million and would be in addition to the $700 million estimated cost to build the line from Union Station to Small Street.[6]

On June 17, 2020, the TTC Board approved spending $15,000,000 over three years on design work for the expansion of streetcar platforms at Union and Queens Quay stations as well for a new tunnel and portal for the East Bayfront line. The TTC is also considering connecting the line to Distillery Loop.[17]

Future expansion

At the eastern end of the East Bayfront line, just east of Parliament Street, there would be a temporary streetcar loop. In 2012, the intent was to replace this loop with an easterly extension along Commissioners Street into the Port Lands area and north along Cherry Street into the Lower Don Lands.[2] Thus, there would eventually be a connection between the East Bayfront line and the Cherry Street streetcar line.[7] To reach Commissioners Street, a new Cherry Street would be built roughly in line with the existing Cherry Street north of Lake Shore Boulevard to allow streetcars to cross the Keating Channel on a new bridge and run south via New Cherry Street to the Ship Channel.[3]

In a November 13, 2017, report about the Waterfront Transit Reset project, the City, Waterfront Toronto, and the TTC reported they would continue planning for new streetcar lines in the Portlands area, east of Parliament Street and south of Lake Shore Boulevard. However, east of Leslie Street, projected demand (150 people per hour in 2041) is too low to justify streetcar service. The report made no mention of connecting the East Bayfront line to the Cherry Street streetcar line.[9]

See also

• Waterfront West LRT
• Toronto streetcar system

References

1. Simcoe, Luke (2015-10-28). "Toronto hits the 'reset' button on waterfront transit planning". Metro News. Retrieved 2015-10-31.
2. Mackenzie, Robert (2010-04-10). "Queens Quay Transit Project: Will Help Renew Toronto's Waterfront". Transit Toronto. Transit is a key component — or quay component — of the plan. Two lanes of streetcar tracks will separate the pedestrian and cycling area from the roadway. Since these tracks will line the southern side of the traffic portion of Queens Quay, streetcars will cross fewer side streets and stop only at intersections, with signals prioritizing streetcars over other vehicles. And streetcars will also start to serve eastern harbour — the area between Bay and Parliament Streets.
3. Munro, Steve (March 2, 2015). "TTC 2015-2024 Capital Budget: System Expansion Projects". Retrieved 2015-11-06.
4. "Waterfront Transit Network - Union Station-Queens Quay link and east Bayfront LRT" (PDF). City of Toronto. 2019-04-19. Retrieved 2019-04-19. Based on the analysis described in this attachment, the recommended preferred option is the Streetcar (Loop Expansion) Option.
5. Munro, Steve (2015-10-14). "A "Reset" For Waterfront Transit Plans?". Retrieved 2015-11-01.
6. Spurr, Ben (June 24, 2019). "Sidewalk Labs says it won't pay upfront costs for new LRT critical to 'smart city' waterfront development". Toronto Star. Retrieved June 24, 2019.
7. Morrow, Adrian (2012-05-25). "A tiny perfect streetcar line is being laid along Cherry Street". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2012-07-19.
8. Munro, Steve (2015-09-17). "TTC Budget 2016: Confused Priorities Make For A Confusing Budget (Part I)". Retrieved 2015-09-17.
9. "Waterfront Transit Update" (PDF). Toronto Transit Commission. 2017-11-13. Retrieved 2017-11-13.
10. Spurr, Ben (2019-01-30). "Delaying Waterfront LRT would cost billions in lost tax revenue, productivity: BIA report". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2019-01-30.
11. Munro, Steve (2013-02-08). "Waterfront East Update: February 2013 (Updated)". Steve Munro. Archived from the original on 2015-03-04. When a transit line to the eastern waterfront was first proposed, the cost estimate was considerably lower than today. Waterfront Toronto has only $90-million left in the account for this project because some of the originally intended funds have been redirected to the Queens Quay West project now underway.
12. Munro, Steve (2006-04-06). "East Waterfront Update". Retrieved 2015-11-01.
13. Jackson, Emily (2012-02-14). "Toronto LRT transit plan stalling on Queens Quay East". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on 2013-03-22. But the LRT project meant to connect Union Station with the burgeoning lakefront community to its east seems to have gone off the rails just a year and a half after the government gave it a stamp of approval.
14. Moore, Oliver; Hains, David (2014-08-29). "Toronto bureaucrats bypass politicians to make waterfront transit pitch". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on 2014-08-29. Retrieved 2014-08-29. Two of Toronto's top bureaucrats are pushing for a new light-rail line right across the city's waterfront, taking to higher levels of government their pitch for a route expected to cost hundreds of millions.
15. Sweet, Sarah (2014-08-29). "Bureaucrats Take the Fight for Waterfront LRT Straight to Higher Levels of Government". Torontoist. Archived from the original on 2014-08-29. The route they're championing would involve the East Bayfront LRT—mentioned in the last provincial budget but by no means a done deal—and the Waterfront West LRT, part of former mayor David Miller's now-defunct Transit City plan. It would create an east-west transit option that could relieve congestion on the Gardiner Expressway and Lake Shore Boulevard and provide an easier way for those in Liberty Village to get downtown.
16. Spurr, Ben (2016-05-23). "Amid development boom, Queens Quay East LRT running late". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2016-05-23.
17. "Waterfront East LRT, Union Station and Queens Quay Link" (PDF). Toronto Transit Commission. June 17, 2020. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 20, 2020.