TORONTO TRANSIT COMMISSION
REPORT NO.
MEETING DATE: November 14, 2007
SUBJECT: PROJECT APPROVAL – TRANSIT CITY LIGHT RAIL PLAN
(FIRST PRIORITIES)
RECOMMENDATIONS
It is recommended that the Commission:
1) Approve interim funds of $13 million to allow engineering, design, and associated work to begin on the Sheppard East, Etobicoke-Finch West, and Eglinton-Crosstown LRT lines and on the required maintenance & storage (M&S) facilities, and for the supply of special trackwork for the Park Lawn/Lake Shore Loop and the design of a new LRT loop at Kipling/Lake Shore, both of which are part of the Waterfront West LRT line;
2) Forward this report to Toronto’s Budget Committee for review in connection with the 2008-2012 Capital Program submission, noting that these costs, which are currently below the line in the TTC 2008-2012 Capital Program, will require an additional $13 million in budgetary and project financing approval. Funds to a maximum of $400,000 will be held in TTC accounts pending City Council approval.
3) Request the City of Toronto to provide interim funding for these measures until such time as the Province of Ontario and the GTTA allocate sufficient funds, noting that delays in making these commitments and initiating project work will result in delays to the construction start dates noted in the report.
4) Request the Province of Ontario and the Greater Toronto Transportation Authority to provide the funding for this work on the Transit City plan, consistent with the Province of Ontario’s MoveOntario 2020 funding program; and
5) Subject to the confirmation of funding from the City of Toronto, approve:
i) the hiring of TTC staff for the implementation of the above Transit City Project work as shown on Exhibit 2, noting that recruitment will start immediately;
ii) approve the issuance of a Purchase Order, in the total interim amount of $750,000 [included in 1 above], to the City of Toronto – Transportation Services, for the City’s costs associated with the design and construction support of the Transit City LRT lines;
6) Forward this report to the City of Toronto Planning and Transportation Services.
FUNDING
There are no funds currently approved for design, construction, additional staff resources, and/or other activities related to the implementation of the Transit City Light Rail Plan. Full project implementation costs are included below the line in the 2008-2012 TTC Capital Program.
Funding for this plan was announced by the Province of Ontario on June 15, 2007, under the MoveOntario 2020 program. This report requests the Greater Toronto Transportation Authority (GTTA) to provide the required funding consistent with that program. Pending the provision of such funding or confirmation of funding approval from the City, a maximum of $400,000 will need to be held in TTC accounts.
Funds, in the amount of $3.5 million, for the environmental assessments of the Transit City LRT lines are included in the TTC 2007-2011 Capital Program, under Project 3.9 Environmental Assessment Studies for a BRT/LRT Network, Category Improvement, as set out in pages 992e1-992e2, and approved by City Council on March 7, 2007. Additional funds to a total of $7.1 million for Transit City environmental assessments, have been included in the 2008-2012 TTC Capital Program.
BACKGROUND
At its meeting of June 13, 2007, the Commission approved a report entitled, Transit City Light Rail Plan – Implementation Work Plan, which outlined the activities being undertaken to implement the Transit City Light Rail Plan. That report presented a work plan to allow for the start of construction on at least one of the light rail lines by 2010.
On June 15, 2007, the Province of Ontario announced the MoveOntario 2020 funding program for the implementation of 52 rapid transit initiatives in the GTHA over the next twelve years. MoveOntario 2020 includes funding for all of the light rail lines in the Transit City Light Rail Plan.
Following the release of MoveOntario 2020, TTC staff were directed to revisit their original implementation work plan to identify ways of accelerating the plan to more closely match the twelve-year time frame contained in the Provincial plan, including the feasibility of starting construction on one of the light rail lines as early as 2008.
At its meeting of July 11, 2007, the Commission approved a report entitled, Transit City Light Rail Plan – Implementation Work Plan Update, which revised the previously-reported work plan to accommodate the start of construction of new Transit City lines by 2008 and match the Province’s twelve-year timetable. It also approved the recommendations contained within the report, which included a commitment by staff to report back on implementation plans for specific lines.
This report identifies the action required to initiate the activities included in the Transit City Light Rail Plan – Implementation Work Plan Update and outlines the 2008 funding requirements necessary in order to realize those timelines.
DISCUSSION
The staff report entitled, Transit City Light Rail Plan – Evaluation and Ranking of Routes, which is also on the agenda of the November 14, 2007 Commission meeting, assessed all seven of the light rail lines which comprise the Transit City plan, and confirmed the earlier staff conclusion that the Sheppard East, Etobicoke-Finch West, and Eglinton-Crosstown LRT lines are good choices for the start of implementation of the Transit City plan.
TTC staff are committed to take every possible measure to ensure that the Transit City plan is implemented as quickly as possible, and are presently working aggressively to that end.
Funding has already been approved for doing environmental assessments (EA) of the Transit City lines, and staff are readying these EA’s to start, using the newly-approved Municipal Class EA process for transit projects. A request for proposal (RFP) was issued on October 17, 2007 for consultant assignments to assist the TTC with environmental assessments (EA) and design services on Transit City projects. The award of the EA and design services contract is planned for January 2008.
The additional Transit City implementation activities which can proceed upon approval of this report by the Commission are:
· Sheppard East LRT: engineering and design work in 2007 for a construction start early in 2009
· Etobicoke-Finch West LRT: engineering and design work in 2008 for a construction start late in 2009
· Eglinton-Crosstown LRT: engineering and design work in 2008 for a construction start in 2010
· Waterfront West LRT: engineering and design of a new loop at Kipling Avenue/Lake Shore Boulevard, and purchase of special trackwork for a new loop at Park Lawn Road/Lake Shore Boulevard for a construction start in 2009, and
· Maintenance and Storage Facilities: engineering and design work in 2008 for a construction start in 2010.
Sheppard East LRT: Work is about to begin on a Municipal Class Environmental Assessment for the Sheppard East LRT. Under the Class EA, design work can begin as soon as practical, concurrent with the EA process. The TTC and the City of Toronto have entered into an inter-agency agreement for detailed design, engineering, and construction support for the Sheppard East LRT line. The agreement was developed with a goal of starting construction on the line in 2009.
Etobicoke-Finch West LRT: TTC staff are planning to start an EA on this line early in 2008. TTC staff have also been meeting with Infrastructure Ontario and the GTTA on the screening process and the analysis of Finch West LRT for an alternate financing program (AFP)/design build delivery model.
Eglinton-Crosstown LRT: TTC staff are working to allow a 2008 start on an EA for this line. The Eglinton-Crosstown line introduces the added complexity of a significant section of tunnelled construction. Additionally, this is the longest of the Transit City routes, traversing all six of the former local municipalities.
Waterfront West LRT: The environmental assessment of this line is already underway, as directed by City Council. A relatively easily achievable improvement on this line is the introduction of a new loop at Park Lawn Road and Lake Shore Boulevard, in order to bring a higher level of service to the rapidly- and densely-developing Humber Bay Shores area. The design of the Park Lawn Loop will be completed in 2007. The new loop will require special trackwork (as is used in all loops and intersections), and this custom-ordered work requires a considerable lead time. In order to allow a 2009 construction start, the TTC must order this trackwork now. A separate report, which is also on the November 14, 2007 Commission meeting agenda, describes the status of this loop initiative in greater detail.
TTC staff are also planning to start engineering and design work in 2008 on relocating the existing Kipling/Lake Shore loop. This work was initiated in response to a private development proposal adjacent to the existing loop. The developer wants to purchase the property on which the current loop is located, in order to be able to build a larger and more-attractive mixed-use development. This proposal is consistent with the Toronto Official Plan objective of locating new, dense development on major arterial roads which are served by high-capacity transit services. The development would be compatible with, and beneficial to the Waterfront West LRT line, so TTC staff are acting to facilitate this positive city-building proposal.
Maintenance and Storage Facilities: All transit services – buses, subways, or LRV’s – require maintenance and storage facilities in order to ensure safe and reliable operation. Work is underway presently to determine the optimal arrangement for the required maintenance facilities to support the Transit City LRT network. The Transit City lines which will be the first to undergo environmental assessments -- Sheppard East, Etobicoke-Finch West, and Eglinton-Crosstown -- may have to initially operate independent of the existing TTC streetcar network and each other, possibly based out of interim storage facilities. The Maintenance Facility Master Plan is studying the various options for permanent facilities and, when completed, will allow start of engineering and design work.
Implementation plans for the Scarborough-Malvern LRT, Jane Street LRT, and Don Mills LRT will be addressed in subsequent reports to the Commission.
JUSTIFICATION
In order to meet the Province of Ontario’s MoveOntario 2020 timeline commitments for the full build-out of the Transit City Light Rail Plan in twelve years, and the TTC’s and City’s objective to begin construction on at least one LRT line in 2008, engineering and design work must begin immediately.
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November 2, 2007
50/11-71-70/80
1115228
Attachments: Exhibits 1 and 2
EXHIBIT 1
PROJECT APPROVAL - TRANSIT CITY LIGHT RAIL PLAN
ESTIMATED COST COMMITMENTS FOR TRANSIT CITY
PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION ACTIVITIES
$million
Sheppard East LRT (Incl. $ 500K for City staff)
4.7
Etobicoke-Finch West LRT (Incl. $ 125K for City staff)
2.0
Eglinton-Crosstown LRT (Incl. $ 125K for City staff)
2.7
Waterfront West LRT: Park Lawn Loop
1.0
Waterfront West LRT: Kipling Loop
0.2
Maintenance and Storage Facilities
2.4
13.0