Excavation starts on four west-end stations for Eglinton Crosstown extension

What happened

• Excavation work has started on four underground station boxes along Eglinton Avenue West at Martin Grove Road, Kipling Avenue, Islington Avenue and Royal York Road.

By the numbers (from the release)

• Extension length: 9.2 kilometres westward, creating nearly 30 km of rapid transit along Eglinton when combined with the existing line.
• Jobs: the project is said to support about 4,600 construction jobs annually.
• Riders and access: the extension is described as connecting nearly 70,000 commuters; it will put 37,500 people and 23,600 jobs within walking distance of transit.
• Travel effects: up to 24 minutes saved on a trip from Yonge and Eglinton to Square One; 6.5 million fewer car trips per year when combined with the existing line.
• Funding: the federal government is contributing about $1.87 billion, and the province cites broader transit investments.
• Stations on the west extension: Jane, Scarlett, Royal York, Islington, Kipling, Martin Grove, and Renforth.

Why it matters

• The work advances a major transit expansion that the release frames as improving east–west connections across Toronto into Mississauga, adding interchanges with TTC, GO Transit, UP Express and MiWay services.
• The release notes additional construction milestones: completed sections of tunnel, progress on piers and bridge decks for an elevated guideway, and plans for a transit-oriented community near Martin Grove with nearly 685 new homes.

Next steps (from the release)

• Continued tunnelling and guideway construction and further station work along the 9.2 km route.