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Say what you will about Ontario’s Liberal government: if it follows through on its infrastructure commitments, the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area’s (GTHA) public transit system will in a decade’s time be a reasonable approximation of what any comparable city would have demanded two decades ago. That’s a compliment.

On Wednesday, the Metrolinx board heard presentations on major elements of this slow-brewing revolution.

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By 2024-ish, the Lakeshore East and West, Unionville, Barrie and Kitchener (partially) GO train lines will be electrified. That means lower operating costs, quieter trains, faster trips and vastly more of them.

Staff presented four preliminary options to overlay Mayor John Tory’s SmartTrack on those lines: more stations, and even higher frequencies — potentially every five minutes at rush hour — within the city. All options would provide regional express rail (RER) at least to Liberty Village, Gerrard and Carlaw, and the First Gulf development at the eastern foot of the Don Valley.