The biggest, most expensive public transit project in Toronto’s recent history could be built and operated without any involvement by the TTC.

Metrolinx is considering a public-private partnership to design, finance, build and even potentially operate and maintain the provincially funded $8.2 billion Eglinton-Scarborough Crosstown light rail line.

It’s not clear what adding a private operator to the Toronto transit equation would mean to riders, but transit officials say a complex agreement between the TTC and an alternate provider would have to be worked out to ensure commuters could move easily between two systems. Fare payments, transfer points and protocols for service disruptions and public complaints would all need to be considered.

If Metrolinx decides on a private partnership, it would be the biggest public transit project in the province to be administered by Infrastructure Ontario, the government agency that handles alternative financing and procurements (AFPs).

With $8.2 billion at stake, Metrolinx has an obligation to investigate all options, said CEO Bruce McCuaig. The decision on how the LRT is built and operated will be based on whether “it creates value for money in the end for the owner and the taxpayer,” he said.

McCuaig didn’t know when a decision would be made. But the timing can’t impede the project’s 2020 completion schedule or its budget.

Behind the scenes, the Star has learned that TTC officials have already signaled they aren’t interested in running an LRT that is financed, designed and built by the private sector. They have also suggested that Metrolinx is operating on “very aggressive” timelines and budgets.

Queen’s Park, however, is convinced of the merits of AFPs, also known as P3s.

It might be the best way to ensure there is $650 million left over from the Eglinton project for Mayor Rob Ford’s Sheppard subway extension, said Transportation Minister Bob Chiarelli.

“Over the last six years (Infrastructure Ontario) has done 52 projects worth about $21 billion. Virtually every one has been on-time, under-budget,” he said.

Although AFPs have been used mostly in the health care sector, Infrastructure Ontario is also helping to deliver an Ottawa light rail line, the Pearson air-rail link and Highway 407 East.

The Liberal government plans to involve Infrastructure Ontario in more “larger strategic procurements, because it does it better and less expensively than almost all other types of procurement,” said Chiarelli.

AFP opponents argue the arrangements can end up costing taxpayers more because the private sector expects to profit from the deal and charges a premium for accepting the project management and design risks. They also fear the loss of control over public assets.

But David Caplan, former Liberal minister of public infrastructure renewal, says the province has learned a lot about such partnerships since Highway 407 was built and users complained bitterly about the loss of government control over tolls and how they’re administered.

“It’s important to put strict controls on a lot of things and lock down the contract,” he said.

Ontario transportation officials point to Vancouver’s Canada Line light rail project as an example. It opened in 2009 ahead of schedule for the 2010 Olympics. The $2 billion project connecting the airport to downtown was built with a combination of public and private financing, and SNC Lavalin has a 35-year concession to operate it.

The 26-km Eglinton line will run underground from about Black Creek Dr. to Kennedy Station and continue seamlessly above-ground on the route of what is now the Scarborough RT.

Getting it done on time will require having most of Eglinton dug up at the same time, warned one TTC source, who also questioned whether the private sector would be as responsive as civic government to public complaints about construction and operations.

Giving the project to Infrastructure Ontario would have the advantage of taking politics out of the equation, because once the contracts are awarded governments are obliged to carry through on their commitments, said TTC chair Karen Stintz.

But she said Vancouver’s Canada Line doesn’t compare to the Crosstown.

“They had different challenges. They weren’t tunneling under the heart of the city for the duration of the entire line,” she said.

Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...

Fare integration would be a minor problem compared with some of the complications of having the Crosstown privately operated, Stintz said.

“The largest hurdle will be how the line crosses over with the TTC’s lines, the interchange points, Yonge and Eglinton and at Bathurst and Allen Rd. If for some reason there’s a problem on the Crosstown line, what is the TTC’s response? Will they be expected to provide shuttle bus service or other service to meet those passengers?” she wondered.

“Ultimately it’s a Metrolinx project and it’s their money… . Metrolinx is the planning agency for transit and transportation for the GTA, and if this is the way they want to proceed, really there’s not much more we can do about it,” she said.

Read more about: