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Though Infrastructure Ontario has not issued an official estimate of the cost of the contract, Metrolinx puts the total capital costs for both lines at $6.7-billion. The CDAO independently estimates the total cost of “built out” elements, such as stations and the maintenance facility, at $4-billion.

Mr. Thurston says the growing prevalence of bundling and public private partnerships has increased costs by adding layers of bureaucracy. “We’re paying for lawyers, accountants, and everything else. We’re not paying for more building,” he says.

IO issued a request for qualified proponents to undertake the massive Eglinton and Scarborough LRT projects in Jan. 2013, and hopes to issue a request for proposals by fall.

Though IO declined to say which companies have applied, Mr. Thurston’s sources say two consortia are in the running. One, mainly Canadian, includes Ellis Don, Aecon, and SNC-Lavalin. The other is more internationally-based, grouping Bechtel, Obrascón Huarte Lain and Kenaidan, partly owned by Obayashi Corp.

City Council’s recent vote to replace the Scarborough RT with a subway has not affected the project as yet, says IO spokesperson Paulette den Elzen. She said IO is progressing with building light rail to Scarborough unless they hear otherwise from Metrolinx, “who will meet with the province to discuss next steps.”

If the Scarborough LRT is scrapped, it could further prove the CDAO’s point. Mr. Thurston warns that in a bundled project, “if something goes wrong with one part it’s like throwing a stone in a pond: it ripples out and effects everything.”