Article content

A new “Ontario Line” will link Ontario Place to the Ontario Science Centre while providing relief to the packed Yonge Street line, Premier Doug Ford announced Wednesday.

As revealed by the Toronto Sun, the downtown relief line will use new technology which the government believes will put riders on the line faster and more cheaply than traditional construction.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or 'Ontario Line' will 'bring relief and new opportunities': Ford Back to video

The proposed 15-kilometre freestanding line will allow narrower, lighter, quieter subway trains that can more frequently and more easily run on elevated rails, something it will do as it runs over the Don River – not under through a deep tunnel as planned by the City of Toronto.

The province intends to build the Ontario Line as a private-public partnership, allowing the private sector to propose some of the design elements, a move provincial officials argue will lower the risk of going over budget.

“Ontario Place will soon be a world-class, year-round destination that visitors and residents will be able to get to on a subway,” said Ford.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or

The project is part of a $28.5-billion expansion to the provincial transit network which will be included in Finance Minister Vic Fedeli’s first budget Thursday.

The province is also vowing to extend Yonge Street’s Line 1 north to Richmond Hill, the Scarborough Subway and an underground Eglinton Crosstown West extension to Pearson Airport.

“You have waited long enough,” Ford said in a message to commuters. “I know that you are tired of being stuck in traffic … you’re tired of being crammed into overcrowded buses, you are tired of waiting to get home to your families.

“We are making the biggest, the largest investment in new subways in Canadian history,” he said.

The province also plans to build a three-stop Scarborough subway extension from Kennedy Rd. north to McCowan Rd. and then west to Don Mills Rd., the government says.

“This one is close to my heart,” Ford said. “I am proud to say that we are finally, finally delivering transit that the hard-working folks in Scarborough have waited for over 30 years. And this one is for you Rob.”