Article content continued

The extension is 8.6-kilometres in length, 6.7-kilometres of which is tunneled, and the rest built by a “cut and cover” method which opens up the roadway at station locations. The first stretch, tunneled by machines dubbed Holey and Moley, connects the future Finch West Station, with the future Sheppard West Station. The next stretch is from Sheppard West to Downsview Station. Two other machines, named Yorkie and Torkie, have burrowed from Steeles Ave. to York University.

“Toronto needs this subway connection and many more subways just like it right across this city,” Mayor Rob Ford said on Monday, near the launch shaft near Sheppard Ave. and Keele St. “Everybody knows subways are the way to build rapid transit that stands the test of time,” said Mr. Ford. “No other — I say no other — form of transit is as cost effective and as useful over the long term.”

The mayor is pushing subway construction as a central issue of the 2014 election, after city council dashed his underground transit dreams by opting for light rail lines that mostly run on the road.

Ms. Stintz later told reporters light rail is the right choice for routes along Finch, Sheppard and Eglinton avenues, which are so busy that buses can no longer keep up. But, she said, the city needs more subways, too.

Mr. Byford, the TTC chief executive, believes the political “tide is beginning to turn” for such a project. If given a choice, he would rather build a downtown line first, before extending the Yonge Subway line into Richmond Hill, because otherwise it would add more riders to an already crammed line.

National Post