Eglinton Crosstown on track for much anticipated completion
Tour of Mount Dennis site shows significant progress on LRT station and maintenance facility
Aug 30, 2018
From standing high on the rooftop of Mount Dennis station, to walking along the tracks at the nearly complete maintenance and storage facility, it’s easy to see how far the Eglinton Crosstown has come.
Reporters and photographers were given a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the future transit hub Wednesday and showed the 42-acre site coming to life.
The facility that will eventually house the fleet of light rail vehicles is nearly ready to have the first one delivered in November.
Photographers capturing the Mount Dennis construction site with the city sky-line in the background, a view that will be unobstructed once complete.
Anders Persson, Deputy Regional Director with Crosslinx Construction Solutions explaining how trains will operate in and out of Mount Dennis Station
Jamie Robinson, Director for Community Relations & Communications at Metrolinx, taking questions from the media about the Mount Dennis Station and the Eglinton Crosstown Maintenance and Storage facility.
Light at the end of the tunnel as work is coming along inside the Eglinton Crosstown Maintenance and Storage facility, the future home of 135 light rail vehicles
“You see the tremendous work and the terrific progress coming along very well,” said Jamie Robinson, Director for Community Relations & Communications at Metrolinx. “It’s going to be fantastic.”
According to Robinson, there was plenty of consultation with members of the Mount Dennis community and their voices were heard. As a result, Metrolinx decided to incorporate the historic Kodak Building as part of the station entrance, which will include pedestrian access next to a TTC Bus loop.
“A lot of them had family work in the old Kodak building,” said Robinson. “There’s a strong affinity to Mount Dennis so they are really excited to have it with this transit hub going forward.”
The maintenance and storage facility is also where vehicles which will be inspected, cleaned and maintained.
“It’s the biggest car, or should I say train wash, I’ve ever seen,” said Anders Persson, Deputy Regional Director with contractor Crosslinx Transit Solutions.
The wash bay includes several giant blue bristles and the estimated time to wash for each train will be approximately two minutes.
At this point, there are 2,400 people working across the entire Eglinton Crosstown project, including 400 at this site, a big boost for the local Mount Dennis community.
“This is an area of the city that is in dire need of employment and transportation,” said Robinson. “It’s all connected here and it’s welcomed by the local community.”
The Crosstown, which is a 19-kilometre light rail transit line, will have 25 new stations which will run along Eglinton Avenue from Black Creek Drive to Kennedy Station.
by Nitish Bissonauth Metrolinx bilingual editorial content advisor
