Welcome Eglinton Crosstown LRT!

After fifteen years of construction and more than $13 billion spent, the Eglinton Crosstown LRT has finally opened to the public today! Since I haven’t rode a transit line on its opening day before, I did just that for Eglinton a.k.a. Line 5.

By the time I got to Kennedy station via Line 2 Bloor-Danforth, the initial lines had died down and the fare gates were open because rides were free for opening day. I was told by someone from the Mayor’s office that about 300 people were waiting for the first train at 7:30 AM, while the Toronto Star reported a few people brought sleeping bags and folding chairs to wait overnight! Not ideal with overnight temperatures below -20’C and windchills below -30’C.

Made it down to the platform. Note the decals below instructing people to walk towards the other end of the platform to board. The stations can accommodate three Bombardier Flexity Freedom train cars, but only two are running at this time.

The station sign panels are either in orange, silver, or black with several digital ad displays. Orange was used for interchange stations such as Kennedy (with Line 2), Don Valley (for the future Ontario Line), Eglinton (for Line 1), Cedarvale (for Line 1), Caledonia (for a future Barrie Line connection), and Mount Dennis (for the Kitchener and UP Express lines).

Here comes the train with lots of folks taking photos on their phones.

Found a seat on the train. Had to wear the ushanka given how cold it was outside.

After starting the timer, I noticed the Crosstown trains have either the pictured regional transit maps including GO trains or the Line 5 map.

The trains inside were packed. As with the Finch West LRT trains, there were several open areas for people with wheelchairs or bicycles.

The surface stops had basic seating, fare terminals, and PRESTO readers. Since full signal priority wouldn’t be ready until May, there were a few times which the train had to stop at red lights. Even so, the trains felt faster than on Finch with 50 km/h speeds on parts of the surface portion thanks to increased station spacing, though TTC and Metrolinx should have scrapped the Hakimi Lebovic stop which is 300 metres west of Golden Mile at Warden Avenue!

Just passed Sunnybrook Park station at Leslie which is the last stop before the underground stretch begins. I should note the Kennedy to Don Valley stretch took 26 minutes which works out to about 16 km/h.

Some small orange benches can be found inside the underground stations. And yes, there are still payphones around in the age where most people have their own smartphones! I should note there was a lot of crowding at Eglinton station which was expected, while cellular service in the underground stretch was mostly nonexistent. I heard afterwards Freedom users like me were more likely to have this problem than those with other mobile carriers for some reason.

The Crosstown emerges from the tunnel at the York Recreation Centre where it is elevated all the way to Mount Dennis.

The total time it took to ride to Mount Dennis was 58 and a half minutes which worked out to 19.5 km/h. This wasn’t far off from the 50 minutes the TTC projected despite the lack of transit signal priority, crowding at stations such as Eglinton, and underground speeds being capped at 60 km/h until May when they will be increased to 80 km/h.

The best view at Mount Dennis with not just the parked light rail vehicle, but also a mural.

The mural extends to the other side of Mount Dennis station, while the concourse area at Mount Dennis is pretty spacious.

The station map at Mount Dennis.

Back on the train to head east with a photo going in the tunnel.

A look at part of the operator dashboard.

Pulling in to Caledonia.

After getting off at Fairbank, I noticed an assistance intercom and a display with operating hours and any service alerts in effect.

When riding along the Eglinton Crosstown LRT, I encourage you to visit some of the local businesses in the area given how much they suffered during construction. I grabbed a dozen churros at Churros 92 since Helen and I loved that place when biking along the Beltline during the summer.

Most of the underground stations have glass entrances with touch of orange.

I ended my trip at Eglinton station which has this nice mirror mural.

Once back home, it was time to enjoy some churros!

Overall, the Eglinton Crosstown launch has been a lot smoother than the Finch West LRT with other reactions on social media being similarly positive. I will need to revisit the line in the spring when full signal priority and faster underground speeds take effect. From a cycling perspective, the opening of this line should mean installation of the long-promised bike lanes from Keele to Mount Pleasant can take place in the spring. Something which we must hold City Hall accountable for given it should be immune to provincial legislation.

You can read Jun's take here while Kevin also wrote a good recap on how to improve some of the intersections along the route.