Ontario to fully fund Hamilton LRT; expand Lakeshore West GO service

Written by Mischa Wanek-Libman, editor
image description
City of Hamilton, Ontario

The province of Ontario will provide up to CA$1 billion (US$804 million) to build a new light-rail transit (LRT) line in Hamilton as part of the largest infrastructure investment in Ontario's history.

 

The province will cover 100 percent of the capital costs of building the LRT, which Premier Kathleen Wynne said will help grow the economy, reduce travel times and connect people to jobs and to other transit systems.

The LRT will connect directly to the new West Harbour GO Station, which is now under construction, and protect for a future, high-order pedestrian connection to the Hamilton Centre GO Station. The LRT will ultimately extend to Eastgate Square. Procurement for the LRT will start in 2017, with construction starting in 2019.

In the 2015 Budget, the government committed to investing in rapid transit in Hamilton as part of the Moving Ontario Forward plan. Through this plan, Ontario will invest CA$31.5 billion (US$25.33 billion) over 10 years in public transit, transportation and other priority infrastructure projects across the province. The Hamilton LRT project aligns with the government’s priority of investing in rapid transit projects that will connect to GO Transit and other transit systems across the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA).

The Premier also announced an additional expansion of transit service in Hamilton. The province will extend GO rail service on the Lakeshore West line from the West Harbour GO Station at James Street North to a new GO station at Centennial Parkway in eastern Hamilton. Construction is expected to begin in 2017, with completion in 2019.

Tags: