[URBAN NOTE] "Eglinton Crosstown east tunneling to cause major traffic congestion"

[rfmcdonald]

Global News' David Shum shared the news that tunnelling on the Eglinton Crosstown line, that controversial light-rail component of Toronto's hoped-for mass transit system, is going to disrupt traffic on Eglinton Avenue east of Yonge for the next few years.

The underground tunneling project involves drilling a 3.25-kilometre section west to Yonge Street and is expected to last nearly three years.

Lanes along that portion of the Eglinton route will be reduced to one direction each side for the duration of the project.

The machines work in pairs and each are about 81 metres long, weighing 511,000 kilograms. They were given the nicknames Don and Humber representing the rivers nearby.

Traffic in the area will also be heavily congested as the walls are built for the underground stations at Laird, Bayview and Mt. Pleasant.

The Eglinton Crosstown light rail transit system is a 19-kilometre corridor that includes a 10-kilometre underground portion, between Keele Street and Laird Drive.

The Ontario government has invested $5.3 billion into the project which will be comprised of 25 stations linking 54 bus routes, three subway stations and various GO Transit lines.

Here's hoping it actually gets built!