Line 3 Scarborough

"Scarborough subway" redirects here. For the subway extension proposal, see Line 2 Bloor–Danforth § Scarborough Subway Extension.
Line 3 Scarborough

An S-series train in its original (1985–2015) livery leaving Lawrence East, bound for McCowan
Overview
Type Light metro
System Toronto subway
Locale Toronto, Ontario
Termini Kennedy
McCowan
Stations 6[1]
Daily ridership 40,010 (avg. weekday)[1]
Operation
Opened March 22, 1985
Owner Toronto Transit Commission
Operator(s) Toronto Transit Commission
Depot(s) McCowan Yard
Rolling stock S-series
Technical
Line length 6.4 km (4.0 mi)[2]
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification 600 V DC Third rail, linear induction
Route map
Legend

 McCowan Yard
 McCowan
 Scarborough Centre
 Midland

Stouffville line
to Lincolnville
Ellesmere
Lawrence East

Eglinton Crosstown line

KennedyTTC/GO

Bloor–Danforth line
Stouffville line
to Union Station

Line 3 Scarborough,[3] better known as the Scarborough RT, is a light metro line part of the Toronto subway system in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The line runs entirely within the district of Scarborough encompassing six stations[3] and 6.4 km (4.0 mi) of track situated mostly above ground or elevated. It connects with Line 2 Bloor–Danforth at its southwestern terminus, Kennedy, and terminates in the northeast at McCowan.

Rather than the larger subway trains used by the other lines in the system, the rolling stock of Line 3 consists of smaller, fully automated, medium-capacity trains, designated by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) as the S-series, whose design was based on the Mark I model of the Intermediate Capacity Transit System by the Urban Transportation Development Corporation (UTDC). The trains are powered by linear induction motors, operating on standard gauge tracks, unlike the city's subway lines and the Toronto streetcar system, which use a unique, wider gauge.

The line remained unchanged since its opening in 1985 and contains two of the least used stations in the system. Its revitalization and expansion plan—whether to convert the line into using modern light rail vehicles or to close the line and extend Line 2 Bloor–Danforth further into Scarborough—has been debated for over a decade by the City of Toronto. In September 2013, the Government of Ontario, under Premier Kathleen Wynne, announced it would fund the extension of Line 2 to Scarborough City Centre along a new alignment, which will result in the eventual closure of Line 3.[4][5]

History

The original Scarborough RT logo (1985-2015)
The original streetcar platform can be seen at Kennedy Station. This image also clearly shows the pusher plate for the linear motor between the rails, and the two inductive communications wires on either side of the plate.

In 1972, the provincial government announced the GO-Urban plan to build an intermediate capacity transit system across suburban Toronto using the experimental Krauss-Maffei Transurban.[6] The system failed to come to fruition, and the TTC began building the line for CLRV streetcars, but the ICTS system was used instead, because the Province of Ontario agreed to pay a large portion of the costs. This change was made after construction had commenced. At Kennedy Station, there are clues revealing that it was originally built for streetcar operation; it is possible to see old low-level streetcar platforms protruding under the current high-level platforms, and Kennedy Station used to have an operational loop to turn streetcars. This proved too sharp for safe operation of the ICTS cars, which did not have a reason to turn around, and the loop was replaced by a Spanish solution-like crossover.[7] Ontario wanted to develop and promote its new technology, which had been designed for a proposed urban GO Transit service known as GO-ALRT. Changes to federal railway regulations had made the new system unnecessary for GO, and so the government hoped to sell it to other transit services in order to recoup its investment.

The Scarborough line opened in March 1985 as the Scarborough RT. Three years after it opened, the TTC renovated its southwestern terminus at Kennedy Station, because the looped turnaround track, designed for uni-directional streetcars under the earlier plan and not needed for the bi-directional ICTS trains, was causing derailments; it was replaced with a single terminal track and the station was thus quasi-Spanish solution, with one side for boarding and another side for alighting, though the boarding side is also used for alighting during off-peak hours and weekends.

From when the line opened in 1985 until 2015 it was known as the "Scarborough RT" or "SRT". The "RT" in Scarborough RT stood for "rapid transit". Locals have often referred to the line as SRT or the RT for short.[8] The name Scarborough Line is used on the official TTC website and 2014 TTC Ride Guide.[9][10] In October 2013, the TTC announced plans to give the lines official numbers to help riders and visitors to navigate the system. The line is numbered 3, as it is the third rapid transit line to open in the system. New signage was installed in March 2014..[11][12][13] In 2015, the name was simplified to "Line 3 Scarborough" and the TTC began repainting the rolling stock with a blue finish displaying the number 3, a diagram of the Scarborough line, and the TTC logo. The original "RT" logo was no longer featured on the trains.

With the line approaching the end of its useful life,[14] the TTC reduced the frequency of service in mid-September 2012.

In 2015, the TTC started work on the cars to keep them operational until the line is replaced by another mode of rail technology. This includes a new outer livery that is almost entirely blue to emphasize the line's colour code, followed by interior upgrades.[15]

Rolling stock

The abandoned loop at Kennedy Station, which became a dead-end tail track in 1988.

The trains operated were developed by the Urban Transportation Development Corporation (UTDC), then an Ontario Crown corporation but later became a division of Bombardier Transportation. The business proposal initially bore little fruit — a proposed pilot project in Hamilton was cancelled after meeting widespread public opposition, and the technology was used initially only by the Scarborough line, Vancouver's SkyTrain, and the Detroit People Mover. With expansion of the SkyTrain and sales to Ankara, Turkey; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; New York City's John F. Kennedy International Airport AirTrain, and Yongin EverLine in Yongin near Seoul, South Korea,[16] redesigned, sold under the name "ART" (advanced rapid transit), has become a success for Bombardier.

One unusual feature of the ICTS cars is that they are driven by linear induction motors: instead of using conventional motors to turn the wheels, they push themselves along the route using alternating flat magnets reacting with the distinctive di-magnetic aluminum metal plate that runs down the centre of the tracks. This system requires very few moving parts, and therefore leads to lower maintenance costs.

When the car motors are accelerating, they actually lift the car off the track an extremely small distance, repelling against the wide aluminum plate in the centre of the track.[17] This micro-lifting prevents the truck wheels from making a solid electrical contact with the track. Instead of using the conventional method, in which motive power is supplied by a single third rail, with return current travelling through the running rails, a separate positive and negative power rail are provided on one side of the track. With respect to the accelerating trucks and the micro-lifting, the truck wheels have a somewhat larger flange than normal in order to keep the car inline on the track during the micro-lifting.

The linear induction motors also allow the cars to climb steeper grades then would be possible with traditional subway technology since wheel slip is not an issue. This is an important consideration when trying to build a rail transit system into a built-up urban environment, such as Toronto.

The trains are also able to be operated exclusively by computers, using Standard Elektrik Lorenz's "SelTrac IS" system (now owned and delivered by Thales Canada Transportation Solutions), doing away with the need for a human operator. However, due to union opposition and public perception, operators were retained. (Other systems took full advantage of the automated operation and Vancouver's SkyTrain has been automated since 1985 with no mishaps.) The Scarborough line trains have only one operator, unlike the other TTC subway lines, which carry both a guard, who operates the train's doors, and an operator, who drives the train. In practice, the Scarborough line trains drive themselves; the operator monitors their operations and controls the doors. The transit workers' union has firmly opposed driverless trains.[18] One feature, which was not implemented at the time of Scarborough line's opening, is the automated next stop announcement system, which was introduced in January 2008 (which means operators are no longer required to call out stops manually), and uses the voice-over of TTC employee, Susan Bigioni as with all other subway lines.

Route

The train on its elevated tracks between Scarborough Centre and McCowan

The line follows a roughly upside down L-shaped (or gamma-shaped (Γ)) route: first northward from Kennedy Station, parallelling the Canadian National Railway/GO Transit's Stouffville line tracks, between Kennedy Road and Midland Avenue, 4 km (2.5 mi) to Ellesmere Road; then eastward between Ellesmere and Progress Avenue, through Scarborough City Centre to McCowan Road. The Scarborough line's ICTS trains have their own small yard east of McCowan Station. This yard is large enough to store the existing fleet, but would have to be expanded or replaced if the TTC were to expand the line's capacity with new trains. Basic maintenance is performed in this yard; for more extensive work the cars are taken to the subway's Greenwood Yard by truck, given the train's different track gauge. The north-south section of the route, where it follows the CN tracks, is at ground level; the shorter east-west section (except for the ground-level yard) is elevated, as is the Kennedy terminus. The line dives briefly underground just north of Ellesmere Station to cross under the CN tracks. After that, it is elevated towards McCowan station. Two stations, Kennedy and Scarborough Centre, are wheelchair accessible.

From 2 a.m. to 6 a.m., when the Scarborough line is not operating, the 302 Danforth Rd-McCowan Blue Night bus serves the same area. The 302 originates at Danforth and Warden, where it connects with the 300 Bloor–Danforth that travels to the west. From Warden, the 302 travels east along Danforth to McCowan, then north along McCowan to Steeles. With the exception of McCowan station, it does not pass near any of the rapid transit stations, though other night bus services pass near stations. Bus service is extended on Sundays, because the rapid transit lines start at 8 a.m. (beginning Jan. 3 2016) instead the usual 6 a.m. start. Service frequency is 30 minutes.

The frequency for this line is 4–5 minutes during peak periods and 5–6 minutes during off-peak periods.

Future

Proposed expansion

In 2006, a study was completed on the prospects of the Scarborough line.[19][20] It recommended upgrading the line to handle larger ART Mark II vehicles, at a cost of $190 million (2006 dollars) with an eight-month service suspension for the upgrade and to purchase $170 million of new rolling stock; the TTC Board approved the recommended plan to upgrade the SRT on August 30, 2006.[21] Later, the TTC cancelled the plan for modernizing the SRT.[22] Extending Line 2 Bloor–Danforth, either along the current route or along a different alignment directly to Scarborough Centre, was not considered cost-effective or justifiable.

In November 2015, transportation consultant and University of Toronto professor emeritus, Richard Soberman, argued that it would be vastly cheaper and faster to buy new SRT vehicles than to replace the SRT with an extension of the Bloor–Danforth subway northeast from Kennedy Station. He felt the cost savings would be great enough to overcome difficulties such as the incompatibility of Mark II cars on the existing line and the extra cost of building a fully separated right-of-way to the Sheppard East LRT.[22]

Replacement with alternate transit

The TTC and the City of Toronto completed an environmental assessment in 2010 to convert the line to light rail transit and extend it to Malvern from its current eastern terminus, McCowan, with potential new intermediate stations at Bellamy Road, Centennial College and Sheppard Avenue with a possible additional station at Brimley Road between the existing Midland and Scarborough Centre stations.[23]

After initially planning to include the line with the proposed Eglinton Crosstown LRT line and create a single line called the "Eglinton-Scarborough Crosstown line", Metrolinx proceeded with plans to convert the line to light rail and extend it to Sheppard Avenue with a single new intermediate station at Centennial College. The existing line would have closed after the 2015 Pan American Games and be completed in 2020. In January 2013, Infrastructure Ontario issued a request for qualifications to shortlist companies to construct both this line and the Eglinton Crosstown line.[24]

In June 2013, Toronto City Council again debated to have the Scarborough line replaced with an extension of the Bloor–Danforth line north to Sheppard Avenue along a different right of way. Metrolinx issued a letter to Toronto City Council indicating it would cease work on the Scarborough portion of the line, because its position strayed from the original LRT agreement.[25] The subway alternative would cost between $500 million and $1 billion more than converting the Scarborough line to use the same rolling stock as the Eglinton Crosstown line be so it could be a continuation of that line. The Globe and Mail reported that Scarborough councillors had argued that providing Scarborough residents with light rail, not heavy rail treated them as "second class citizens".

Two competing subway plans were proposed to replace the Scarborough line. TTC Chair Karen Stintz proposed to extend the Bloor–Danforth subway line to the east before turning north with three new stations at Lawrence Avenue and McCowan Road, at Scarborough Town Centre and then at Sheppard Avenue East and McCowan Road, where it would connect to the Sheppard East LRT. Transportation Minister Glen Murray made an alternative proposal to extend Line 2 along the route of the current Scarborough line but terminating at Scarborough Town Centre. Under the Murray plan, there would be only two stations and there would be no direct connection with the Sheppard LRT. The Murray plan would have required the relocation of Kennedy Station as a new northbound curve from the existing Kennedy Station would have been too tight for subway trains. The Murray plan would also have required the complete shutdown of the line during construction, something that the Stintz plan avoided.[4]

On October 8, 2013, Toronto City Council voted 24–20 to replace the Scarborough line with a three-station extension of the Bloor–Danforth subway line. Council chose the Stintz plan for the extension.[26]

The subway extension is estimated to cost $3.56 billion.[27] Here is how a portion of that cost is expected to be financed:

The city will borrow money to pay its portion of the subway extension costs. The increases in property tax and development charges are to pay off this debt over a 30-year period.[26]

In July 2015, Jennifer Keesmaat, Toronto’s chief planner, questioned the accuracy of a 2013 city staff report that estimated ridership at 14,000 riders per peak-hour instead of the earlier 9,500 per peak-hour put forward by the TTC. City Council based its decision to choose a subway extension over an LRT conversion based on the higher number.

In June, 2016, city planning staff proposed to eliminate two of the three stops along the planned Scarborough Subway Extension terminating Line 2 Bloor–Danforth at Scarborough Town Centre in order to free up funding for a proposed Crosstown East LRT line. The eliminated intermediate stops were at Lawrence Avenue and Sheppard Avenue.[28] However, subsequently the cost estimate for the one-stop subway extension increased to $3.2 billion leaving the Crosstown East LRT unfunded. Given the rising cost for the subway extension and the loss of funding for the LRT line, a group of city councillors led by Josh Matlow reopened the subway versus LRT debate. Matlow proposed scrapping the one-stop subway extension in order to provide funding for 24 LRT stops on two LRT lines within Scarborough. TTC CEO Andy Byford said the cost of the LRT line following the SRT route may have risen to as high as $3 billion because of "delays and redesign" since 2013,[29] but Brad Ross also of the TTC warned of "caveats around numbers and assumptions" associated with that estimate.[30] After Council's vote, Byford admitted that the cost estimates for "delays" was unnecessary,[31] which assumed the LRT's completion would be in 2026, the same date as the subway option. However, according to Michael Warren, a former TTC Chief General Manage, the LRT could have been completed in 2020 at a cost of $1.8 billion, an estimate not presented to City Council when it voted.[32] There was also the issue whether there would be space for both expanded GO service and an LRT north of Kennedy Station; however, Metrolinx subsequently denied there would be such a problem.[30] On July 13, Toronto City Council voted down Matlow's proposal by a margin of roughly 2 to 1.[33]

De Baeremaeker justified the subway extension saying "Scarborough residents need the same access to a subway system that everybody else already has."[34] Mayor Tory was concerned that switching from subway to LRT would delay transit improvements in Scarborough, and might not get support from senior levels of government.[35] In September 2013, Metrolinx prepared a draft report comparing the subway and LRT options concluding that the subway option was "not a worthwhile use of money." Metrolinx had declined a TTC request to give an opinion prior to City Council's July 2016 vote.[30]

Comparison of proposals to replace the SRT[36][37][38][39]
Characteristic Original SRT LRT Proposal 2014–2016 Three-Stop
Subway Proposal 		2016 One-Stop
Subway Proposal
Vehicle Innovia Flexity Freedom T1 subway car T1 subway car
Number of stations[38] 5[40] 7 3 1
Length of line[38] 6.4 kilometres (4.0 mi) 9.9 km (6.2 mi) 7.6 km (4.7 mi) 6.4 kilometres (4.0 mi)
Average speed[38] 36 kilometres per hour (22 mph) 40 kilometres per hour (25 mph)
Ridership per hour, peak direction[38][41] 7,300
Average weekday ridership[36][41][42] 38,810 31,000
Residents within walking distance of a stop[38] 47,000 14,000–20,000
Transfer issues at Kennedy Station[38] Three levels above subway One level above subway No need to transfer No need to transfer
Construction impacts[37] - SRT shut down; riders must use buses Traffic disruption on surface streets Traffic disruption on surface streets
Building costs[29] - 2013: $1.48 billion
2016: $3 billion
[43][44][notes 1] 		$3.56 billion[notes 2] $3.2 billion
Operating and maintenance costs Paid by TTC Paid by province[38]

[45][notes 3]

 Paid by TTC;[38] up to $40 million per year[37]
  1. ↑ The estimated cost of the LRT proposal was $1.48 million in 2013, but by 2016 rose to $3 billion because of "delays and redesign". This higher estimate was disputed and might be as low as $1.8 billion. (See paragraphs prior to the table.)
  2. ↑ In hindsight, the estimated cost of the SSE in 2013 was too low as construction difficulties were later discovered between Kennedy and Scarborough Town Centre stations raising costs for that section. (See Line 2 Bloor–Danforth#One-stop proposal for details.)
  3. ↑ In October 2016, the City agreed to assume operating and maintenance costs for all LRT lines. Thus, in hindsight, the City would have been responsible for these costs for both the subway and LRT options.

Conversion to park

The Toronto Transit Commission proposed to turn the corridor, including the bridges between Midland and McCowan stations, into a linear park, once Line 3 Scarborough is decommissioned, similar to the High Line in New York City.[46]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Toronto Transit Commission Subway ridership, 2011-2012" (PDF). Toronto Transit Commission. November 21, 2012. Retrieved March 10, 2013.
  2. ↑ "2011 TTC Operating Statistics". Toronto Transit Commission. Retrieved March 10, 2013.
  3. 1 2 "Subway". Schedules & Maps. Toronto Transit Commission. Retrieved January 2015. Line 3 Scarborough has six stations Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  4. 1 2 "Scarborough subway to be built with shortened route, Ontario announces". The Globe and Mail. 4 September 2013. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
  5. ↑ http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2013/10/08/scarborough_subway_confirmed_by_toronto_council.html
  6. ↑ "GO-Urban's bright future fades suddenly", Toronto Star, 14 November 1974
  7. ↑ Transit Toronto - Why was the Kennedy RT station renovated so soon after it was built?
  8. ↑ TTC Subway/RT
  9. ↑ http://ttc.ca/PDF/Maps/SubwayRT_Map_2014.pdf
  10. ↑ http://ttc.ca/Subway/index.jsp
  11. ↑ TTC considers numbering subway lines | CityNews
  12. ↑ TTC tests new numerical signage system | CTV Toronto News
  13. ↑ "New TTC Signage at Eglinton Station".
  14. ↑ "Chief Executive Officer's Report - November 2012 Update" (PDF). Toronto Transit Commission. November 21, 2012. Retrieved March 10, 2013.
  15. ↑ "This is what the TTC's revamped SRT cars look like". BlogTO. Retrieved 10 March 2015.
  16. ↑ http://www.bombardier.com/en/transportation/products-services/transportation-systems/driverless-systems/advanced-rapid-transit--art-/yongin--south-korea?docID=0901260d8000a7bb
  17. ↑ Ion Boldea, S. A. Nasar (2001). Linear motion electromagnetic devices.
  18. ↑ Bruser, David (2006-11-17). "TTC eyes driverless subway". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2007-12-08.
  19. ↑ "Scarborough RT Strategic Plan" (PDF). 2006-08-30. Retrieved 2012-03-09.
  20. ↑ "Scarborough RT Strategic Plan – Study Report - Final Report - August 2006" (PDF). August 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 25, 2008. Retrieved 2013-08-05.
  21. ↑ "Minutes of the Previous Meeting - Board Meeting Minutes - Meeting No. 1873 - Wednesday, August 30, 2006". 2006-09-20. Retrieved 2015-12-01.
  22. 1 2 Tess Kalinowski, Transportation reporter (November 15, 2015). "Skip the Scarborough subway and modernize the SRT, says transit expert". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2015-11-20.
  23. ↑ "Extension of the Scarborough Rapid Transit & Kennedy Station Improvements". City of Toronto. May 29, 2012. Archived from the original on October 6, 2012. Retrieved March 10, 2013.
  24. ↑ "Request for Qualifications Issued for the Eglinton Crosstown LRT and Scarborough LRT Lines". January 22, 2013. Retrieved March 10, 2013.
  25. ↑ Oliver Moore (2 July 2013). "Metrolinx to Toronto: Subway is yours". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 3 July 2013.
  26. 1 2 "Scarborough subway confirmed by Toronto council)". The Toronto Star. The Toronto Star. Retrieved 8 October 2013.
  27. ↑ Pagliaro, Jennifer. "Real costs of Scarborough subway, cancelled LRT to resurface at council". The Toronto Star. The Toronto Star. Retrieved 24 July 2015.
  28. ↑ Jennifer Pagliaro (20 January 2016). "New Scarborough transit plan 'buys peace in the land'". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2016-01-20.
  29. 1 2 Jennifer Pagliaro (June 28, 2016). "Scarborough subway versus LRT debate to return to council amid transit confusion". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2016-06-30.
  30. 1 2 3 Jennifer Pagliaro (24 October 2016). "How a bid to resurrect Scarborough LRT was killed: Analysis". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2016-10-24.
  31. ↑ Jennifer Pagliaro (25 October 2016). "Watchdog says city staff may have violated public service code over Scarborough subway advice". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2016-10-24.
  32. ↑ R. Michael Warren (26 October 2016). "Was the memo that killed the LRT deliberately misleading?". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2016-10-26.
  33. ↑ Moore, Oliver (13 July 2016). "Toronto City Council approves planning for raft of transit projects". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2016-07-14.
  34. ↑ Ben Spurr, Transportation Reporter & Jennifer Pagliaro, City Hall reporter (1 June 2016). "Mayor Tory defends Scarborough subway extension despite new ridership data". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2016-06-01.
  35. ↑ John Tory (27 June 2016). "Why I support the Scarborough subway: John Tory". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2016-06-27.
  36. 1 2 "Scarborough councillors seek subway line instead of LRT". Toronto Star. Retrieved 6 May 2013.
  37. 1 2 3 "Not in service". TheGrid. Retrieved 16 October 2013.
  38. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Jennifer Pagliaro, City Hall reporter (August 7, 2015). "Scarborough subway debate suffers from lack of facts, community groups say". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2015-11-19.
  39. ↑ "Mayor Tory defends Scarborough subway extension despite new ridership data | Toronto Star". thestar.com. Retrieved 2016-06-02.
  40. ↑ The SRT is traditionally described as having 6 stations - but that includes Kennedy Station. The replacement proposals only list the additional stations, so this should be 5, for consistency.
  41. 1 2 Scarborough Subway Extension: Ridership
  42. ↑ Toronto Transit Commission Subway ridership, 2014
  43. ↑ "Options for Scarborough RT Replacement - CodeRedTO". coderedto.com. Retrieved 2016-07-14.
  44. ↑ Jennifer Pagliaro (13 July 2016). "Toronto city council sticks with subway, rejects Scarborough LRT". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2016-07-13.
  45. ↑ Ben Spurr & Jennifer Pagliaro (31 October 2016). "Report reveals new transit lines' steep cost for Toronto". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2016-11-03.
  46. ↑ http://www.torontosun.com/2015/02/20/ttc-looking-at-making-a-park-out-scarborough-rt

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