John Tory Transit Plan | CTV Toronto

Tory's transit plan: Will Smart Track improve your commute?

Text and graphics by Jesse Tahirali

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Hover tracks and stops for details Rail transit through Toronto currently consists of four TTC lines and several GO Transit lines. Toronto's subways, including Scarborough's rail transit, see a total more than 220 million passengers per year. John Tory ran with his "Smart Track" transit plan, which makes use of existing GO Transit infrastructure. He estimates at least 200,000 people per day will use the 53-kilometre long Smart Track. John Tory says travelling from Kennedy to Union will be easier using his proposed Smart Track. Those near the Scarborough stop should have their trip cut to about half an hour. John Tory says travelling from Rexdale to Union will be easier as well. Those in the neighbourhood can catch a bus to the Smart Track, then travel right to union without using the subway. The Smart Track Tory says 90 per cent of the Smart Track is already built. The line will have 22 stops, five of which interchange with the TTC subway. It will also have the same fare as the TTC. Expected completion 2021 Unionville Kennedy Main Street Union Dundas Mt Dennis Matheson/Airport Corporate Centre GO Transit GO Transit is operated by publicly owned Metrolinx. Its seven lines transport more than 65 million passengers per year. Line 1 Line 1 of the TTC subway runs from Downsview to Union to Finch and covers 30.2 kilometres of track. Downsview Finch Union Line 2 Line 2 of the TTC subway runs from Kipling to Kennedy and covers 26.2 kilometres of track. Kipling Kennedy Line 3 Line 3, the Scarborough RT, runs from Kennedy to McCowan and covers 6.4 kilometres of track. Kennedy McCowan Line 4 Line 4 of the TTC subway runs from Sheppard-Yonge to Don Mills and covers 5.5 kilometres of track. Sheppard-Yonge Don Mills Toronto-York Spadina subway extension Expected completion 2016 Downsview Vaughan Metropolitan Centre Scarborough subway extension Expected completion 2023 Kennedy McCowan Finch West LRT extension 25-year plan made in 2012 Humber College Finch West Sheppard East LRT extension 25-year plan made in 2012 McCowan Don Mills Eglinton Crosstown LRT extension 25-year plan made in 2012 Kennedy Mt Dennis

As he moves into his new office, Toronto mayor John Tory is bringing with him a slew of promises. Probably the most prominent among them -- the one plastered on many of his campaign signs -- is his "SmartTrack" transit project.


Though the three main mayoral candidates each had their own distinct solution to Toronto's public transit problems, the one that will be pushed ahead is Tory's plan to use GO Transit tracks to expand access to the city's downtown.


The new line, if it's realized the way Tory has envisioned, will run from Markham, through Scarborough, down to Union Station, and then out towards Pearson Airport.


The new rail system, he says, already has 90 per cent of its tracks in place, and will piggyback off of publicly-owned GO Transit's infrastructure.


The result should be a quicker trip to the heart of Toronto for those on the eastern and western fringes of the city. With this plan comes several other expansions to the system -- some already under construction, some set to begin in the coming years.


Two subway extensions from Downsview in the north and Kennedy in the east are planned, and three different light rail lines should increase east-west mobility for those north of the Bloor-Danforth subway line.


Though nothing is ever certain in the chaotic world of Toronto transit, above is an interactive visualization of where the city's system stands right now, and where it's headed over the next decade or so.

Interactive: Will John Tory's transit plan work? | CTV Toronto

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