TORONTO — After years of construction delays and mounting public scrutiny, Ontario has declared the Eglinton Crosstown Light Rail Transit line “substantially complete,” transferring control of the long-awaited transit corridor to the Toronto Transit Commission ahead of its planned opening in early 2026.
The province announced Friday that independent engineers have verified the 19-kilometre Line 5 Eglinton is ready for service, marking the first time the full system has met all contractual requirements for safe and reliable operation. With the handoff to the TTC now underway, officials said the transit agency will finalize an opening date in the new year, with support from Metrolinx.
The milestone follows an intensive period of system testing meant to replicate real-world conditions. According to the Ministry of Transportation, the line was operated at full capacity across multiple weather scenarios — including a 10-centimetre snowfall — while vehicles logged more than 11,000 kilometres per week and crews maintained 16-hour daily service patterns. Staffing levels were also monitored to ensure issues could be managed proactively before passengers board.
“Under the leadership of Premier Ford, our government is delivering the largest transit expansion in Canadian history,” said Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria. “Our $70 billion plan to build and upgrade transit is connecting millions of transit users across Ontario, helping fight gridlock so people can get around more conveniently and keeping tens of thousands of workers on the job in the face of tariffs and economic uncertainty.”
Once open, the Crosstown is expected to reduce travel times between Kennedy Station and Mount Dennis Station by nearly one hour compared with current surface routes. More than 10 kilometres of the line run underground, connecting 25 stations and stops across midtown Toronto and linking riders to 54 bus routes, three subway stations and two GO Transit lines.
To avoid service disruptions during the early months of operation, the TTC will introduce the line gradually. On opening day, trains will run from 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. with peak frequencies of four minutes and 45 seconds. Within six months, the schedule is expected to expand to 5:30 a.m. to 2:30 a.m., tightening peak service to three minutes and 30 seconds — an approach the province says mirrors ramp-up periods for major LRT projects globally.
The project’s completion marks a significant political and operational turning point. Originally scheduled to open in 2020, the Crosstown faced repeated setbacks tied to complex construction work, utility relocations, contractual disputes and pandemic-related delays. The province, Metrolinx and project consortium Crosslinx Transit Solutions negotiated multiple revisions as the timeline shifted, placing the line under heightened public attention.
Friday’s announcement positions the government to shift focus toward the broader expansion of Ontario’s transit network. The province is currently investing nearly $70 billion in public transit, including what it calls the largest subway expansion in Canadian history: the Ontario Line, the Scarborough Subway Extension, the Yonge North Subway Extension and the Eglinton Crosstown West Extension. The latter will stretch Line 5 an additional nine kilometres west to Renforth Drive, with long-term plans to reach Toronto Pearson International Airport.
Metrolinx president and CEO Michael Lindsay said the completion of the Crosstown represents a major step forward for regional mobility. “We’re excited to announce the completion of the Eglinton Crosstown LRT in partnership with the province,” Lindsay said. “This transformative new 19-kilometre transit line features 25 stations and stops, connecting Mount Dennis station in the west and Kennedy station in the east – making travel across the city and region faster and easier than ever before. The line will provide more seamless connections to three TTC subway lines, two GO Transit lines, and 54 bus routes.”
The rollout of Line 5 coincides with another expansion in Toronto’s light rail network. The Finch West LRT is scheduled to open to passengers on December 7, offering service for an estimated 51,000 weekday riders between Humber College and Finch West Station.
With operational verification complete and final preparations underway, the Crosstown’s debut is now entering its final phase. While the TTC has yet to commit to a specific launch date, the province says the line will open to the public “in the coming weeks,” positioning the long-delayed project to finally begin serving riders early next year.
