Crosstown Living

Wouldn't it be nice to live, shop, and eat right above the new Line 5?

Like many Torontonians, I’ve spent my share of time stuck in traffic trying to cross Eglinton for the past 15 years, and for a long time I never thought the enormous pit and never-ending lane configuration changes near Yonge and Eglinton would be a thing of the past. But after so many years, $13B spent, and with very little fanfare, the Line 5 Eglinton Crosstown opened for service last Sunday.

Even more miraculous is that reviews of the line to-date have been quite positive. In contrast to the very slow Line 6 Finch, which has infamously been outpaced by an intrepid winter runner, Line 5 is zipping along at up to 60 km/h thanks to the majority of it being tunnelled underground, avoiding pesky traffic lights and all those left-turning vehicles. Once traffic signal priority comes online and the maximum speed is increased to 80 km/h, things should improve even further, and Line 5 may live up to being called rapid transit.

Putting aside the extreme delays and budget overrun, the opening of this line is extremely good news for Toronto in many ways. 25 new stations and 19km across the middle of the city should draw plenty of new transit riders who would otherwise drive, resulting in less traffic congestion. All of the previous Eglinton bus riders should now have a more comfortable, reliable, and quick commute. And with a Line 5 western extension already in the works, not to mention the Ontario line with 15 stations and almost 16km of its own, Toronto will finally have a more comprehensive rapid transit network.

At the same time, one of the big missed opportunities here was building lots of housing units right above and around the new stations. This was considered early in the project, but didn’t make it into the final design. While the stations are visually appealing and well-functioning, there is a single-storey glass pavilion on top of each one where a tower full of housing should be. Visit other cities such as Hong Kong and you’ll see just that: housing and commercial developments on top of half of the system’s 87 stations. This generates more than half of the Hong Kong transit system’s revenue, which is significant, and funds further transit expansion. While Toronto doesn’t need the density of Hong Kong, this is still a missed opportunity for more housing that’s directly connected to transit. This would also generate significant new revenue to fund more new transit, not to mention paying down the massive maintenance and repair backlog.

Even if the glass pavilion design makes it unlikely housing could be built on top of the stations, there remains an opportunity to build more density around the stations. So far this is happening very unevenly, with enormous intensification around Yonge, Mount Pleasant, and in Leaside, but very little anywhere else. Improving policies around mixed-use zoning and reducing red tape to build more density and retail around more of the stations will mean the new line doesn’t just transport people through these neighbourhoods. More stops can become attractive destinations to live, eat, and spend time, resulting in a more vibrant midtown socially and economically. This is especially important for communities like Little Jamaica, where businesses endured years of construction disruption, many of which disappeared, and could benefit from the kind of thoughtful development that brings foot traffic back.

As construction is already underway on the Ontario line and other existing line extensions, now is the time to incorporate plans for more housing and retail around all the new stations that will come online. At the same time, it’s not too late to transform Line 5 into a true transit corridor rather than a faster version of the old buses. If this is done well, with a mix of unit types and sizes, mixed with various kinds of retail, the impact will be significant. Not only will this improve housing affordability, it will also motivate even more drivers to shift to transit, further reducing traffic congestion. Addressing the two most significant issues in our city at the same time is a rare opportunity, and one that we should focus on next.