Images courtesy Metrolinx

Toronto is getting light rail vehicles (LRVs) for use in the four light rail transit (LRT) projects within the next 10 years.

The Toronto region will be getting five new transit projects in the next 10 years, including four light rail transit (LRT) lines and Viva bus rapid transit (BRT) improvements in the York region.

"The Big Move," a regional transportation plan for the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA), identified 15 priority projects across the GTA. Five projects were then chosen as Metrolinx's "5 in 10 Plan, " which includes an investment of $8.15 billion for LRT lines and $1.35 billion in BRT improvements. For the LRTs, there will be $770 million spent on purchasing 182 light rail vehicles (LRVs), with an option of buying an additional 118.

The four LRT replacement/extension projects will be Sheppard East, which is scheduled for completion by 2014, Scarborough, which will start construction after the Pan Am Games in 2015, Eglinton Crosstown (the largest and most expensive), scheduled to be finished by 2020, and Finch, which will also commence in 2015.

The Metrolinx LRVs will be slightly longer and wider than TTC streetcars, and have additional features. These include:
• operating on international standard-gauge tracks, allowing better integration with potential future LRT lines outside Toronto;
• loading from either the left or right side, allowing stations to be built in either a side-platform or island-platform layout;
• driving in both directions—there are driver cabs at both ends meaning a turnaround loop is not required; and
• travelling in a tunnel for extended distances.

The light rail transit (LRT) replacement/expansion projects will be Sheppard East, Scarborough, Eglinton Crosstown, and Finch.