A recent report detailing the financial and project management costs of the West Toronto Railpath Extension has verified that the project will cost an estimated $149 million, with funding for the project coming from a federal grant, city debt, and development charges.
In 2016, the preliminary cost estimate of the project was $23 million, although this estimate only covered basic construction and didn’t include important expenses like property acquisition, environmental remediation, utility relocation, or costs related to design, engineering, and managing the project.
According to a Nov. 26 report addressed to the City’s Executive Committee by the General Manager of Transportation Services, the updated $149 million cost estimate includes all necessary professional services, including fees for cleaning up contaminated soil and addressing potential risks and contingencies.
“Transportation Services worked with LEA Consulting to conduct a thorough third-party peer review of cost estimates for the WTRPE provided by Metrolinx [the agency overseeing the construction], to compare both the pricing and assumptions used to develop the estimate with other relevant infrastructure projects” the report states, confirming that the costs are “reasonable” and within industry standards.
The extension will be a fully off-street pedestrian and cycling pathway that connects neighbourhoods, serving as a safe active transportation corridor. But the project will encompass a lot more than a pathway extension — communities will have more greenspace and public amenity spaces, comprising four bridges (including a 350 m-long elevated section crossing the Barrie rail corridor), two public plazas, and seven new community connections.
The existing pathway runs 2.1 km from north of Dupont St to Dundas St W. The extension will expand the Railpath by an additional 2.1 km south of Sudbury St, about 200 m south of Queen St.
“Once fully realized, the WTRP will be 4.2 km in length, providing a critical link connecting neighbourhoods from the Junction all the way to downtown and providing more than 26,000 residents with access to 6,000 jobs, as well as supporting the City’s TransformTO and congestion management goals,” the report adds.
Railpath extension cost complaints
As we previously reported, some councillors arent too happy about the costs associated with the West Toronto Railpath extension. In a council meeting over the summer, Councillor Brad Bradford admitted that although it’s important to expand cycling and walking infrastructure, the city can’t do that “at any cost”. He predicted that “heads are going to explode” when Toronto residents learn about the cost of extending the trail by two kilometres.
Councillor Josh Matlow also called the extension important but added that spending $150 million on a two-kilometre walking trail “is completely insane.”
When the partnership to fund the extension was first announced in August, Mayor Olivia Chow said in a statement that expanding the Railpath would connect even more communities and make it easier for people to enjoy our city by walking, cycling, and taking transit.
“Partnership between all levels of government made this possible. Working together, we can connect communities, provide more active transportation options and create new opportunities for sustainable travel,” Chow noted.
Now that a detailed design of the West Toronto Railpath extension has been conducted, construction is expected to begin in spring 2025 and will take about three years to complete.
