The TTC should spend another $65 million to create a tunnel for light rail vehicles from the Scarborough RT replacement to the Sheppard East Maintenance and Storage Facility, rather than run the cars past the Chinese Cultural Centre on Progress Avenue, Toronto's executive committee has recommended.
The recommendation came Monday, May 17, just a week after the Toronto Transit Commission heard from residents and representatives of the cultural centre, who worried that running the new light rail vehicles along the road would play havoc with area neighbourhoods.The TTC only agreed to study the possibility of constructing a tunnel - but voted to go ahead planning the surface route.But when local councillor Raymond Cho brought the matter to Mayor David Miller's executive committee, it was a different matter."I hope this time our mayor of Toronto, our mayor of Scarborough, really corrects this thing, this terrible thing," said Cho. "I reel like I'm being cheated, and the TTC tried to bring this thing through the back door. Why did they do this? Because the provincial government says we don't have enough money?"Cho and the community found a sympathetic ear on the committee.Deputy Mayor Joe Pantalone, a candidate to replace Miller, moved Cho's motion to request that the extra money be spent to put the tracks underground."We can take the cheap and say we don't worry about the future route - and we can take the Chinese Cultural Centre and we can surround it by tracks - make it a rail yard - and sterilize Progress Avenue," he said. "But that's not the kind of street I would want in my neighbourhood. That's not a solution. If we're doing this for forever, we might as well get it right."Miller supported the community too, and voted to spend the money."The principal reason for doing this is this government is about working with the people and listening," he said. "The TTC got everything right about this line except one important detail for the community. And we're capable of listening."