By Ashley Karen
The Ontario government has published a Request for Proposals for the ‘design and build’ of the Yonge North Subway Extension tunnels.
Prabmeet Sarkaria, Minister of Transportation, stated: “The RFP release is the next critical step in our government’s plan to extend subway service north from Finch Station to communities in Markham, Vaughan, and Richmond Hill for the first time ever.”
After being shortlisted via a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) procedure earlier in 2023, North End Connectors, CrossTransit Group, and Toronto-York Tunnel Connectors are being asked to respond to the RFP with submissions that detail how they will provide the tunneling project. The contract for the tunneling project is foreseen to be granted in late 2024.
The Advance Tunnel Contract comprises work to design, build, and finance the construction of tunnels and the tunnel boring machine launch and retrieval shafts.
The issue of the Request for Proposal comes as the project achieves another significant milestone. Presently, early upgrade work at Finch Station, where the Yonge North Subway Extension will link with the current Line 1 service, is substantially finished. The advancements set the stage for the subway extension principal construction.
The 8km extension is one of Ontario’s four priority subway projects for the Greater Toronto Area. Ontario is funding US$51.6bn over the next decade for the most considerable subway expansion in Canadian history, which comprises the Ontario Line, the Scarborough Subway Extension, the Eglinton Crosstown West Extension, and the Yonge North Subway Extension.
