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Today, Metrolinx and Infrastructure Ontario announced that the GO Expansion (previously GO RER) On Corridor contract with German national railway operator Deutsche Bahn, Alstom, Spanish infrastructure construction company FCC, and a number of Canadian firms (collectively known as OnExpress) is being executed, confirming what UrbanToronto readers and Toronto transit enthusiasts have long been hoping for — the electrification of GO Transit and its transformation into a regional rapid transit system akin to a German S-Bahn or French TER system is happening. The first stage of the project will begin at a cost of $1.6 Billion CAD, with hundreds of workers being hired on to help facilitate.
Metrolinx and OnExpress will immediately begin detailed planning and negotiations for the networks planning and operation with established infrastructure improvements like electrification and a massive reworking of Union Station, beginning construction as soon as next year. Contracts will be run in a phased approach with the first service ramp-ups beginning in 2025 or 2026. Metrolinx CEO Phil Verster was quoted saying that the consortium has “far surpass[ed]” Metrolinx’ GO Expansion reference concept design released in 2018 as part of the GO Expansion full business case, a document which itself proposed 7-15 minute frequency services on individual GO lines and much better service on combined corridors.
A separate release from Alstom made mention of ERTMS, the European Rail Traffic Management System a cutting edge world standard signalling technology with derivatives used in Australia, China, and of course across Europe, being deployed in Toronto, which would be a first for Canada or the US, enabling frequencies of better than every 4 minutes on double tracked lines, speed improvements, reduced maintenance and easy extension and interoperability. Something which could parlay into and influence the Canadian government's plans for ETC (an improved mainline rail signalling system which would improve safety and capacity across the Canadian rail network), particularly for VIA rail.
Alstom also made mention explicitly of electric locomotives, which has confirmed the long held suspicion of many that a transition to electrical multiple units (subway style trains with many powered axles across the train) would likely not happen initially. That said, with shorter trains, far better and faster service is possible with more powerful electric locomotives and such systems exist widely in Germany like the Berlin Regional Express and the Dresden S-Bahn. This means that crucially, Deutsche Bahn already has good experience with such a system.
This story is likely to develop further in the coming days, so stay tuned to UrbanToronto for all the latest! In the meantime, you can learn more from our dedicated Transportation Forum thread, or leave a comment in the space provided on this page.
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