The Yonge Line 1 North Subway Extension is taking a major step forward, as Infrastructure Ontario and Metrolinx have awarded a $1.44 billion contract for the project’s advance tunnelling phase. The agreement covers the design, financing, and construction of twin tunnels stretching 6.3 kilometres from the existing Line 1 terminus at Finch station in Toronto to a point just south of Langstaff Road in Markham at High Tech station.

The advance tunnelling contract has been awarded to the North End Connectors consortium, a team led by Aecon Infrastructure Management, Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas Canada, and Ghella Canada. Design responsibilities fall to EXP Services and TYPSA, while financial backing is being coordinated by National Bank Financial alongside Aecon, FCC, and Ghella affiliates. Delivered under a Design-Build-Finance model, the project is being procured through Infrastructure Ontario’s P3 framework, which bundles design, construction, and financing responsibilities under a single contract.

The tunnelling contract covers a wide range of early infrastructure work essential to extending Yonge Line 1 northward. The planned twin tunnels will run beneath Yonge Street before veering east near Bay Thorn Drive, terminating at the future transition point just south of Langstaff Road where the line will shift to a surface segment. Work includes the construction of launch and extraction shafts, headwalls for future stations and emergency exit buildings, procurement and operation of tunnel boring machines, and the installation of precast concrete liners that will form the tunnel walls.

Yonge North Subway Extension map, image by Metrolinx

The contract was awarded following a competitive procurement process managed by Infrastructure Ontario and overseen by a third-party fairness advisor. North End Connectors emerged as the successful proponent after submitting a bid deemed to offer the best value for the public. 

Once complete, the Yonge North Subway Extension will stretch Line 1 service roughly eight kilometres beyond Finch Station, connecting into Vaughan, Markham, and Richmond Hill. The full project includes five new stations and up to seven transit connections, linking the extension to GO trains, Viva rapid buses, and future services like the Highway 407 Transitway and TTC’s proposed Steeles rapid transit line. 

The tunnelling contract is one part of a broader, staged delivery strategy for the Yonge North Subway Extension. A separate procurement package will cover the remaining components of the project, including station construction, trackwork, and installation of electrical and signalling systems. 

UrbanToronto will continue to follow progress on this development, but in the meantime, you can learn more about it from our Database file, linked below. If you'd like, you can join in on the conversation in the associated Project Forum thread or leave a comment in the space provided on this page.

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