Metrolinx: Toronto LRT bidding open to all

Union and non-union contractors are welcomed to bid on four light rail transit construction projects pending for Toronto, according to Metrolinx, the Greater Toronto Area's transportation planning agency.

Metrolinx’s announcement could generate yet another conflict with the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC), which traditionally has awarded such project work to unionized bidders, although in recent months both agencies have emphasized cooperation.

Bids are being sought for the Eglinton, Finch West, and Sheppard East LRT routes, as well as the more complicated revamping of current Scarborough Line operations—at present similar to Vancouver’s SkyTrain system—to more conventional LRT standards.

Non-union, or “open shop,” contractors are eligible to bid due to recent approval given by the Ontario provincial government. Though TTC recently issued design-build tender documents for the Eglinton tunnel project “in its capacity as the agent for provincial agency Metrolinx,” the issuance “adhered to Metrolinx’s procurement policy,” which does not restrict bidding to contractors certified with the Building Trades, a Metrolinx spokesperson said in an email to local media. Metrolinx says the TTC is advising the provincial agency on the design and procurement process.

The bidding process follows a contentious readjustment of Toronto’s rail capital expansion plans earlier this year, which pitted proponents of expanded light rail transit and streetcar service in Canada’s largest city against others who favored, or would tolerate, only subway expansion.