Hamilton LRT 2.0: What’s next?

Light rail transit planning in Hamilton often feels more like a roller-coaster. The ride is not over yet — but here’s what we know about what comes next

When andi fit is constructed, Hamilton’ slight rail transit line promises to run on a level track and in a mostly straight line from east to west across the lower city.

LRT planning, on the other hand, has been a bit of a roller-coaster. Funding announcements and budget overruns. Starts and stops and a full-blown cancellation. Transit themed elections.

Still, city council voted 9-6 this week to negotiate a draft agreement that would allow work to restart on what we’ll call LRT 2.0. The roller-coaster ride isn’t over — but here’s what we know about what comes next:

Does this mean LRT is going ahead?

Not quite. There are still two or three important council votes required, a construction bidding process — and possibly two elections for project-funding governments within the next year.

Still, once council ratifies its Wednesday decision, city manager Janette Smith and other top bureaucrats will begin negotiating a memorandum of understanding “immediately” with provincial transit agency Metrolinx.

The critical agreement will out

line how the resurrected project will be managed and who pays for what. Without it, Metrolinx and Infrastructure Ontario cannot restart construction procurement, or negotiate to buy another 30-or-so properties needed along the MainKing corridor. (They’ve already bought 60.) A finalized agreement is also needed before the city can rebuild its mothballed LRT office.

Metrolinx spokesperson Anne Marie Aikins said the agency wants to present a draft agreement to council “as soon as possible,” so expect another important vote by the end of the summer.

How long have we been debating this project?

Studies and debates about rapid transit started 13 years ago. LRT was funded in 2015, ominously paused in 2018 — then restarted — only to be cancelled in late 2019. We squeezed in a number of light-rail-themed elections, too.

Then came the biggest bipartisan government funding offer in city history: $3.4 billion to build a 14-kilometre LRT line between McMaster University and Eastgate Square. That May announcement triggered the city’s latest vote.

Is LRT 2.0 any different?

At the moment, only in its public price tag.

The former Liberal province announced $1 billion in funding for LRT in 2015, but that turned out to be only a base construction estimate — which the provincial auditor-general later confirmed was badly underestimated, regardless.

The 14-kilometre Main-KingQueenston route, including 17 stops between McMaster University and Eastgate Square, remains the same. Only now, there is $3.4 billion to spend on building. Route or stop tweaks are still possible — but major changes would trigger an environmental assessment amendment.

When would construction start? And end?

Metrolinx says it wants to start “early works” in the first part of 2022. That’s only possible because the agency now plans to split LRT work into different contracts.

By comparison, Hamilton’s first LRT procurement was bogged down in a complex, design-build-finance-operatemaintain bidding process that asked one consortium to do it all.

The new plan could allow work to relocate utilities and underground infrastructure along the route to begin in early 2022, for example, with the main LRT construction coming later.

The approach would fasttrack visible construction — but might also stretch the length of the construction.

Metrolinx has not yet made public a new proposed “in-service” date for LRT. Originally, construction was supposed to start in 2019 and end in 2024.

Who pays for what?

The federal and provincial governments are paying $3.4 billion to build the line and Ontario will cover cost overruns.

That money is also expected

to cover some infrastructure replacement, like sewers under the route or the aging Longwood bridge, which is needed for a spur line to a maintenance yard. The city must kick in cash if it wants to upsize any replaced pipes.

The city is also on the hook for operating and maintenance costs that it estimates in the range of $6.4 million to $16.5 million a year.

Council will eventually need to vote to sign a final operations agreement that will spell out a specific cost.

What else is there to vote on or argue about?

Expect a city debate over who does the actual LRT operating: HSR workers or a private contractor?

The city’s original project called for a single consortium to design, build, finance and run LRT. That’s still the plan for a

provincially funded LRT under construction in Mississauga and the reality for KitchenerWaterloo’s ION line.

Other cities like Ottawa and Toronto run their own LRTs. A coalition of city transit advocates and the HSR union are publicly urging the city to keep transit public.

Hamilton had this argument during the original LRT debate and ended up fatefully delaying procurement until just before a provincial election.

This time, Metrolinx says it is open to discussing a locally run system — but it wants a memorandum of understanding signed first.

The project will influence other important city decisions, too, including how HSR bus routes feed into the eventual light rail transit line — and maybe even a long-delayed city debate over area rating of transit taxes.

Street safety advocates could also point to planned LRT tracks on King Street as yet another reason to ban heavy trucks from “shortcutting” through the downtown.

Other cities like Ottawa and Toronto run their own LRTs. A coalition of city transit advocates and the HSR union are publicly urging the city to keep transit public.