TORONTO, August 12, 2026 – Metrolinx president Michael Lindsay recently said the known cost of the Ontario Line has now reached about $34 billion. Compared with the original $10.9-billion estimate announced in 2019, the current figure is more than three times higher — and $34 billion is still not the final price.
The latest confirmed contract is worth $4.32 billion and mainly covers about three kilometres of twin tunnels near Pape Avenue, as well as underground stations at Pape and Cosburn. With this contract now finalized, the known cost of the Ontario Line has reached about $34 billion. Since some elevated section work has not yet been fully priced, the total may continue to rise.
From $10.9 billion in 2019 to $34 billion today, the project’s cost has increased by more than $23 billion over seven years. Based on the Ontario Line’s total length of 15.6 kilometres, the current average cost is now more than $2 billion per kilometre.
So after all this spending, how far along is the project?
No section of the Ontario Line has opened yet, but the project has entered large-scale construction. Work officially began at Exhibition Station in 2022, and tunnelling on the downtown section also started in April this year.
The Ontario Line will be 15.6 kilometres long and include 15 stations. It will run from Exhibition Place through downtown Toronto, then north through Pape, Thorncliffe Park and Flemingdon Park before reaching Don Mills Road, where it will connect with Line 5 Eglinton. The route will also connect with Line 1, Line 2 and several GO Train lines. Metrolinx expects about 388,000 daily riders once the line is complete, with end-to-end travel taking less than 30 minutes.
One of the main reasons for building the Ontario Line is to relieve crowding on the existing subway network. Metrolinx estimates that once the line opens, peak-period crowding at Bloor-Yonge Station could be reduced by up to 22 per cent, and about 28,000 car trips could be removed from the road each day.
On the cost increase, Lindsay said market conditions have changed significantly since 2019, including supply chain pressures and trade uncertainty, creating challenges for major infrastructure projects.
But for taxpayers, the question is direct: $34 billion is still not the final number, and the ultimate cost remains unknown.
For residents and businesses along the route, as well as people who chose to buy homes near future subway stations, it will still take several more years before the promised transit connection is fully delivered.
The Ontario Line has grown from an initial $10.9 billion to $34 billion, while construction continues. Where the final bill will stop will only become clearer once the remaining contracts are finalized.（LJI by Yuanyuan）
