INFRASTRUCTURE Ontario and Metrolinx have awarded a consortium led by Strabag a $C 757.1m ($US 623.7m) Design Build Finance contract for the Advance Tunnel Project for the 7.8km Scarborough Subway Extension (Line 2) in Toronto.

The Scarborough Subway Extension (SSE) Advance Tunnel Project is the first phase of work for the 7.8km extension of the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) Line 2 from Kennedy Station to McCowan Road/Sheppard Avenue. The extension will have three stations and is expected to carry more than 100,000 passengers a day.

The Public-Private Partnership (PPP) contract began in May with launch shaft construction beginning in June. Major tunnel boring is expected to begin next year, with the contract expected to be completed by autumn 2024. Strabag estimates most of the labour will come from the Greater Toronto Area. Strabag will be responsible for construction and financial aspects of the contract, while its consortium partners Arup Canada and Brian Isherwood & Associates will undertake the design elements.

The SEE Advance Tunnel contract includes:

  • tunnelling for the 7.8km extension
  • design and construction of the launch and extraction shafts, tunnels, and headwalls for emergency exit buildings and stations
  • supply of the 11.87m-high tunnel boring machine (TBM)
  • the installation of segmental precast concrete tunnel liners, and
  • other civil works required for tunnel construction including utility relocations, supports for shaft and headwalls, temporary power supply, lighting, ventilation, and drainage.

The contract was awarded through a public procurement process. Evaluation criteria included design and construction methodology, approach to project management and the collaborative behaviours of key individuals of the team.

A separate contract will be issued in the future for the rest of the work, which includes building the stations, fitting-out the tunnel and installing and commissioning the systems to put the metro extension in service.

In May, the Canadian and Ontario governments and the City of Toronto reached an agreement to invest $C 26.8bn in four shovel-ready public transit projects in the Greater Toronto Area, including the SEE.

The project is part of Ontario’s $C 28.5bn metro expansion programme, which also includes the Ontario Line, the Yonge North Subway Extension, and the Eglinton Crosstown West Extension, which together will expand the network by more than 40km.

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