The Red Line Podcast

Today on the show, we're discussing the Ontario Line, which will be Toronto’s newest subway line just a few years from now. Just how did this long-awaited relief line get going, and how can it change Toronto transit forever? All this, after the break. Links and stuffs Merch:https://shop.trlpod.com/ Twitter:@TheRedLine_pod YouTube channel:The Red Line Podcast Spotify:The Red Line Podcast Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/theredlinepodcasters Email:[email protected] Website:https://www.trlpod.com/ Timestamps 0:00 Setting up 2:47 Canada acknowledgement 4:21 Tweet read-aloud 5:21 The Onion front page from 25 years ago 7:49 Intro 8:43 The break (no good news :( ) 12:49 End of break > The Toronto subway's geographic bottleneck 16:35 See Picture: Streetcar tunnel map[15] 18:45 See Picture: x2 from Toronto Transit Wiki[9] 19:45 Transit 2011 26:47 Downtown Rapid Transit Extension Study > Doug Ford 28:56 See Picture: Alternative comparison map[13] 31:47 Cost... 38:30 So expensive we can't build anything 40:42 Patrons References & notes [1]Mormon News: BYU Kennedy Center director killed in bike accident in Provo: BYU Kennedy Center director killed in bike accident in Provo [2]Wikipedia: Relief Line (Toronto) § 1980s: A new subway line [3]Infrastructure Ontario: Ontario Line [4]Metrolinx: Ontario Line - What Were Building [5]Metrolinx: Ontario Line - Trains and Technology [6]Wikipedia: Toronto subway [7]Wikipedia: Ontario Line [8]Metrolinx: Ontario Line [9]Transit Toronto: A History of the Downtown Relief Subway Line [10]Transit Toronto: A History of the Ontario Line [11]The Transit Brief: Why transit suddenly costs so much [12]Wikipedia: List of countries and dependencies by area [13]Metrolinx: A comparison of a partially elevated Ontario Line vs Relief Line (reposted, original link is dead) [14]"Ontario Line Exhibition station construction 2026" by Transportfan70, CC BY 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons [15]Toronto Transit Commission: A proposed subway map from the 1944 report Rapid Transit for Toronto

Today on the show we're discussing the good 'ol Toronto Subway, which is the second busiest rapid transit system in Anglophone North America. Just why is Toronto's (relatively) small system so successful, and where might it be going next? All this, after The News. Links and stuffs Merch:https://shop.trlpod.com/ Twitter:@TheRedLine_pod YouTube channel:The Red Line Podcast Spotify:The Red Line Podcast Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/theredlinepodcasters Email:[email protected] Website:https://www.trlpod.com/ Timestamps 0:00 Intro & low-floor Seattle rant 3:27 Trvke 9:08 The News 12:39 News end 19:44 Opening in 1954 22:15 Plans for a second line using the Prince Edward Viaduct 25:35 Extensions everywhere, including to Finch 27:46 Hawker-Siddley trains 31:45 NDP plan for a 5-stop Sheppard subway 33:58 2014's numbering of the lines 35:24 Future extensions incl. the Ontario relief line 43:00 Gawking at the ridership 44:42 Patrons References & notes [1]Mass Transit: Amtrak re-opens East River Tunnel after year of construction [2]American Public Transportation Association: Public Transportation Ridership Report, First Quarter 2026 [3]BART: March 2026 Monthly Ridership Snapshot [4]Wikipedia: Toronto subway § Expansion plans [5]Wikipedia: Toronto subway rolling stock [6]Wikipedia: Line 1 Yonge–University § History [7]Wikipedia: Line 2 Bloor–Danforth § Subway construction [8]Wikipedia: Line 4 Sheppard [9]City of Toronto: Canada's First Subway [10]Wikipedia: Toronto subway [11]CSCE/SCGC: Toronto Subway [12]Transit Toronto: A History of the Original Yonge Subway [13]The Canadian Encyclopedia: Toronto Subway [14]Metro Liner: Evolution of the Toronto Subway 1954-2030s (geographic map) [15]Transit Toronto: Map of original subway routing

In the runtime of this episode, you could travel about 5.2 miles (to Albion station) on Line 6. Today on the show, we'll be discussing Toronto’s 2nd newest light rail line, the Finch West LRT. Just why does Canada's largest city have two weird spur lines branching off from the Line 1 Subway, and what good is line 6? All this on today's show. Links and stuffs Merch:https://shop.trlpod.com/ Twitter:@TheRedLine_pod YouTube channel:The Red Line Podcast Spotify:The Red Line Podcast Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/theredlinepodcasters Email:[email protected] Website:https://www.trlpod.com/ Timestamps 1:54 The News 6:14 The Globe 6:47 News end 7:02 2014 was twelve years ago 8:57 Replacing one of the busiest bus routes in Toronto 12:25 Scrapped by Rob Ford in 2010 15:14 Utilities & building in LA[9] 20:45 Speeds… 24:42 Rob Ford was right??? 29:10 Outro & Patrons 31:29 cut for public References & notes [1]Mass Transit: FTA to award $1.28 billion in CIG funding for FrontRunner 2X project [2]UTA UDOT FrontRunner: Noise Wall Survey Results [3]Wikipedia: Line 6 Finch West § History [4]Wikipedia: Transit City [5]Metrolinx: Finch West LRT [6]Daily Commercial News by ConstructConnect: A Finch West LRT look back: The rocky road to completion [7]Daily Commercial News by ConstructConnect: Lawsuit launched by Mosaic Transit Group on Finch West LRT [8]Transit Toronto: Line 6 - The Finch West LRT [9]nandert: Cut & Cover for K Northern Extension: Part Two [10]Transit Toronto: Finch West LRT Project Map

Today on the show, we're talking about one of Toronto's most controversial and long-awaited transit projects, and one that opened earlier this year: The Eglinton Crosstown. Just how did Toronto's first LRT line become such a nightmare, and where might it be going next? All this, after The News. (Rob Ford mentioned) Thumbnail: "Chaplin station platform stair view" by Transportfan70 is licensed underCC BY 4.0 (via Wikimedia Commons) Links and stuffs Merch:https://shop.trlpod.com/ Twitter:@TheRedLine_pod YouTube channel:The Red Line Podcast Spotify:The Red Line Podcast Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/theredlinepodcasters Email:[email protected] Website:https://www.trlpod.com/ Timestamps 1:17 news intro 1:28 Doug Ford fan theories 1:57 News: USDOT has decided to defund all transit 5:37 Dooming over the midterms 6:38 Dooming over the Great Salt Lake (parallel drawn to the Aral Sea) 10:14Aral Sea in 1989 vs. ten years ago 12:50Ship in the empty Aral Sea 15:53SLURM's TRAX Speedrun 17:30 News end. 2007: Mayor David Miller 20:47Transit City promised 7 new LRT lines 28:01 Inevitable cuts to Transit City; subplot: SF housing 30:31 Subplot: loyalty tests & Bubba 33:05 Rob Ford helps out 36:18 What if we put the entire line underground? 40:25 Construction officially begins 46:09The trainset (Bombardier Flexity) 48:01 Outro & Patrons References & notes [1]Mass Transit: APTA responds to USDOT's proposals for surface transportation reauthorization bill [2]KSL NewsRadio 102.7 FM: Salt Lake City could break another temperature record on Monday [3]USGS: Great Salt Lake Hydro Mapper [4]Wikipedia: Line 5 Eglinton [5]Wikipedia: Transit City [6]Wikipedia: Eglinton West Line [7]Rail for the Valley: The Eglinton Story (Part 1) [8]Steve Munro: Eglinton Crosstown LRT Chronology (Updated) [9]Toronto.com: TIMELINE: A brief history of Toronto’s Eglinton Crosstown LRT project [10]Infrastructure Ontario: Eglinton Crosstown LRT [11]Wikipedia: Darth Vader grotesque [12]Eelam StyleZ: Network map of future LRT and BRT lines indicated in the Transit City project. [13]Dillan Payne: Flexity Freedom train at Eglinton station

Today on the show, we're continuing our Toronto series with a discussion of GO RER - or is is GO Expansion? - the Toronto region's ambitious plan to transform the way people use Government of Ontario Transit. All this, after The News. Links and stuffs Merch:https://shop.trlpod.com/ Twitter:@TheRedLine_pod YouTube channel:The Red Line Podcast Spotify:The Red Line Podcast Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/theredlinepodcasters Email:[email protected] Website:https://www.trlpod.com/ Timestamps References & notes [1]Mass Transit: Metra finishes in-house rehabilitation of 302 passenger railcars [2]Wikipedia: GO Expansion [3]City of Toronto: Appendix 1 - GO Transit Regional Express Rail Overview [4]Metrolinx: GO Expansion [5]CPTDB Wiki: GO Transit Regional Express Rail [6]Wikipedia: The Big Move [7]Wikipedia: The Big Move rapid transit projects [8]Toronto Star: They were promised two-way, all-day GO train service. Confidential Metrolinx documents show these lines may actually get slower [9]Czech Digital Library: Defenestration of Prague, illustrated by Czech history painter Adolf Liebscher c. 1900

Today on the show, we're talking about Government of Ontario Transit, which normal people call the GO Train. Just how did Toronto get one of North America’s most extensive suburban rail and bus networks, and where might it be GO ing next? All this after The News. Links and stuffs Merch:https://shop.trlpod.com/ Twitter:@TheRedLine_pod YouTube channel:The Red Line Podcast Spotify:The Red Line Podcast Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/theredlinepodcasters Email:[email protected] Website:https://www.trlpod.com/ Timestamps 0:46 fire discussion 2:39, 3:42 Firework restrictions[15] [16] 4:20 Daniel S. Tuttle 5:56 trip report start 15:47 trip report end / news start 17:38 Ben McAdams beats everyone else 20:43 CoCo 23:51 news ends 23:57 Toronto: the Denver of the north 26:42 Provincial study in 1962 27:32 Jet Lag: The Game mentioned[17] 29:47 and 32:17 Single-decker Hawker-Siddely coaches[21] 31:09 Stadler FrontRunner reveal[18] 33:14 PAC-12 36:19 CPKC[14] [19] 37:08 Expansions 39:44 FrontRunner towing[20] 47:05 GO ALRT (Patreon exclusive) 49:19 Financial shock 50:26 Canadian political party names 52:36 - 57:40 CW distasteful 9/11 jokes 54:29 GO system map[13] 55:13Episode 18 (about maps 56:22 Higher ridership now than in 2017 57:26 SLC demographic perceptions 59:47 Introducing the serices 1:02:43Scarborough RT episode (Patreon exclusive) 1:04:44 Patrons References & notes [1]Mass Transit: Virginia Railway Express acquires Seminary Yard from VPRA [2]Mass Transit: Wisconsin submits grant application to USDOT for expanded Amtrak passenger rail service [3]Wikipedia: GO Transit § Ridership [4]Wikipedia: GO Transit bus services [5]Wikipedia: Milton line [6]Wikipedia: History of GO Transit § Recent developments [7]GO Transit: Our Past & Present [8]High Speed Rail Alliance: GO Transit: A Case Study in North American Regional Rail [9]Metrolinx: Back in time: The remarkable evolution of your GO train [10]Wikipedia: GO Transit rail services [11]Wikipedia: GO Expansion [12]Metrolinx: GO Electrification [13]Transit Maps: Official Map: Go Transit System Map, Southern Ontario, Canada [14]STB: CPKC system map, showing CP tracks in red and KCS in black. Does not include trackage rights. [15]Utah Fire Info: Active Fire Restrictions [16]Deseret News: Where you can and can't light personal fireworks in Utah this Fourth of July [17]Jet Lag: The Game: Stateside Scramble - Episode 1 [18]City Weekly: UDOT eyes locally-built Stadler trains for next generation of FrontRunner. [19]CPKC: Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern Execute Agreement to Combine, Creating First Single-Line Rail Network Linking U.S.-Mexico-Canada [20]Utah Public Procurement Place: UDOT250192MP-1 - UDOT RFP- UDOT/UTA FrontRunner Train Sets Acquisition - IN LIEU OF - document "00. FR2X Section 6 Technical Specifications (Addendum 1).docx" page 43 (TS 1.4.4 paragraph 29) [21]David Wilson: 19680706 27 GO Transit Oakville, ON

Today on the show, we're beginning a five-part series on Canada's largest city with a discussion of the Union-Pearson Express. Just why did it take Toronto so long to get a rail link with its airport, and what can the UP Express teach us about airport transit? All this, after The News. Links and stuffs Merch:https://shop.trlpod.com/ Twitter:@TheRedLine_pod YouTube channel:The Red Line Podcast Spotify:The Red Line Podcast Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/theredlinepodcasters Email:[email protected] Website:https://www.trlpod.com/ Timestamps References & notes [1]Utah Transit Authority: UTA launches into summer construction schedule with S-Line streetcar extension and grade crossing [2]Wikipedia: Union Pearson Express [3]Transit Toronto: The Union-Pearson Express [4]UP Express: 10 Years of UP Express [5]Neptis Foundation: Union Pearson (UP) Express [6]u/Spellbinder_Iria: UP Express photos overlaid with layout diagrams [7]Wikipedia: Toronto [8]Wikipedia: Toronto Pearson International Airport [9]Atlas Obscura: D.C.'s Underground Bald Cypress Fossils [10]The Holy See: Encyclical Letter of His Holiness Leo XIV Magnifica Humanitas (15 May 2026) [11]Wikipedia: WES Commuter Rail

Today on the show, we're talking about the Waterloo region’s remarkable LRT system: the ION. Just how did such a small city get a light rail transit system, and where might it go next? All this, after The News. Links and stuffs Merch:https://shop.trlpod.com/ Twitter:@TheRedLine_pod YouTube channel:The Red Line Podcast Spotify:The Red Line Podcast Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/theredlinepodcasters Email:[email protected] Website:https://www.trlpod.com/ Timestamps References & notes [1]Mass Transit: UTA's Midvalley Express BRT begins passenger service [2]KSL News Utah: Proposed Data Center in Box Elder County [3]@AnalytiKroll: Video of the driver flooring it into the wall. [4]Wikipedia: Ion rapid transit [5]Grand River Transit: Performance measures [6]CTV News: Timeline: Looking back at a 17-year journey to ION [7]Green Municipal Fund: Case study: Region of Waterloo, ON, develops LRT to connect its urban centres [8]Region of Waterloo: Stage 2 ION [9]Region of Waterloo: The ION Story

Today, we'll be discussing America's OTHER forgotten metro line, the Tren Urbano. Just how did Puerto Rico get an elevated rail system, why didn't it get a ring of rail around the whole island, and how might it be made better? In the news: the Kansas City Streetcar will reach its full length starting in May (6.4 miles). Links and stuffs Merch:https://shop.trlpod.com/ Twitter:@TheRedLine_pod YouTube channel:The Red Line Podcast Spotify:The Red Line Podcast Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/theredlinepodcasters Email:[email protected] Website:https://www.trlpod.com/ Timestamps References & notes [1]Mass Transit: KC Streetcar Riverfront Extension to open for passenger service May 18 [2]KSL NewsRadio 102.7 FM: S-Line extension aims to provide easier access to businesses, housing in Sugar House [3]City of Kansas City: KC Streetcar Starts Rolling to the River on May 18 [4]Wikipedia: Puerto Rico [5]Wikipedia: Tren Urbano § Rolling stock [6]Wikipedia: Puerto Rico Metropolitan Bus Authority [7]U.S. Department of Transportation: Tren Urbano [8]Robert Schwandl's Urban Rail Blog: SAN JUAN Tren Urbano [9]Metro Magazine: Tren Urbano represents historic landmark for Puerto Rico [10]Yo Soy Borinquen: Tren Urbano (Urban Train) [11]Greater Greater Washington: Metro has a twin in San Juan, Puerto Rico [12]Wikipedia: Rail transport in Puerto Rico [13]U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: CPI Inflation Calculator [14]Sistema de Metro de Puerto Rico (Map from TUSCA, 1972)

Today on the show, we’ll be discussing Angel's Flight, which might be the shortest passenger railway still running. Just why does LA of all places have a funicular railway, and how did it stick around? All this on today's show. (Sofi didn't write any news, but not to worry, WE [humans] WENT TO THE MOON!!!!) Links and stuffs Merch:https://shop.trlpod.com/ Twitter:@TheRedLine_pod YouTube channel:The Red Line Podcast Spotify:The Red Line Podcast Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/theredlinepodcasters Email:[email protected] Website:https://www.trlpod.com/ Timestamps References & notes [1]Hank Green: Explaining the Most Important Artemis II Photos [2]Wikipedia: Angels Flight [3]Wikipedia: Bunker Hill, Los Angeles § Bunker Hill Redevelopment Project [4]Angels Flight (r) Railway: History of Angels Flight (r) [5]Discover Los Angeles: Angels Flight: The Story of an L.A. Icon [6]California Historic Route 66 Association: Angels Flight Railway [7]American Ghost Walks: Angels Flight: LA's Haunted Railway & Its Mysterious History [8]Angels Flight (r) Railway: The Story of an L.A. Icon [9]Wikipedia: 3rd Street (Los Angeles) [10]Water and Power Associates: Third Street Tunnel [11]MonServicePublic: How to get about on foot in the Principality [12]The Tim Traveller and Matt Gray: In Monaco, Elevators Are A Form Of Public Transport. So We Raced Them.