There is no shortage of transit excitement in the east end of Toronto.

Whether it’s improving the Queen Street bridge, widening tracks at Eastern Avenue, or building a new boardwalk at Small’s Creek – so much happened this year.

It’s all part of our work to build an affordable, integrated, and sustainable transit network that connects communities to the things that matter most. 

As 2024 comes to a close, here is a look back at the top videos, articles and moments of the year – and the ones that you loved most.

Work underway across all contracts that make up the Ontario Line

Work began in October on two new bridges in the northern segment of the Ontario Line subway that will carry Ontario Line trains across the Don Valley and through the Thorncliffe and Flemingdon Park neighbourhoods.

This new milestone built on the ongoing progress of the Ontario Line, with partners on board for all contracts and work underway along the entire route. When complete, the Ontario Line will bring 15 new subway stations to the city, running from Exhibition Place, through downtown, making it faster and easier to travel within Toronto and beyond.

Bridge construction milestones

Bridges are truly the great connectors in the transit world.

Subway lines in Toronto and around the world have above-ground sections and the Ontario Line is no exception. The construction of new, wider rail bridges in Toronto’s east end will mark a major milestone for the Ontario Line and GO Expansion projects.

Crews successfully moved GO train operations to newly built tracks on the southern half of the Eastern Avenue bridge and the bridge at Queen Street East and De Grassi Street. By widening the rail corridor and increasing the number of tracks, we can make room for more GO Train service and the future Ontario Line subway – which will share the new bridges.  

Small’s Creek restoration and boardwalk

On top of being able to run more trains, another benefit of widening the tracks in east Toronto is the chance for community improvements. In Toronto’s Upper Beaches neighbourhood, we’re building a new boardwalk to connect the community to the local ravine.

A new culvert is helping Small’s Creek flow easily underneath the nearby GO Train tracks and the ravine is being restored with local plants like buttonbush, black cherry and fragrant sumac.

The story behind the bridges of the future Ontario Line

Speaking of Ontario Line bridges, one of your favourite stories this year was a deep dive into how these two new bridges plus another new one being built downtown will transform Toronto’s cityscape.

“These bridges have to be functional, but we also are very cognizant about their place in the city, and we spent a lot of time sculpting elements on them to get the details right,” said John Potter, senior manager subways sponsor at Metrolinx.

Not-so-secret trove of 19th century artifacts found at Union Station

While some may only think of it as a transit stop, Union Station is a treasure trove of artifacts associated with the history of Toronto’s waterfront. 

Recent work on the station has revealed several interesting discoveries from the mid-19th century. The archaeology team has uncovered multiple wharf structures and other shoreline infrastructure, along with household artifacts from the time period. 

Take a closer look at some of the fascinating discoveries.

Beyond these exciting milestones and project updates, we were thrilled this year to celebrate a transformative year for PRESTO. The transit payment system made several advancements that gave transit riders in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) more flexibility, seamless transfers and money in their pockets. The One Fare program launched in February and already over 25 million transfers have been made using One Fare, saving commuters more than $81 million collectively. In July, Metrolinx and Apple introduced PRESTO in Apple Wallet, bringing you another way to pay your fare across the region. 

This year, we also continued our focus on safety, hosting events around Rail Safety Week and launching a series of videos and stories around LRT safety, and accessibility, launching a partnership with AccessNow in January and adding more transit accessibility guides on the MagnusCards app.

It’s been a busy and eventful year, full of important milestones and great moments, and we look forward to sharing more stories and updates with you in 2025. Thank you for reading Discover!