What it was like to take the LRT’s first ride
The Eglinton Crosstown LRT officially opened Sunday. Torontonians braved the frigid weather and early morning hours to take the first train, and so did CBC’s Lorenda Reddekopp and Hadyn Watters. Check out some of the highlights from Line 5’s opening.
My name is Haydn Watters and I’m a reporter with CBC Toronto’s Metro Morning. I was on the raucous inaugural LRT train leaving Kennedy yesterday morning — and I’m riding Line 5 again all morning long, starting at Mount Dennis on the opposite end.
Rarely do you hear cheering on public transit, but that was the sound as we departed Kennedy Station yesterday — one minute early — and made our way across the city. And it started before we even got on board: Eager riders chanted “Line 5, Line 5” as the sliding doors of the station were unlocked and they made their way to the platform downstairs.
Cheers would erupt when we entered tunnels, with passengers excitedly swapping speed measurements, travel times and how many red lights we stopped at. An impromptu marching band played on board, complete with flutes and a kazoo.
It was only when we reached the final stretch into Mount Dennis station that a lull fell over the vehicle. Gavin Elliott, the TTC driver for the inaugural ride, got on the loudspeaker, announcing “Attention all passengers, welcome to the west end.” And the roar of cheers returned.
The first westbound trip took 55 minutes to travel 19 kilometres from Kennedy to Mount Dennis. That’s the same time it took me to ride the entire Line 6 from Finch West to Humber on its second morning operating (and it’s only 10 kilometres long).