Mayor David Miller and TTC chair Adam Giambrone visited Toronto-based
Lovat Inc. late last month to celebrate the purchase of tunnel boring equipment from the Toronto manufacturer for use in the construction of the
Eglinton Light Rail Transit route.
The $53 million order for four tunnelling machines will support the 380 staff of Lovat, whose plant is located on Carlingview Drive near Pearson International Airport. According to TTC spokesperson Ryan Bissonnette, the contract was awarded in an open and transparent bidding process that did not favour the local manufacturer, who is a world leader in the design and manufacture of tunnelling equipment. However, Bissonnette says, the transit commission does see the fact that a person could actually ride the TTC to the manufacturing plant as a benefit. "We're exceedingly happy to be able to support a Toronto business -- usually we say 'Toronto area,' but in this case, Lovat is actually in the city," he says.
Construction on the 33-kilometre-long Eglinton Crosstown LRT route, part of the city of Toronto ambitious
Transit City plan, is scheduled to begin next year. Bissonnette says the project is expected to create approximately 46,000 jobs.
Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Ryan Bissonnette, Public Affairs, Toronto Transit Commission
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