Ontario issues RFQ for Finch West light-rail project

Metrolinx and Canadian Crown corporation Infrastructure Ontario yesterday issued a request for qualifications (RFQ) for firms to design, build, finance and maintain the Finch West Light Rail Transit (LRT) project in Toronto.

The RFQ marks the first step in the project's procurement process, Infrastructure Ontario officials said in a press release.

Submissions will be evaluated to prequalify teams with relevant design and construction experience, along with their capacity to finance and deliver the project. Qualified teams will be invited to respond to a request for proposals, Infrastructure Ontario officials said.

The nearly seven-mile LRT route will run between Humber College in northwestern Toronto and the new Finch West Subway Station on the Toronto-York Spadina subway extension. The Finch West project will include 18 surface stops and one below-grade interchange station to connect to the new subway station, as well as a maintenance and storage facility for the light-rail vehicles.

"This is an exciting milestone for the … project," said Steven Del Duca, Ontario's minister of transportation. "This new LRT line will help offer more efficient and convenient travel options for priority neighborhoods and will play an important role in improving and connecting transit services across the city and surrounding areas."

Although the Finch West LRT line will remain publicly owned, the project is being delivered using an "alternative financing and procurement model," which transfers risks associated with design, construction, financing and maintenance to the private sector, Infrastructure Ontario officials said.