Downtown Relief Line

Downtown Relief Line

The Downtown Relief subway line (DRL) is a subway line planned for Toronto, Canada, but not yet constructed. Various plans along the basic right-of-way have been proposed since the earliest history of the Toronto subway system. A DRL has traditionally been proposed to address capacity issues along the Toronto Transit Commission's (TTC) Yonge Line and later Bloor-Yonge Station. However, the Downtown Relief Line has been identified as a key project in managing the expected increase of ridership from the proposed extension of the Yonge Line to Richmond Hill. Recently, a similar alignment been also proposed by Metrolinx as a possible solution to the projected overcrowding of Union Station. The possible cost is billed at 6.2 billion dollars. With Toronto's condo boom, the population of the downtown core is expected to grow by 83% from 71,000 to 131,000 in 20 years. At the same time employment will increase by 21%. Underserved high-density shoulder areas of downtown such as Liberty Village, CityPlace, The Entertainment District, Distillery District, and West Don Lands will experience an influx of high-rise transit-oriented development.