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Ontario says it needs the federal government to commit $1.5 billion in order to build a light-rail transit line in Hamilton.
The province on Tuesday called on Ottawa to provide the funding, over a year after it cancelled the project because its costs had escalated to $5.5 billion.
Last year, a provincially appointed panel issued a report saying the city needs a “higher order” transit project to address future growth — either a light-rail line or a bus rapid transit line.
The province said the line is now a “fifth priority transit project,” joining four other Toronto projects that it has committed to building.
Transportation Minister Caroline Mulroney says the province remains committed to providing $1 billion in capital funding, but a technical review says that is not enough to cover the cost of a “viable” LRT line.
Federal Infrastructure Minister Catherine McKenna says she will discuss the project with the province and city but would not yet commit the funding.
The 17-stop project was estimated to cost $1 billion when the previous Liberal government committed to funding it in 2014. The Progressive Conservatives promised during the 2018 election to move ahead with it, then re-committed to it in their 2019 budget last March.
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