Leslie Barns finally opens to streetcar service

Photo: TTC

After multiple delays, the TTC has confirmed that streetcars will finally begin rolling out of the new Leslie Barns maintenance and storage facility as of Nov. 22.

The first two next-generation streetcars are scheduled to leave the facility‎ at 5:30 a.m. The bulk of new vehicles will leave between 10 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. Streetcars will travel to the Barns on Saturday to prepare for Sunday service.

The facility should have begun operations last year but, a series of setbacks plagued the construction timeline. At one point, just when local tempers had reached a boiling point, Leslie Street had to be dug up again so that some 60 metres of rail could be ripped out to rebuild a track-bed slightly lower because of previous measurement errors.  

The facility, located at Leslie St. and Lake Shore Boulevard, will house nearly half of the TTC’s planned new streetcar fleet, which in itself has been marred by delays. The TTC should have taken delivery of 67 new streetcars by this point, but as BlogTO reports, only 16 have been shipped by Bombardier so far.