Toronto’s newly opened Eglinton Crosstown LRT is already facing a public speed test, and it lost.
Mac Bauer, a local runner known online as @514runner, raced the train along its overground stretch from Kennedy station to Aga Khan Park and Museum station, a distance of roughly five kilometres. His partner, Annie Yang, rode the train and timed the journey.
Bauer finished 10 minutes ahead.
The Crosstown opened to the public last weekend after 15 years of construction and repeated delays that pushed the project far beyond its original timeline. The prolonged build led to calls for a public inquiry into the setbacks and rising costs. Ontario Premier Doug Ford has said an inquiry is not necessary and that the focus should be on the fact the line is now running.
Bauer’s race unfolded in less-than-ideal conditions. In a video posted to Instagram, he said sidewalks were so icy in places that he had to move into the bike lane to keep his footing. Even so, he beat the train comfortably.
The stretch he ran includes multiple surface stops and traffic interactions, which can slow light-rail service compared with fully separated subway lines. The video quickly circulated online, adding to ongoing debate about travel times and expectations for one of the city’s most scrutinized transit projects.
This is not Bauer’s first such challenge. In December, he raced the Finch West LRT and beat it by 18 minutes.
His transit races are informal and unscientific. But they strike a nerve in a city that has waited more than a decade for the Crosstown to open. For us runners, it’s an amusing stunt to take a watch at. For commuters, though, it raises a practical question about how fast the new line really is (maybe some will even consider running next time).
