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TTC Greenlights Sole-Source Deal with Alstom for 70 New Subway Trains

Officials say the move safeguards Ontario rail jobs against U.S. tariffs, setting independent price reviews and performance thresholds before a year-end contract decision.

Subway trains line up in a TTC yard in Toronto on April 23, 2020.
A subway train on Line 2 travels along the Bloor Street Viaduct.
A Toronto Transit Commission sign is shown at a downtown Toronto subway stop Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graeme Roy
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Overview

  • The TTC has cancelled its open competitive process after federal, provincial and municipal approvals cleared the way to negotiate directly with Alstom Transport Canada.
  • The proposed base order comprises 70 six-car trainsets, with 55 to replace Toronto’s nearly 30-year-old Line 2 fleet and 15 for the planned Yonge North and Scarborough extensions.
  • Governments defended the single-source approach as a strategy to protect Canadian manufacturing jobs, highlighting Alstom’s Thunder Bay and Kingston facilities.
  • The deal remains conditional on Alstom delivering trains that meet TTC technical specifications, maximizing Canadian content and accepting an independent third-party market price assessment.
  • TTC and Alstom are set to negotiate terms over the coming months and will report back to the transit commission’s board on the status of negotiations by the end of 2025.