All-day, 2-way GO trains may not come to Waterloo region until 2030: MPP Fife

A new report from Metrolinxindicates two-way, all-day GO trains are unlikely in Waterloo region before 2025 and it could take until 2030 to become a reality.

The GO Expansion Full Business Case report from last month lists the GO Rapid Rail services for the Kitchener line as being between 2025 and 2030, along with Lakeshore West, Barrie, Stoufville and Lakeshore East.

Waterloo NDP MPP Catherine Fife said the timeline "isn't positive at all."

"Our province will never be able to compete globally if Kitchener-Waterloo and Toronto are separated by a 100 km long parking lot," Fife said during question period on Wednesday.

The government will be making an announcement "that I think you'll be happy with," Transportation Minister JeffYureksaid in response to Fife.

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"I think the people of this province, especially in the GTHA(Greater Toronto Hamilton Area) and particularly in Cambridge and Kitchener, they're going to be pretty happy with how this government'sgoing to proceed with transit projects across this province," he said.

'We've waiting too long'

Fife rebutted by saying they're received "radio silence" from the province on updates. She noted the Metrolinxreport says there will see significant upgrades between Bramalea and Union Station.

"What about Kitchener?We've waited too long," Fife said, hitting her desk.

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Yureksaid he has been workingwith Progressive Conservative MPPs in Waterloo region and suggested Fife should talk to him about it outside of question period.

"I wish you'd come over and have that conversation with me and have that discussion instead of asking and yelling and screaming in the house," he said.

"I invite you to come over and have a discussion," Yurek said before his microphone was cut off by Speaker Ted Arnott because of a standing ovation by PC MPPs.

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Fife previously raised the issue on Nov. 23 when she asked Transportation Minister Jeff Yurek why GO transit wasn't mentioned in the government's recent fall economic statement.

"We need to get Ontario moving again and that's what we're going to be doing. Stay tuned. That's all I can tell the members opposite. Stay tuned," Yurek said at the time.

The region is hoping to see all-day, two-way service to Toronto by 2024. During the provincial election campaign, Premier Doug Ford said his government would bring all-day, two-way GO service to Kitchener.

"We're going to fund that," he said during a campaign stop in Kitchener on April 27. "We're going to do it as quickly as possible."