Announcing the winning names of the Tunnel Boring Machine Naming Contest...

We’re excited to announce the winning names of the tunnel boring machines (TBMs) for The Crosstown! The names were announced today by Metrolinx CEO Bruce McCuaig, Transportation Minister Glen Murray and MPP Laura Albanese. The winning names are Dennis and Lea, representing the Mount Dennis and Leaside neighbourhoods, and Don and Humber, representing the rivers.

The Tunnel Boring Machines Naming Contest, which took place late last year, allowed participants to submit their own creative and fun suggestions for the names of one set of TBMs. The most popular set of names were shortlisted and voted on by the public. Thank you to Jason Paris (Dennis and Lea), Graham Gersdorff, Val Dodge and Reiner Kravis (Don and Humber) of Toronto for submitting the winning names!

The first pair of TBMs, Dennis and Lea, will start digging the underground portion of the line eastward from Black Creek Drive. The second pair, Don and Humber, will dig westward from around Leslie Street towards Yonge and Eglinton. The machines will bore a little more than 10 kilometres of tunnel at a rate of approximately 10 to 15 metres a day.

Today marked a significant milestone in the biggest transit expansion in the history of Toronto. The Crosstown will be 19 kilometres long in total and is expected to be completed by 2020.