Do you believe that the Eglinton Crosstown Light Rail Transit (or Line 5) is actually starting this weekend? Feb 8th is the expected start up date! Some say, “I’ll believe it when I see it!” Indeed, after more than a decade of sound and fury, a cost overrun ballooning to the current price tag of $13 billion, and persistently missed deadlines and misfired marketing, the doubts of its success are plentiful. On top of this, the start of the Finch West Crosstown (Line 6) was by all measures a disappointment. It has become the social media “darling” of bad jokes, failed engineering and unfortunate breakdowns. After a launch with cheers and ribbon cutting, it quickly descended into a series of ongoing embarrassments. This week, when speaking about the start of the Eglinton Crosstown, the TTC chair quietly said, “No celebrations, please.”
As I consider our adventures with Metrolinx and the TTC, I am reminded of the believer’s faith in the marketplace of this world’s meaninglessness. Everyone longs for a life that is effective, well lived, meaningful and going somewhere. We’re tired of people in politics who can’t decide which party they belong to; we’re disturbed by world leaders who throw tantrums and tariffs as a child would throw toys across the room; we’re wary of philanthropists and royalty whose images end up in immoral pictures. And then there’s a subway system that we have no confidence in because of attitudes that are high handed, and promises that aren’t kept.
Jesus said to the church, “You are my witnesses” (Acts 1:9); Paul says, “We are ambassadors for Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:20), “letters known and read by everyone” (2 Corinthians 3:2). That is to say that we are representatives of Christ in the way we spend our money, the words that come out of our mouths, the attitudes we display, the dependability of our promises, and the reflection of the Bible in our character. In the next few weeks and months, we will hear much more about the Eglinton Crosstown. When we do, let’s remember the lessons that it teaches us: being reliable, being trustworthy, being good witnesses, being true reflections of our Father in heaven. The lost world around us depends on it.
