Have your say: name the first two Ontario Line tunnel boring machines

Be part of transit history! Here’s your chance to make your mark on Toronto’s newest subway line.

The first two tunnel boring machines (TBMs) have arrived in Canada and we need your help to name them!

These titans of tunnelling will dig the tunnels in the southern – or downtown – portion of the Ontario Line between just east of Exhibition Station and just west of the Don River.  

The following names have been shortlisted for their high scores across four different categories -- Tunnelling/topic relevance, historical and/or geographic relevance, creativity, and ease of reference.

The names are accompanied by the rationale included in the submissions to help you make your choice.

Titan and Terra

The word 'Titan' represents strength and power, while 'Terra' means earth in Latin.

Queenie and Corky

Corky: a play-on word of Corktown Station, located in the Corktown neighborhood for which the TBM will travel through. Queenie: a play-on word of Queen Street, for which the TBM will primarily tunnel under. Also, a throwback to renowned Canadian author Alice Munro’s short story “Queenie” on a story about spending a summer in Toronto, one of the greatest cities in the world!

Libby and Corkie

Libby for Liberty Village where the downtown tunneled portion of the line will start and Corkie for Corktown where the downtown tunneled portion will end.

Lucie and Thornton

Lucie and Thornton Blackburn escaped to Canada through the Underground Railroad in 1833 to settle in the Corktown neighbourhood, where they would later emerge as prominent figures in the history of Toronto. In addition to contributing significantly to Toronto’s role in the Underground Railroad, the Blackburns established the city’s first taxi cab service, painted in iconic red and yellow colours later adopted by the TTC.

Chipper and Chewie

One happily chips away at the bedrock and the other chews through the earth.

Help us name the duo! You’re invited to vote for your favourite pair of names by Monday, July 28.

The pair of names with the highest number of votes wins!