(05-26-2016, 06:59 PM)plam Wrote: They pointed out that it is somewhat difficult (expensive) to connect above-ground rail to underground systems.
Pure, unadulterated Hodge Podge. That's what Scarberians would like you to believe, too, as an excuse to replace the Scarborough rt with a useless subway extension that serves exactly no-one, rather than repair what they have and expand upon it. But that's another bedtime story, for another city.
And, try telling that to anyone who has ever ridden the "L" in Chicago! Switching between the underground lines and those which are above ground in the Loop couldn't be easier. A couple of escalators or staircases, and you're done.
Perhaps the Montrealers are simply too accustomed to their brilliantly-designed cross-platform metro interchanges, like Lionel-Groulx, which have intersecting lines corkscrew 90 degrees before entering the platforms, so you simply walk across the platform to change trains without changing level.
Nothing but poppycock.