TTC's new Union Station platform set to open next year
It’s been more than two years of construction disruption for the 200,000 commuters who traverse the country’s busiest transit hub each day, and there are still at least two years of work ahead.
But behind the hoarding at Union Station a more comfortable commute is taking shape for TTC riders.
Photo gallery: Union Station revitalization behind the scenes
A second platform will open next summer, doubling the TTC’s capacity at Union, where more than 100,000 riders a day access the subway. Many more traverse the station on their way to the waterfront and the city’s financial district, including more than 200,000 GO Transit riders.
The new platform will be separated from the original centre-island platform by a continuous, full-height glass wall that will allow riders to see clear across the station. The entire TTC project won’t be complete, however, until 2015, in time for the Pan Am Games.
When it opens, the crowds that now teeter uncomfortably on the narrowest platform in Toronto’s subway system — 6.9 metres wide — will be redistributed across twice the space, said TTC project manager Malcolm MacKay.
“The University-bound trains (will) use the centre platform, and the Yonge-bound trains would offload to the new south platform,” he told reporters on a behind-the-scenes tour of the construction Wednesday.
In addition to the glass wall separating the trains, a new art wall will be installed on the south side of the existing platform.
“That’s going to bring colour and vibrance and improve the environment at platform level,” said MacKay.
The new TTC concourse will also include brighter finishes and better lighting.
The bank of stairs that opened in May at the southwest side of the subway station concourse eventually will be replaced by a level walkway between the rail station (which is going to be dug down lower) and the subway. The temporary opening allows the station to continue to function as demolition continues to the east.
MacKay said there have been “surprisingly few” complaints about the work-related disruptions.
The city’s extension of the PATH to the northwest of Union will provide alternative routes from the lakefront to the financial district, said MacKay.
“People are not necessarily going to be coming through the TTC like they do today. They’re going to have other opportunities to exit the station. As well, GO Transit is spreading out their offloading across a bigger part of the station,” he said.
The $16.5-million TTC project is just one part of about $1 billion being spent on reconstruction at Union Station. The mammoth project includes a new glass roof for GO’s historic train shed, new passenger concourses on both sides of the large station, and renovations to the grand hall of the city-owned rail terminal.
“It’s short-term pain for long-term gain,” said TTC chair Karen Stintz, who reported that the TTC project is on time and on budget.
Revitalization of the 1927 station is being funded by all three levels of government through Waterfront Toronto. Union Station sees about twice the traffic annually of Pearson International Airport.
