Union station (TTC)

Station excavation circa 1949

The station opened as the southern terminus of the original Yonge subway line on March 30, 1954.

On February 28, 1963, Union became a through station with the opening of the University section of the Yonge–University line.

On June 22, 1990, Union became the terminus of route 604 Harbourfront LRT, now part of the 509 Harbourfront and 510 Spadina streetcar routes. A new underground streetcar platform was built south of the subway tracks, connected to the station concourse by a 30-metre pedestrian tunnel and a flight of stairs.[4]

Elevators were installed in 1996, making Union one of the first wheelchair-accessible subway stations in Toronto.[5] An elevator was added to the streetcar platforms, even though streetcars were not accessible themselves. By the time accessible streetcars began serving the station in 2014, the elevator had been replaced as a part of the station expansion.[4]

On August 18, 2014, a second subway platform was opened to serve Yonge line trains, leaving the existing platform to serve only University line trains.[6]

When the station opened in 1954, the wall coverings were glossy yellow Vitrolite tiles with red lettering and trim, and the station name on the walls was in the TTC's unique Toronto Subway Font. During renovations in the 1980s, the yellow Vitrolite tiles were replaced with brown ceramic tiles and vinyl siding, and the station font was changed to Univers.

The 2011 to 2015 station expansion replaced these tiles and panels with white tiles and black trim, and the font used to render the station name was returned to its original Toronto Subway typeface.[4]

As part of the second platform project, a glass wall was built to block off the southern side of the old platform, since it now only serves the University line. It features the art piece "Zones of Immersion" by Stuart Reid, a professor at the OCAD University[11][12] The work comprises 166 large glass panels, each measuring more than one by two metres, extending 170-metre (560 ft) along the length of the platform. Mostly transparent, it is visible from both the Yonge and University platforms. Each panel contains images or words, many based on sketches that Reid drew while riding the subway. Public reaction towards the art piece has been mixed, with some users of the station finding it "tragic" or "dark and depressing".[13][14]

Station platform in 2009 with white and brown ceramic wall tiles from the 1980s

Panel from Zones of Immersion by Stuart Reid opposite the new platform after the 2015 station expansion

Signal at east end of University line platform

The station lies on an east–west axis along Front Street. It is one of three stations on Line 1 with an east–west orientation, the others being St. George and Downsview Park. Leaving the station eastbound, the Yonge leg of the line runs briefly under Front Street and turns 90 degrees north to run under Yonge Street; leaving westbound, the University leg also runs under Front Street, and shortly after turns 90 degrees north to run under University Avenue.

A Flexity streetcar behind a CLRV in the Union station loop

510 Spadina streetcar at Union streetcar platform

Union Station Loop is located underground at the north end of a 500 m (1,600 ft) tunnel running under Bay Street through the underground Queens Quay station from the street Queens Quay. The loop runs anticlockwise on a single track along a curved platform. An underground passage connects the streetcar platform to the Yonge subway platform. Union Station Loop is the eastern terminus of the 509 Harbourfront and southern terminus of the 510 Spadina streetcar route.[15][16] The loop has a minimum radius of curvature of 14.5 m (48 ft).[17]

A 2017 TTC report stated that the streetcar loop would become inadequate for the volume of customers it handled because of its single track and its curved, narrow platform. The loop would not be able to handle the peak demand of 3700 people per hour projected for 2041. A 2010 environmental assessment for the East Bayfront LRT (a proposed streetcar line) approved rebuilding the existing streetcar loop plus the construction of a connection from the streetcar tunnel to the East Bayfront LRT on Queens Quay East. The LRT design would have rebuilt the loop to have four platforms, each with a bypass track, so that a streetcar could bypass other streetcars loading or unloading. Expansion of the loop's capacity would be needed in order to support an East Bayfront LRT. In 2017, conversion of the tunnel under Bay Street to operate a funicular shuttle to Queens Quay station instead of streetcars was considered but ultimately rejected.[15]^: 8–9 As of 2021, the conversion of the streetcar loop into a four-platform configuration is in the design stage.[18]

Nearby landmarks include the Union Station railway station, the Royal York Hotel, Scotiabank Arena, Rogers Centre, the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, the CN Tower, Royal Bank Plaza, Brookfield Place, the Hockey Hall of Fame, and the Meridian Hall.

A direct connection between the subway and streetcars within the fare-paid zone is provided for these routes:

Access to these routes is also available while the subway is not running, as the station is open overnight.

A transfer is required to connect between the subway or streetcars and these bus routes at curbside stops:

• Media related to Union station (TTC) at Wikimedia Commons
• Official station page
• Stuart Reid – "Zones of Immersion" union station toronto,^[sic] anticipated completion 2014
• History of Union station at Transit Toronto