TTC officially opens Line 1 Extension

Today, Friday, December 15, 2017, the TTC officially opened the Line 1 Extension to York Region. An official ribbon-cutting ceremony was held at the new Vaughan Metropolitan Centre terminal station with The Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, PC, MP, Prime Minister of Canada; The Honourable Kathleen Wynne, MPP, Premier of Ontario, His Worship John Tory, Mayor of Toronto; and Wayne Emmerson, Regional Chairman and CEO of York Region.

Prime Minister Trudeau and elected officials took the first train southbound to York University where they delivered their remarks. Wilson Operator Gerry Gallately drove the official first train while Guard duties were performed by June Stoute.

The 8.6-km Toronto-to-York subway extension opens to the public on Dec. 17. The new TYSSE subway zone (Vaughan to Wilson) will be lead by Group Station Manager Ellen Stassen.

Two events tomorrow (Dec. 16) will precede the start of revenue service: Finch West Station will be showcased to the public from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., and a special preview ride takes place 11 a.m. for about 100 contest winners. They will be joined by Mayor John Tory, TTC Chair Josh Colle and Frank Scarpitti, Mayor of Markham, and Chairman of York Region Rapid Transit Board.

All six stations are fully accessible, Wi-Fi-equipped, PRESTO-enabled, and will be staffed by new Customer Service Agents. Trains will operate on the new ATC signalling system. TTC commuter parking on the Line 1 extension at Finch West Station (347 spaces), Pioneer Village Station (1,881 spaces) and Highway 407 Station (583 spaces) is free until April.

A train trip from Vaughan Metropolitan Centre to Union is scheduled to take about 46 minutes in the morning rush. Here’s a look at each new station and their transit connections:

• Downsview Park: is located at Downsview Park on the south side of Sheppard Avenue West, centred under GO Transit’s Barrie Commuter Rail line. Includes: connection to Barrie GO rail service. Accessible with: three elevators and six escalators. TTC routes serving station: 84 Sheppard, 106 Sentinel and 107 St Regis.
• Finch West: is located under Keele Street, north of Finch Avenue West. Includes: six-bay TTC bus terminal, 347-space commuter lot, one passenger-pick-up-and-drop-off (10 spaces), future connection to Finch West LRT. Accessible with: three elevators and eight escalators. TTC routes serving this station: 36 Finch West, 41 Keele, 107 St Regis, 199B Finch Rocket and Wheel-Trans.
• York University: is located at York University, crossing underneath Ian Macdonald Boulevard in the heart of the Keele Campus at the east end of the Harry W. Arthurs Common. Accessible with: two elevators and six escalators. GO Transit, YRT and Brampton buses continue to serve this station. YRT bus routes serving stops on Ian MacDonald Boulevard (on Keele Campus): 3 Thornhill, 20 Jane, 96 Keele-Yonge, 107/107B Keele and 165/165F Weston. Other bus routes serving stops on the same boulevard: Viva Purple (weekdays only) and Brampton Transit’s 501/501A/501C Zum Queen.
• Pioneer Village: is located diagonally below Steeles Avenue West at Northwest Gate. Includes: 12-bay TTC and five-bay YRT bus terminal, 1,881-space commuter lot, and one passenger-pick-up-and-drop-off (11 spaces). Accessible with: four elevators and 10 escalators. TTC routes serving this station: 35 Jane, 41A Keele, 60 Steeles West, 84D Sheppard West, 106 Sentinel, 107 St Regis, 108 Driftwood, 195 Jane Rocket, Wheel-Trans and YRT Mobility Plus. YRT bus routes serving Pioneer Village Bus Terminal (north side): 3 Thornhill, 20 Jane, 96 Keele-Yonge, 107/107B Keele, 165/165F Weston, Viva Purple (weekdays only). For connections with Wheel-Trans, YRT’s Mobility Plus will be connecting at Pioneer Village Bus Terminal (south side).
• Highway 407: is located west of Jane Street and south of Highway 407, west of Black Creek. Includes: 18-bay GO/YRT/Viva bus terminal, 583-space commuter lot, one passenger-pick-up-and-drop-off (30 spaces) and connection to future Highway 407 Transitway. Accessible with: two elevators and seven escalators. YRT buses serving this station: 20 Jane.
• Vaughan Metropolitan Centre: is located north of Highway 7 to the west side of the relocated Millway Avenue. The terminal station is a multi-modal transportation hub with on-street passenger-pick-up-and-drop-off (on New Park Place and Millway Avenue), and connections to YRT SmartCentres Place Bus Terminal and to the Viva BRT, which will run in the centre of Highway 7. Accessible with: four elevators and six escalators. YRT bus routes serving the SmartCentres Place Bus Terminal adjacent to Vaughan Metropolitan Centre Station: 10 Woodbridge, 20 Jane and 26 Maple Leaf. The bus terminal will also serve as a YRT Mobility Plus transfer point. Other bus routes serving the Viva rapidway stop adjacent to the TTC subway station: Viva Orange, Brampton Transit’s 501 Zum.