Canadian Destinations

Toronto’s historic Union Station being revitalized

By Inanna Dubel

On August 6, 1927, the Prince of Wales officially opened Union Station, the harbour-front harbour-front Toronto terminal for the Canadian Pacific and Canadian National railways. Together with the future King Edward VI at the ceremony were the Duke and Duchess of York, British Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin and his wife, and Canadian Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King.

Designed in the Beaux-Arts style, and the largest and most opulent station in Canada, it was seven years in construction.

Its great hall features a coffered vault ceiling of Gustavino tiles, with the shape of the ceiling echoed in the four-storey, barrel-vaulted windows on the east and west walls. On the north and south walls, halfway up, are carved names of the cities that were served by the CPR and CNR.

The exterior walls of the station are Indiana and Queenston limestone. Each of the 22 bedford limestone columns on the façade weighs 75 tons and is 40 feet high. The interior walls are of zumbro stone from Missouri, while the floors are Tennessee marble, laid in a herringbone pattern.

Revitalization plans for the monumental structure are now underway, with the Governments of Canada and Ontario recently announcing funding of $305 million for the project, announced by the City of Toronto in 2007. Estimated total cost for the project is $845 million.

Canada's busiest passenger facility, Union Station handles 65 million passengers annually. Via Rail’s train The Canadian departs Tuesday, Thursdays and Saturdays on its four-day run to Vancouver, and there are also Via Rail trains to Montreal, Ottawa, Windsor, Sarnia and Niagara Falls.

Amtrak provides services to New York City on its Maple Leaf, via Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse and Albany. The Northlander service of the Ontario Northland Railway departs Union Station for Gravenhurst, Huntsville, North Bay, Cobalt and Cochrane.

In addition, the station serves GO Transit commuter train passengers and Toronto transit users.

Tours of Union Station are offered monthly by the Toronto Railway Historical Association and Toronto Terminals Railway. The two-hour guided tours take place on the last Saturday of each month beginning at 11 a.m. Tickets are $10 each and no reservations are necessary. For further information, call 416-917-8220 or email trha@rogers.com.