New elevated subway station will be unlike anything else in Toronto

Toronto is witnessing the most significant transit expansion in history, with three new TTC lines on the way, along with other extensions of the local and regional transit network.

But it is the new Ontario Line subway that has stood out as the biggest leap for Toronto transit in generations, and the project continues to captivate the public as construction for the 15-stop, 15.6-km transit line ramps up.

The Ontario Line will eventually link an expanded interchange at Exhibition Place with a brand-new transit hub at Eglinton Avenue and Don Mills Road.

This northern terminus for the Ontario Line — known as Don Valley Station — will be an intermodal stop at Eglinton Avenue and Don Mills Road, where passengers will be able to transfer between the Ontario Line (future TTC Line 3) and the Eglinton Crosstown LRT (future TTC Line 5).

Don Valley Station (which was formerly known as Science Centre Station before the Ford government closed the namesake attraction and scrubbed away all mention of it ever existing) will be one of the key interchanges for the Ontario Line, with a unique configuration that will see the station straddle other transit infrastructure.

In contrast to the majority of existing TTC stations (existing being the operative word here; sorry, Scarborough RT), the new Don Valley Station will be elevated above its site at the northeast corner of Don Mills and Eglinton.

This configuration places the new station directly above the soon-to-open bus terminal that now occupies the intersection's northeast corner, and also keeps the door open for a no-dig extension for the Ontario Line should planners ever decide to bring the route further north.

Though Don Valley will mark the northern extent of the Ontario Line, additional tracks (known as tail tracks) will continue north of the station to allow for this potential expansion, and will be used for vehicle storage in the interim.

As early works progress at the site of the new transit hub, Metrolinx has released a new set of renderings that offer a glimpse at the coming station, as well as a better idea of how the existing but yet-to-open bus terminal will be integrated into the elevated station above.

TTC passengers will be able to access both the Eglinton Crosstown and the Ontario Line via a pair of entrances at the northeast and southwest corners of the Don Mills and Eglinton intersection.

Transfers between the two lines will be made easy through escalators and elevators linking the underground LRT station, ground-level bus terminal and elevated subway station.

The Ontario Line is currently anticipated to welcome its first passengers in 2031. Meanwhile, the Don Valley Crosstown station, which will be a component of this future transit hub, is set to enter service in September.