College station (Toronto)

Toronto subway station

College

General information
Location| 3 Carlton Street
Toronto, Ontario
Canada
Coordinates| 43°39′38″N 79°22′58″W﻿ / ﻿43.66056°N 79.38278°W﻿ / 43.66056; -79.38278
Platforms| Side platforms
Tracks| 2
Connections|

TTC buses and Streetcars

* 97 Yonge
* 306 Carlton
* 320 Yonge
* 506 Carlton

Construction
Structure type| Underground
Accessible| No
Other information
Website| Official station page
History
Opened| March 30, 1954; 71 years ago (1954-03-30)
Passengers
2023–2024[1]| 39,137
Rank| 10 of 70
Services
| Preceding station  |  Toronto Transit Commission | Following station

|
|

Dundas

towards Vaughan

|  | Line 1 Yonge–University |  | Wellesley

towards Finch

Location

College is a subway station on Line 1 Yonge–University in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.[2] It is located at Yonge Street and College Street/Carlton Street.

## History

[edit]

College station opened in 1954 as part of the original stretch of the Yonge line from Union to Eglinton stations. The address originally given to the station was 448 Yonge Street, which is still used on TTC system maps, but the TTC official website uses 3 Carlton Street.

## Station description

[edit]

College station concourse College station southbound platform

The station lies under Yonge Street south from College and Carlton streets. The entrances on the northeast and southeast corners of the intersection are stairwells directly from the sidewalk. At the southwest corner the entrance is through the former Eaton's store at College Park, with escalators connecting from the street and additional stairs to the station. These three entrances join to the concourse, below the street at the north end of the station, where the collector's booth, turnstiles and a Gateway Newstands are located. Below this, on the lowest level, are the two side platforms which can be reached by escalators and stairs. There are no elevators in this station, which means it is not accessible for persons with physical disabilities.[2]

## Station access upgrades

[edit]

In 2022, work began on a second entrance at College station. The second entrance will be south of the main entrance, and riders will be able to access it from the basement level of the College Park building. The second entrance will have a concourse level under Yonge Street with Presto fare gates and an elevator and a staircase to each of the north- and southbound platforms. These elevators will connect to the street-level concourse. Riders will be able to use the College Park elevators from street level and a passage to reach the new concourse where riders will use either a short staircase or a ramp to enter the concourse. As of April 2025,[update] construction is expected to be completed by mid-2026.[3][4][5]

## Architecture and art

[edit]

Hockey Nights in Canada by Charles Pachter

The station features Hockey Knights in Canada, a pair of murals that are named after Hockey Night in Canada; one depicting the Toronto Maple Leafs on the southbound side and facing the Montreal Canadiens on the northbound side, depicting the decades-old rivalry between the two clubs. They were created by Charles Pachter in 1984, when the Toronto Maple Leafs still played at nearby Maple Leaf Gardens.[6]

Before proceeding with the design, the TTC sought to obtain permission from both clubs. The Canadiens agreed as did Maple Leaf general manager Gerry McNamara. However, when Maple Leafs owner Harold Ballard learned of the plan to feature both teams, he refused permission to use the Leafs insignia unless plans for the Canadiens mural were scrapped. The TTC thus moved to remove the logos from the murals, until chairman Julian Porter, himself a lawyer knowledgeable on copyright issues, intervened and decided to take Ballard to court, believing that the artistic works could make free use of the logo even without Ballard's permission.[7] TTC commissioner June Rowlands also intervened insisting that all the players wear helmets, to set an example of safety for the city's youth.[8]

## Subway infrastructure in the vicinity

[edit]

North of the station, the tunnel turns off-street, paralleling Yonge Street to the east. South of the station, the subway continues under Yonge Street to Dundas station.

In early 2011, the TTC began work to re-install a double crossover south of the station. The crossover will allow trains to turn back at the station, allowing for more flexibility during emergencies.[9] The crossover had existed from the day the subway opened until the mid-1980s when it was removed due to financial, maintenance and safety concerns and because it was not regularly used.[10] The original crossover was not powered or signaled, meaning that supervisory personnel had to be on scene to manually operate the switches, and ensure safe train passage. On November 21, 2020, automatic train control was activated at College station, allowing the crossover to be remotely operated for train turnbacks.[11]

## Nearby landmarks

[edit]

Nearby landmarks include the College Park mall, the College Park courts, the Residences of College Park, the Toronto Police Headquarters, and Maple Leaf Gardens. Some Toronto Metropolitan University students use this station though the campus is situated closer to the next station, Dundas.

## Surface connections

[edit]

Main article: List of Toronto Transit Commission bus routes

A transfer is required to connect between the subway system and these surface routes:

TTC routes serving the station include:

Route  | Name  | Additional Information

|
|

97C  | Yonge  | Northbound to Eglinton station and southbound to Union station
(Rush hour service)
306  | Carlton  | Blue Night Streetcar service; Eastbound to Main Street station and westbound to High Park Loop
320  | Yonge  | Blue Night service; Northbound to Steeles Avenue and southbound to Queens Quay
506 | Carlton  | Streetcar; Eastbound to Main Street station and westbound to High Park Loop

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Subway ridership, 2023–2024" (PDF). Toronto Transit Commission. Retrieved November 12, 2024. "This table shows the typical number of customer-boardings made on each subway line and the number of customers travelling to and from each station platform on a typical weekday in Sep 2023–Aug 2024."
2. ^ a b "TTC College Station". Toronto Transit Commission. Archived from the original on November 4, 2020. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
3. ^ "College Station – Second Exit/Entrance and Easier Access" (PDF). Toronto Transit Commission. July 14, 2020. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 20, 2020. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
4. ^ "TTC to begin Easier Access construction at Museum Station; lane restrictions on Queen's Park". Toronto Transit Commission. August 11, 2022. Archived from the original on August 12, 2022.
5. ^ "College Station". ttc.ca. TTC. Retrieved February 18, 2025.
6. ^ "Maple Leafs: From Hockey Knights in Canada to Legends Row". thestar.com. August 26, 2014. Archived from the original on July 4, 2018. Retrieved July 4, 2018.
7. ^ York, Geoffrey (July 25, 1984). "TTC challenge set on Ballard's edict". The Globe and Mail. p. P1.
8. ^ York, Geoffrey (March 21, 1984). "TTC plans murals to cover yellow subway tile". The Globe and Mail. p. M2.
9. ^ Gillis, Wendy (February 25, 2011). "Why the Yonge subway is closing again". The Star. Archived from the original on October 23, 2012. Retrieved August 25, 2017.
10. ^ "A History of the Original Yonge Subway - Transit Toronto - Content". Archived from the original on May 31, 2020. Retrieved March 15, 2020.
11. ^ "TTC's ATC signal upgrades now extend from Vaughan Metropolitan Centre Station to Rosedale Station". Toronto Transit Commission. November 23, 2020. Archived from the original on November 24, 2020. Retrieved November 23, 2020.

## External links

[edit]

Media related to College station (Toronto) at Wikimedia Commons Official station page

* v
* t
* e

Stations, stops and loops of the Toronto subway and streetcar systems

Present|

|  Yonge–University|

* Finch
* North York Centre
* Sheppard–Yonge ■
* York Mills
* Lawrence
* Eglinton
* Davisville
* St. Clair
* Summerhill
* Rosedale
* Bloor–Yonge ■
* Wellesley
* College
* Dundas
* Queen
* King
* Union
* St. Andrew
* Osgoode
* St. Patrick
* Queen's Park
* Museum
* St. George ■
* Spadina ■
* Dupont
* St. Clair West
* Eglinton West (Cedarvale)
* Glencairn
* Lawrence West
* Yorkdale
* Wilson
* Sheppard West
* Downsview Park
* Finch West
* York University
* Pioneer Village
* Highway 407
* Vaughan

|

Bloor–Danforth|

* Kipling
* Islington
* Royal York
* Old Mill
* Jane
* Runnymede
* High Park
* Keele
* Dundas West
* Lansdowne
* Dufferin
* Ossington
* Christie
* Bathurst
* Spadina ■
* St. George ■
* Bay
* Bloor–Yonge ■
* Sherbourne
* Castle Frank
* Broadview
* Chester
* Pape
* Donlands
* Greenwood
* Coxwell
* Woodbine
* Main Street
* Victoria Park
* Warden
* Kennedy
* Lawrence & McCowan
* Scarborough Centre
* Sheppard & McCowan

Sheppard|

* Sheppard–Yonge ■
* Bayview
* Bessarion
* Leslie
* Don Mills

Streetcar system|

* Bingham Loop
* Distillery Loop
* Dufferin Gate Loop
* Exhibition Loop
* Fleet Loop
* Gunns Loop
* High Park Loop
* Humber Loop
* Long Branch Loop
* McCaul Loop
* Neville Park Loop
* Queens Quay station

Future|

|  Eglinton|

* Renforth
* Martin Grove
* Kipling
* Islington
* Royal York
* Scarlett
* Jane
* Mount Dennis
* Keelesdale
* Caledonia
* Fairbank
* Oakwood
* Cedarvale (Eglinton West) ■
* Forest Hill
* Chaplin
* Avenue
* Eglinton ■
* Mount Pleasant
* Leaside
* Laird
* Sunnybrook Park
* Don Valley
* Aga Khan Park & Museum
* Wynford
* Sloane
* O'Connor
* Pharmacy
* Hakimi Lebovic
* Golden Mile
* Birchmount
* Ionview
* Kennedy ■

|

Finch West|

* Humber College
* Westmore
* Martin Grove
* Albion
* Stevenson
* Mount Olive
* Rowntree Mills
* Pearldale
* Duncanwoods
* Milvan Rumike
* Emery
* Signet Arrow
* Norfinch Oakdale
* Jane and Finch
* Driftwood
* Tobermory
* Sentinel
* Finch West ■

Ontario Line|

* Exhibition
* King–Bathurst
* Queen–Spadina
* Osgoode ■
* Queen ■
* Moss Park
* Corktown
* East Harbour
* Riverside–Leslieville
* Gerrard
* Pape ■
* Cosburn
* Thorncliffe Park
* Flemingdon Park
* Don Valley ■

Former|

|  Scarborough|

* Kennedy ■
* Lawrence East
* Ellesmere
* Midland
* Scarborough Centre
* McCowan

|

Italics indicate a future line, station or stop
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