IBI Group to Design Two Stations on Toronto Relief Line
Toronto, ON (December 12, 2018) – The congestion on Toronto’s transit system has been a point of contention for residents for years, and the population in the downtown core is on track to grow 83 percent by 2031. Since 2011, the Line 1 Yonge-University-Spadina subway has been officially over capacity at several stations–felt especially at cross points such as Yonge & Bloor during rush hour.
As of October 19, 2018, days before a municipal election, the Province of Ontario granted notice to proceed with the Relief Line (divided into North and South) following an environmental assessment. Despite the election, it was agreed by several local/regional authorities and politicians on both sides that it would be irresponsible to continue extending the Yonge subway any further north until the Relief Line was complete to alleviate overcrowding.
The Relief Line South will be approximately 6km in length and include a total of eight stations; five new and three modifications to existing stations at Osgoode, Queen and Pape. It will run from University St. at Osgoode Station, along Queen St., moving South to Eastern Ave., then turning up Carlaw to Pape Station on Line 2. IBI Group has been contracted in a joint-venture for the preliminary design of two stations, Broadview and Carlaw, along the new transit line.
“IBI Group is proud to be part of this city building endeavour,” said Director | Senior Practice Lead, Transit Architecture, Charlie Hoang, “and will be providing lead architectural, urban and landscape architecture design, as well as civil engineering services.”
IBI Group is part of 1DRP (1 Design Relief Partners), a joint-venture with Gannett Fleming Canada, to provide conceptual and preliminary design (up to 30 percent) of the Relief Line South. As part of the JV, IBI will be providing:
- Architecture
- Landscape Architecture
- Interior Design
- Urban Design
- Stormwater Management
- Traffic/Transit Engineering
“Though it is still early to reveal too much about the station design,” said Associate | Manager, Architecture, Welland Sin, who is leading the design of Broadview and Carlaw, “we are excited about the direction its taking–especially since, working at this stage of the project, our reference designs may play a role in guiding the approach and aesthetic of the entire line.”
This line is extremely important in connecting several neighbourhoods on the east side of the city, such as Corktown, Leslieville, and the mouth of the Don Valley, all the way up to the Danforth. Broadview Station, at Eastern and Broadview Avenue, will be connected to the massive, 60-acre East Harbour Development by Great Gulf, the largest commercial project currently planned in Canada. Carlaw Station, located at Queen and Carlaw, will form the turning point of the line, moving north.
Led by the City of Toronto, the TTC and Metrolinx, objectives around the new line include maximizing city-building opportunities around stations, integrating them into the existing urban fabric, serving areas with the most people and jobs now and in the future, supporting local businesses, and providing the public with the best ways to make transfers between the Relief Line South, Subway Line 1, Subway Line 2, and local buses/streetcars.
Fun Fact: though an East/West transit line along Queen Street was first suggested over one hundred years ago, it was also a key component of 2008’s The Big Move, a regional transportation plan that would guide the GTHA’s transportation strategy over the next 25 years; another IBI Group project!