Toronto to get new GO bus terminal at Union Station

(Updated)

GO Transit users are going to notice some big changes in the near future and both tax dollars and private cash are making them happen.

The province has unveiled plans to build a new GO bus terminal in downtown Toronto. And it looks like nothing what we’ve seen before.

This is the area they’re planning to put it in. You can see the CN Tower on your left next to the Rogers Centre. And then as we spin around you’ll notice the Air Canada Centre. Right now there’s a parking lot next to the ACC. That where part of this new station will be built.

And here’s what it will look like. A couple of tall glass towers with a bridge between the two. This is what they’re calling a future transit hub. That they say will give more options to travellers in the GTA and Hamilton area.

The James Street North GO station is expected to be up and running in time for the 2015 Pan-Am games while construction on the new GO bus terminal announced today in downtown Toronto is expected to begin next spring. Metrolinx will spend about 100-million dollars on the three year project while global real estate company Ivanhoe will invest about 2-billion dollars. Metrolinx has agreed to sell the current bus terminal to Ivanhoe in exchange for a 99-year lease of the new one. As you saw in the animation, there are two towers on the complex for commercial use. And a green space over the rail tracks. Minister of Transportation Steven Del Duca says the timing is right for this project: “The new bus terminal will help to accommodate the expected doubling of GO Transit passengers and integrate other service providers at Union Station by 2030. Customers will benefit from the enhanced convenience of having intercity bus carriers and other transportation providers in one location.”

Daniel Fournier, Ivanhoe CEO is calling it an iconic gateway: “This is all part of a global shift to downtown areas. More and more people young and old want to be closer to the centre of the action. That affects urban transportation and our long term view of the office market. People want smart transit solutions, people ask for green public spaces and plazas and tenants want their offices to set new standards for energy efficiency and the environment.”

The project says GO Transit carries 66 million passengers per year. Union Station currently serves twice as many passengers daily than Pearson airport.