News   Jul 03, 2024
 120     0 
News   Jul 02, 2024
 861     0 
News   Jul 02, 2024
 2.4K     0 

Doors Open Heads Up

D

drum118

Guest
TTC is planning on opening up a number of their buildings to the public this year for the Open Doors event for the first time.

Still in the works, but Lower Bay Station, Hillcrest and some bus garages are on the list.

Now to get lower Queen St Yonge station open that has never seen the light since it was built.
 
Thanks for the 411, glad to hear Lower Bay is on the list :)
 
Now to get lower Queen St Yonge station open that has never seen the light since it was built.

Much Music did a live shot from there many years ago when I used to watch videos and Much Music used to show them.
 
This thread should probably should go into a subforum other than P&C, but whatever...

Good news about opening up Lower Bay! I'm sure many people will be curious about what they see during the upcoming weekend subway diversions.

I thought Lower Queen is open to the public - it just got turned into fare-paid and non fare-paid corridors.

I'd love to put Queen Cars through that tunnel though...
 
I've been to Lower Bay, Lower Queen, and Hillcrest, and by far the most interesting of the lot is Hillcrest. I don't know what's on the tour, but I'm hoping/assuming it will include the old transit control centre. It looks like something right out of a 50's sci-fi movie: lots of plate glass and panels full of switches, the highlight being a large wall-sized map of the transit system covered in hundreds of little lights to represent various mechanical systems.

Lower Bay is also interesting, but the appeal of that one is honestly more just to be able to say you've been there. Before the TTC lets the public go down there they're going to give it a big clean-up, get rid of the graffiti and debris, make sure all the lights are working, and in so doing they're going to basically ruin the post-apocalyptic appeal of the station. To really appreciate it you need to see it in its natural state, covered in a film of brake dust, with broken and flickering lights overhead and nothing around you but the echoes coming down the tunnels.

Both are worth seeing, but definitely Hillcrest is the one transit enthusiasts should make it out to see.
 
Lower Bay is also interesting, but the appeal of that one is honestly more just to be able to say you've been there.

Very true. Lower Bay on a busy Doors Open weekend would probably look no different from Upper Bay on any weekday. I'm tempted to visit Lower Bay if it opens for Doors Open, but unless TTC puts up a really unique exhibit there, I would be pretty disappointed with the visit.

It would also be nice to bring out the PCC and Witt streetcars for a special Doors Open route, say between Union Station and Exhibition along the waterfront. Doors Open Markham already has something similar- an antique train which runs between Unionville and Main Street Markham.
 
^ Super idea. I'm not sure why they don't run these old streetcars on a regular basis during summer weekends. Lots of people would pay to ride them on a tour around the downtown.
 
I too have seen transit control (old and new) and agree that it's quite the sight. So is the training area a few doors down for that matter.
 
Lower Bay will be open to the public from Noon to 3 pm Saturday May 26, 2007.

Will require TTC fare to get into the station.

How TTC will deal with safety and crowds is still under review.
 
Perhaps, but the logistics of doing it any other way would be difficult to say the least. As long as they're not actually charging for the visit, but simply recgonising that the site is located within a fare-paid area I think it could still be considered to be within the spirit.
 
I'm sure most people that day will be carrying Day Passes (or even MetroPasses) anayway. What isn't in keeping with the spirit of Doors Open is the hours.
 
There are 8 shots from under Queen station here.

Don't be discouraged by the first one - the following ones are brighter - read the caption: it is all explained...

crafty 42
 

Back
Top