UrbanAffair
Senior Member
This is that situation where you take the little win.
Toronto Union Station Revitalization | ?m | ?s | City of Toronto | NORR
WB62
Senior Member
The bollards (blue) were placed in areas that have nothing or almost nothing below them, the concrete blocks (red) were placed in areas the subway station and retail units are:
There does seem to be bollards placed over some of the TTC back of house space, but since it’s not a passenger area I imagine modifying it wouldn’t be too hard.
nightstreak
Active Member
Then I hope this means that the side entrances down Bay, York and along Front — where there are still jersey barriers — will be bollards. There’s just a humongous amount of traffic walking and people will be tripping over the concrete blocks because you won’t see them walking in a crowd until you’re in front of it.
Woodbridge_Heights
Senior Member
I find it easier to use a four wheeled luggage and push the bag in front of me.
Dan416
Senior Member
I do like the bollards better, but yeah they're very close together. Why can't we get anything right?
TossYourJacket
Senior Member
My guess is they planned this in the wake of the 2018 North York van attack, went overboard with the tight spacing, and no one since ever thought to change it to something more normal.
pesto
New Member
nightstreak
Active Member
I was going to post photos I took but they're essentially the same as these.
I do think @WB62 is right and there'll be a staged opening. The South Concourse west of the Scotiabank Arena connecting walkway could open within approximately a year given its stage of completion, then they'd close that connection and shift to the east side.
While people can get Into Scotiabank Arena via the new Bremner entrance, I do think they need to open an alternate path into Scotiabank Arena's concourse from the Bay Concourse, closer to the bus terminal escalators. @WB62 your map doesn't seem to show any obvious location where that can happen, other than going through the west-Bay teamway then outside.
Any idea if this wall could be taken down to create a connection?
DSCToronto
Superstar
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Here's shot from the CIBC Park. I assume they need to pour a slab where the metal beams are in 'the pit' and then another at grade. I suggest they may want to get a move on before the snow arrives!
nightstreak
Active Member
That photo makes it clear that there's an opportunity for an iconic train shed after all. The glass shed would be hidden behind it. I'm aware that the current plan is to small canopies along the track, but that looked temporary. Toronto's main station has people waiting out in the elements? I'm thinking of a tall canopy along the entire new southern tracks, given there are no historical train shed restrictions, something beautiful could be built along the entire platform.
I've always been a fan of Calatrava's train sheds.
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Amare
Senior Member
I mean we would all love this. But remember, we're in Toronto....
nightstreak
Active Member
Toronto is showing signs of moving beyond its teenage phase and is aiming for the fences. We're doing a lot more things right than we did in the early 2000s. The King Street Pilot, now moving onto Bathurst, our magnificent waterfront including the new Portlands, developments like the Well, Gehry's Forma and a series of other legitimately "world class" skyscrapers. And the largest simultaneous transit development in the world (or at least in the west) that I'm aware of. We're not the shy underwhelming city that used to frustrate many of us.
Union Station, despite how stupidly long it's taken to build, has actually been done extremely well (the Via concourse notwithstanding). It's functional and I'd argue beautifully restored and tastefully added to. The new southern platform will need to be enclosed at some point — we are a winter city — and I hope that when that comes, there'll be some thought of making it beautiful as well. Toronto is a city architects want to be seen in so I think we'll get the best of the best bidding on that when/if the opportunity presents itself.
There's so much to spend money on, transportation-wise though, that architecture is going to take a back seat to more infrastructure for a long time: we have piles of lines we want upgraded or added that are not yet funded, so a lot of people would ask why $$$ were being spent on a lavish canopy at Union (if that we the case) as opposed to funding the QQEast LRT or King-Liberty station Park Lawn station or electrification of GO etc etc etc. It's very difficult to prioritize limited funds when there are so many things we want to buiild... so splashing out on architecture is an easier place for them to not go.
42
Northern Light
Superstar
While this is an understandable take; may I put in the idea that it is easier to gain public support for transit dollars, when there is greater use, and when the service feels like one for the middle class and upper middle class, as much for lower income folks.
To capture the choice rider, not the captive rider, requires appearance and amenity, not merely frequency.
The relative cost of souped-up architecture isn't that high in most cases, as I outlined in the East Harbour thread. Even when we're looking at more elaborate train sheds, we're discussing low 10s of millions, not hundreds of millions or billions.
But much souped up architecture isn't complex engineering/architecture, or at least it need not be. Its quality cladding, up lighting, a slightly grander entrance, maybe an an arch, or canopy or some additional height, and a nice pendant light fixture (not chandelier) as you enter.
These types of things, along with better interior finishing generally fit inside 1% of major project costs (the difference between mediocre/functional and above-average/nice) is really something that's inside the contingency allowance on most projects.
So while I appreciate the idea that government has a need and a desire to spread money around on a range of improvements, and not have it all soaked up a on temple to transit; I don't think, for the most part, that's the ask, or the burden.
It's just 'do it right the first time'.
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UtakataNoAnnex
Superstar
...I mean we don't need fantastic, out-of-this-world architecture for every single metre of our infrastructure, let alone for every station or port...that would be wholly impractical. But hubs should least be an exception here as they should represent our civic and infrastructure pride. And functionality should only go so far before it becomes soul sucking. Thus the stops should at least come out where it most counts, IMO.