Driving around Toronto can be quite the hassle these days, and with the city just getting busier, various infrastructure projects are working to improve the way we move around the city. The Union-Pearson Express (UPX) is Metrolinx's answer to improving access to Pearson Airport from the central city right now, set to open in the Spring of 2015.

The first two low emission Nippon Sharyo diesel multiple unit trains for the line recently arrived in Toronto after a long trip from their manufacturing facility in Toyohashi, Japan. The trains, two cars long currently but to be extended by the addition of a middle car in December, are now being tested on the Lakeshore, Kitchener, and Barrie GO rail lines. You may spot them along those tracks in coming months; we caught one today just outside of Union Station.

A Union-Pearson Express train over Yonge Street in downtown Toronto, image by Jack Landau

With the trains now undergoing testing, work on the line's four purpose-built stations is rushing along. In the image below, we can see the new Union Terminal being built adjacent to the barrel-vaulted section of SkyWalk linking Union Station with the properties to the west.

New Union Terminal under construction for the Union-Pearson Express, image by Jack Landau

Once the $456 million project is completed next year, UPX trains will also stop at the Bloor and Weston GO Stations, and of course Terminal 1 at Toronto Pearson International Airport. 

Rendering of completed UPX platform at Union Station, image courtesy of Metrolinx

Additional information and renderings can be found in our UPX dataBase file, linked below. Want to get involved in the discussion? Check out the associated Forum thread, or leave a comment in the space provided at the bottom of this page.