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On the westernmost reach of Toronto's waterfront, major work is underway to upgrade and modernize the aging Long Branch GO station. Situated along the Lakeshore West line, for decades the station has served commuters and travellers from Long Branch and Alderwood neighbourhoods in South Etobicoke, as well as the Lakeview area of Mississauga, but it has long suffered from undersized platforms and inaccessible facilities.
Located just west of the intersection of Brown's Line and Lake Shore Boulevard West, Long Branch GO is the westernmost GO station within the City of Toronto. Constructed in 1967 for the opening of the Lakeshore West line, it was built primarily for commuter-oriented, rush-hour service, with minimal facilities. As such, the station platforms lacked protection from the elements, with glass shelters distributed along the platforms in lieu of overhead canopies.
Built in an era when park-and-ride stations were predominant, particularly in the then highly suburban Long Branch, the majority of the station site was dedicated to surface parking. As a result, Long Branch GO has lacked an accessible, dedicated connection between its entrances and the Long Branch streetcar loop to its immediate south.
Despite the nominal proximity between the transit facilities, travellers with mobility issues wishing to transfer from one service to the other must backtrack 275 metres along Lake Shore Boulevard West. For those not requiring an accessible route, connections are made over a haphazardly paved path behind the streetcar loop's utility shed, then over an unmarked crossing of Exmoor Drive, and finally through the driveway of the commuter parking lot.
Plans to address these long-standing deficiencies at the station had been in the works since the early 2010s, but for years, work failed to get underway even as GO expansion ramped up. After over a decade of delay, preparatory geotechnical drilling began in May 2022, with a site plan submission made to the City of Toronto for the new station later that autumn.
Unlike the intensive multi-phased, mixed-use redevelopments planned for various other GO stations across the GTA, the 2022 submission detailed a more modest plan. The existing station house is to be demolished, and in its place, a new west entrance building and tunnel will be constructed, featuring the station's first elevators. To improve passenger capacity and circulation, a wholly new east entrance building will be added to connect to a new pedestrian tunnel under the rail corridor. This will both shorten the walking transfer distance for travellers connecting with MiWay and TTC services at the Long Branch Loop and add a third access point to platforms.
The eastern portion of the commuter parking lot not set to be utilised by the new east entrance building will become part of a new passenger pick-up and drop-off loop, in addition to improved pedestrian and cyclist pathways. This portion of the renovation will correct the lack of a direct, accessible connection between the Long Branch Loop and the GO station.
Within the rail corridor, all three platforms are to be completely reconstructed to add new staircases, elevators, and canopies while increasing their width, improving passenger comfort and addressing safety concerns created by the current narrow platforms.
To facilitate this renovation while still maintaining passenger service, a phased demolition and rebuilding of the platforms is underway, temporarily limiting the number of train car doors able to open at Long Branch GO. As of February 2026, the entirety of the existing eastern stretch of all three platforms has been demolished, with the new staircases and elevator shafts taking shape.
Adjacent to the planned east entrance building is the new pedestrian underpass to the east of the currently in-service underpass. Significant progress has been made on the excavation of the tunnel shaft, but no visible work has started on the east entrance building itself.
The site on which the expanded station house will one day stand appears to still be used for construction staging and storage. Despite the lack of visible progress, the east entrance building and new access point to the platforms are scheduled to be opened to the public in late 2027. The demolition and reconstruction of the existing station house and underpass will begin only once the new station house and underpass are complete.
Metrolinx has tentatively projected that the entire Long Branch GO reconstruction project will be complete in 2030, a change from its initial plan to complete all station works by 2025. In missing this target, Metrolinx has failed to comply with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, which mandates that all public transit facilities in the province be made accessible by 2025.
UrbanToronto will continue to follow progress on these developments, but in the meantime, you can learn more about them from our Database files, linked below. If you'd like, you can join in on the conversations in the associated Project Forum threads or leave a comment in the space provided on this page.
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