Wilson station (Toronto)


Wilson is a subway station on Line 1 Yonge–University in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located in the median of Allen Road at Wilson Avenue. Wi-Fi service is available at this station.

History

Wilson Station was opened in what was then the Borough of North York as the last station in the 1978 subway line extension north from St. George Station. According to historian Mike Filey, Wilson Avenue is a misspelling of Arthur L. Willson, who was a clerk and treasurer of York Township for over twelve years around 1875. Among Arthur Wilson's accomplishments were writing a "municipal manual", "which has been found of practical value as a guide to those requiring a knowledge of municipal law", according to a history of the County of York.
Wilson was the northwestern terminus of the Yonge–University line for eighteen years and a major hub for TTC bus service, but with the extension to in 1996, many of the bus routes serving areas to the north were moved to the new station.
From the station's opening in 1978 until 2017, the station had a fare collector booth where passengers could purchase legacy fare media such as tickets, tokens, and Metropasses. On December 17, 2017, this station became one of the first eight stations to discontinue the sale of legacy TTC fare media. Presto vending machines were available to sell Presto cards and to load money onto them. On May 3, 2019, this station became one of the first ten stations to sell Presto tickets via Presto vending machines.
In November 2018, construction began on three new elevators, automatic sliding doors, and a new accessible washroom, to make the station wheelchair accessible.

Architecture and art

Wilson is one of two Yonge–University line stations on the west side of the line, along with, that were designed by the TTC's in-house architects.
The subway station building is a simple enclosed concrete structure built within the median of Allen Road where it crosses over Wilson Avenue. The mezzanine level connects by a maze of tunnels to the bus terminal, a kiss-and-ride facility and four commuter parking lots with a total of 2257 spaces. An additional island bus platform, no longer needed for the reduced number of connecting buses after the line was extended to Sheppard West Station, was mothballed and now serves as a storage area.
A wall sculpture by Ted Bieler entitled Canyons is located at the mezzanine level.

Subway infrastructure in the vicinity

Northwest of the station is the Wilson Yard, opened in 1977, which houses the system's largest subway marshalling yard having taken over Yonge-University line operations from Davisville Yard in 1993 and a large bus garage servicing most of the bus routes in north Toronto. The original yard access tracks form part of the mainline north to station, crossing under the southbound lanes of Allen Road and descending, as does the road itself, down to ground level. There is a diamond crossover south of the station, widely used to reverse trains when the station was a terminus, and still frequently used for short turning.

Nearby landmarks

Nearby landmarks include Costco, the southern end of Downsview Park ; large events at the park, such as visits by the Pope John Paul II and benefit concerts, have resulted in heavy use of this station.

Tenants

TTC routes serving the station include:
RouteNameAdditional Information
29ADufferinSouthbound to Exhibition Place
29CDufferinSouthbound to Exhibition Place
96A/B/DWilsonEastbound to York Mills station
96AWilsonWestbound to Carrier Drive via Kipling Avenue and John Garland Boulevard
96BWilsonWestbound to Humberline Drive and Albion Road via Westhumber Boulevard and Martin Grove Road
96DWilsonWestbound to Carrier Drive and Westmore Drive
104FaywoodNorthbound to Sheppard West station via Wilson Heights Boulevard
118Thistle DownWestbound to Thistle Down Boulevard via Tandridge Crescent
119TorbarrieWestbound to Torbarrie Road and Clayson Road
120CalvingtonWestbound to Sheppard Avenue West and Jane Street via De Havilland
160Bathurst NorthNorthbound to Centre Street
165Weston Rd NorthEastbound to York Mills station and westbound to Steeles Avenue West
929Dufferin ExpressSouthbound to Exhibition Place
996Wilson ExpressEastbound to York Mills station and westbound to Humber College
329DufferinBlue Night service; Northbound to Steeles Avenue West and southbound to Exhibition Loop. Overnight service stops on Transit Road and does not enter the station.
396WilsonBlue Night service; Eastbound to York Mills station and westbound to Martin Grove Road and Steeles Avenue West. Overnight service stops on Wilson Avenue and does not enter the station.

During the early morning, the following routes from Sheppard West station also operate to/from Wilson station.
RouteNameAdditional Information
105ADufferin NorthTo Steeles
107St RegisTo Pioneer Village station
108CDriftwoodTo Pioneer Village station via Arleta