Lawrence station (Toronto) explained

Lawrence
Symbol Location:toronto
Symbol:1big
Style:Toronto Transit Commission
Address:3101 Yonge Street
Borough:Toronto, Ontario
Country:Canada
Coordinates:43.725°N -79.4022°W
Structure:Underground
Platform:Centre platform
Tracks:2
Accessible:No
Mapframe:yes
Mapframe-Custom:
Shape:none
Line:none
Marker:rail-metro
Marker-Color:
  1. FFCB0C
Zoom:15

Lawrence is a subway station on Line 1 Yonge–University in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located under Yonge Street at Lawrence Avenue, in the Bedford Park, Lawrence Park and Lytton Park neighbourhoods.

Description

The station is on four levels, all the entrances to the station are at street level, the concourse and collector level is on the second level, the bus platform is on the third level, and the subway platform is on the lower level. Both the subway and bus levels have a centre platform.[1]

Out of view from customers, there is an attic extending above and along the length of the subway platform. The attic contains ventilation equipment, a TTC substation and a city sewer pipe. There is a double crossover just south of the subway platforms.[2]

There are four entrances to the station located in the surrounding area:

The south-side mezzanine leads down to the bus and subway levels. The unstaffed north-side mezzanine leads directly to the subway level.[1]

History

Lawrence station was opened in 1973 as an intermediate stop between, the former northern terminus of the Yonge line, and, which acted as a temporary terminus for a year until the subway was further extended to . Lawrence station is one of the deepest stations on the subway system, as it provides a transition in depth between Eglinton station and York Mills station in the Hoggs Hollow valley. It was constructed using the cut-and-cover method down to the platform level.[3] Lawrence was the first station in the network to feature an underground bus terminal.[4]

On April 23, 2007, TTC employee Antonio Almeida was killed in the tunnel just south of the station when a platform on his work car was dislodged.[5]

In 2012, a series of renovations repaired the deteriorating concrete of the bus roadway and tunnel walls.[2] Between the fourth quarter of 2012 and mid-2015, four high-capacity fire ventilation fans were installed at the station.[6]

In 2015, the owner of the building at 3080 Yonge Street (at the northwest corner of Lawrence Street West) proposed to incorporate the TTC entrance at that corner into a renovation project for the building. The old TTC entrance building would be demolished; the renovated building would incorporate a new TTC entrance at ground level. The TTC requested that there be provision for an elevator.[7] These renovations were carried out, and the renovated TTC entrance was opened.[8]

Future

By mid-2022, work had begun to make Lawrence station accessible.[9] Two elevators will be added, one from street level to the concourse level and a second from the concourse to the bus and subway levels. A new stairway will be added from the concourse to the subway platform. Signage and wayfinding will be improved throughout the station. The station will have a fifth entrance to house the elevator from street level to the concourse; it will be located on the north side of a Tim Hortons outlet, a few doors north of the existing entrance at the northwest corner of Yonge Street and Lawrence Avenue.[10] The project requires partial closures within the station. In November 2023, the underground bus terminal was closed, resulting in the diversion of buses from Lawrence Avenue West to Eglinton station via Avenue Road, and buses from Lawrence Avenue East to the Roe Loop at Roe Avenue and Avenue Road.[11] In July 2024, the main entrances at the south side of the station were closed limiting station access to the northern secondary entrances.[12], project completion is expected in late 2025.[13]

Nearby landmarks

Surface connections

See main article: List of Toronto Transit Commission bus routes.

Buses enter the station counter to the normal traffic directions so that bus doors will face the centre bus platform.

TTC routes serving the station include:

RouteNameAdditional information
97AYongeNorthbound to Steeles Avenue and southbound to St. Clair station
97BNorthbound to Steeles Avenue via Yonge Boulevard and southbound to St. Clair station via Yonge Boulevard
124SunnybrookEastbound to Sunnybrook Hospital
162Lawrence–DonwayEastbound to Don Mills Road
320YongeBlue Night service
northbound to Steeles Avenue and southbound to Queens Quay
352Lawrence WestBlue Night service; eastbound to Sunnybrook Hospital and westbound to Pearson Airport

George Milbrandt Parkette

George Milbrandt Parkette is located at the northeast corner of Yonge Street and Lawrence Avenue East, and shares the small rectangular plot of land with the Lawrence station entrance at that location. At the request of George Milbrandt, acting on behalf of the Bedford Park Residents' Association, the Toronto City Council created the park in 1998. In 1999, the City named the parkette after Milbrandt, who had promoted the parkette's creation for 25 years. The parkette has simple landscaping including shade trees, park benches, grading and grass.[15]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: TTC Lawrence Station . Toronto Transit Commission . July 16, 2014 . July 16, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140716191922/https://www.ttc.ca/Subway/Stations/Lawrence/station.jsp#StationDescription_ . live .
  2. Web site: Lawrence . Transit Toronto . James . Bow . Richard . White . October 10, 2020 . October 12, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201012114043/https://transittoronto.ca/subway/stations/001-yonge-university-spadina-subway/lawrence.shtml . live .
  3. Web site: This TTC station has a secret attic above the platform . blogTO . Derek . Flack . January 11, 2018 . October 9, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180111073346/https://www.blogto.com/city/2018/01/lawrence-ttc-station-attic/ . January 11, 2018 .
  4. Web site: Happy Birthday to the TTC Subway! . Toronto Railway Historical Association . Russ . Milland . March 30, 2009 . October 12, 2020 . At Lawrence station, the connecting bus platforms were built underground for the first time in Toronto. .
  5. News: Staff Reporter . Toronto transit worker dies in subway tunnel accident . . April 23, 2007 . June 29, 2009 . March 14, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160314201429/http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/toronto-transit-worker-dies-in-subway-tunnel-accident-1.636836 . live .
  6. Web site: Lawrence Station: Fire Ventilation Upgrade . TTC . May 17, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150518095623/https://ttc.ca/About_the_TTC/Projects/Station_Improvements/Lawrence_Station/index.jsp . May 18, 2015 .
  7. Web site: 3080 Yonge Street – (Entrance Connection to Lawrence Station) . . May 27, 2015 . October 9, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190614135554/https://www.ttc.ca/About_the_TTC/Commission_reports_and_information/Commission_meetings/2015/May_27/Reports/3080_Yonge_Street_Entrance_Connection_to_Lawrence_Station.pdf . June 14, 2019 .
  8. News: A 'safety concern' has kept a Lawrence TTC entrance shut since March — with no end in sight . . Ben . Spurr . October 9, 2020 . October 9, 2020 . October 12, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201012012133/https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/the-fixer/2020/10/09/a-safety-concern-has-kept-a-lawrence-ttc-entrance-shut-since-march-with-no-end-in-sight.html . live .
  9. Web site: Lawrence Station – Easier Access Project . . 2022-04-22 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240708002255/https://cdn.ttc.ca/-/media/Project/TTC/DevProto/Documents/Home/About-the-TTC/Projects-Landing-Page/Easier-access-projects/LawrenceStation_CNWebsiteVF.pdf . 2024-07-08 . live .
  10. Web site: Renovated entrance to Lawrence station . Transit Toronto . May 25, 2020 . October 10, 2020 . October 15, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201015053641/https://transittoronto.ca/photos/subway-rt-stations/1-yonge-university-spadina-subway/lawrence-station/north-yonge-01-lawrence-20150527.html . live .
  11. Web site: Lawrence Station bus terminal closure . . 2023-11-19 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231108030240/https://www.ttc.ca/riding-the-ttc/Updates/Lawrence-Station-bus-terminal-closure . 2023-11-08 . live . mdy-all.
  12. Web site: Lawrence Station main entrance closure . . 2024-07-08 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240708000352/https://www.ttc.ca/riding-the-ttc/Updates/Lawrence-Station-main-entrances-closure . 2024-07-08 . live .
  13. Web site: Easier Access ProgramLawrence Station . . 2024-07-08 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240704221509/https://www.ttc.ca/about-the-ttc/projects-and-plans/LawrenceStation . 2024-07-04 . live .
  14. Web site: Toronto Public Library: Locke Branch . January 23, 2014 . February 20, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140220063716/http://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/detail.jsp?Nr=p_cat_branch_name:Locke . live .
  15. Web site: Naming of New Parkette - N/E corner of Yonge Street and Lawrence Avenue East "The George Milbrandt Parkette" . . August 23, 1999 . October 10, 2020 . October 15, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201015051342/https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/1999/agendas/committees/edp/edp990913/it017.htm . live .