Oakwood station (Toronto)

Oakwood is an underground light rail transit (LRT) station under construction on Line 5 Eglinton, a new line that is part of the Toronto subway system.[2] It will be located in Little Jamaica[3] at the intersection of Oakwood Avenue and Eglinton Avenue.[4] It is scheduled to open in 2022.[1]

Oakwood
The main entrance to the Oakwood LRT station will be on the north side of the intersection of Oakwood and Eglinton.
LocationEglinton Av / Oakwood Av
Toronto, Ontario
Canada
Coordinates43°41′50″N 79°26′35″W
PlatformsCentre platform
Tracks2
Connections TTC buses
Construction
Structure typeUnderground
Disabled accessYes
Other information
StatusUnder construction
History
Opening2022 (2022)[1]
Services
Preceding station   TTC   Following station
toward Mount Dennis
 Eglinton
(opens 2022)
toward Kennedy

Both entrances replace existing storefronts; the main entry will be located directly at the northern end of Oakwood Avenue, while the secondary will be on the south side of Eglinton some 80 metres (260 ft) west between Oakwood Avenue and Times Road. The station will provide outdoor space to park 24 bicycles.[2]

Local Member of Provincial Parliament Mike Colle organized a petition that led to a station at Oakwood being added to the Crosstown plan.[4][5] The main destination will be the Eglinton West commercial strip.

Construction

The National Post reported that contractors who thought they were pumping grout into holes they had drilled had filled a sewer near Oakwood station with cement, shortly before Christmas 2013.[6][7] The report quoted local business leader Nick Alampi, who said, due to Metrolinx attitude, his section of the Avenue "almost feels like it's the wild, wild west." The report asserted the accident increased local displeasure with the construction period. Locals had initially been mystified when sewage had backed up into their basements.

In March 2015, the east-west laneway south of Eglinton, near the station, was named Reggae Lane.[8][9][10] Alampi credited the building of the station as a trigger to redeveloping the lane. The lane had once been the heart of Toronto's recording of Reggae music.

In June 2015, Metrolinx plans to expropriate a barbershop near the station triggered comment.[11] The owners, Maureen and Ian Young, told the CBC News that Metrolinx had failed to contact them, prior to announcing the expropriation in a local paper.

The secondary exit would replace Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen; the fried chicken restaurant moved to a new location one block west of Dufferin on Eglinton.

Construction crane at site of main station entrance

An overhead crane was assembled on the pile wall at the site of the station's main entrance. According to Metrolinx, this is the first time in Canada an overhead crane has been used over an open excavation. The site had no space to install a more typical tower crane or a luffing crane. The crane stands 12 metres tall and weighs 35 tons. It went into operation in mid-September 2017.[12]

Oakwood station will be built by "mining" rather than cut-and-cover. Mining activities began in October 2017.[12]

Surface connections
Main article: List of Toronto Transit Commission bus routes

The following routes would serve this station according to the report presented at the board meeting on February 25, 2016:[13]

Route Name Additional Information
34 Eglinton Westbound to Mount Dennis station and eastbound to Science Centre station
63 Ossington Northbound to Eglinton West station and southbound to Liberty Village via Ossington station
90 Vaughan Eastbound to St. Clair West station

References
  1. Spurr, Ben (17 February 2020). "Eglinton Crosstown faces another setback, delayed until 2022 | The Star". Toronto Star. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
  2. "OakwoodStation". The Crosstown. October 13, 2016. Retrieved November 14, 2017.
  3. Kalinowski, Tess (April 5, 2013). "Crosstown LRT: Eglinton's big dig ends 30-year wait for renewal". Toronto Star. Retrieved June 24, 2017. Folks are lined up out the door of Randy's, waiting to buy some of the best Jamaican patties in the city. This stretch of Eglinton Ave., near Oakwood, is where Rasta meets pasta in Toronto.
  4. Gupta, Rahul (August 29, 2012). "Oakwood Avenue light rail station closer to reality". Inside Toronto. Archived from the original on January 23, 2015. That's the contention of local city councillor Josh Colle, who believes provincial transit planning agency Metrolinx will eventually add an Oakwood stop to the station map for the Eglinton-Scarborough Crosstown LRT line scheduled for completion in 2020.
  5. Gupta, Rahul (October 26, 2012). "Modified LRT master agreement puts Oakwood station on the map: Colle". Inside Toronto. Archived from the original on October 29, 2012. Provincial Minister of Transportation Bob Chiarelli also indicated Friday in a tweet directed at Toronto Community News' TOinTransit and Colle that an Oakwood stop on the Crosstown LRT is confirmed.
  6. Kuitenbrouwer, Peter (March 14, 2014). "'Wild west' in Eglinton LRT line construction after word Metrolinx punctured sewer line, pumped in cement". National Post. Retrieved August 16, 2015. Metrolinx has taken some time to acknowledge that its crews caused the sewer problem. Finally on Friday Metrolinx put a notice on its website: "Crews will be repairing a small section of City of Toronto sewer adjacent to the sidewalk on Eglinton Ave., west of Oakwood Ave. for several weeks." The work will begin Monday.
  7. "Immediate Sewer Repair on Eglinton at Oakwood". thecrosstown.ca. March 14, 2014. Retrieved August 16, 2015.
  8. Ayukawa, Ryan (April 18, 2015). "Toronto laneway to become reggae hot spot (once again)". Blog TO. Retrieved August 16, 2015. Ward 15 City Councillor Josh Colle was instrumental in nominating "Reggae Lane" for an official title. Colle, who lived in the area, wanted to help recognize the rich history of Little Jamaica and the music of the '70s and '80s in the area.
  9. Kurek, Dominik (March 17, 2015). "Reggae Lane selected for improvement project". Inside Toronto. Retrieved August 16, 2015. The changes are coming with the construction of the Eglinton Crosstown LRT, which is scheduled to open in 2020. "With the coming changes to Eglinton with the LRT, potential buildings, condos, this is a space that should not be neglected, especially because it's literally no more than a footstep away from a main artery of Oakwood and Eglinton," Alampi said.
  10. Kurek, Dominik (June 2, 2015). "York community comes together to envision future of Reggae Lane". Inside Toronto. Retrieved August 16, 2015. He said the community needs Reggae Place, which could run along Eglinton from Marlee Avenue to Dufferin Street, and which would be a viable destination thanks to its proximity to the subway and access from the future underground Eglinton Crosstown LRT system.
  11. "Metrolinx expropriates Toronto family's Eglinton Ave. property: Ian Young said he was never contacted by Metrolinx, which says letters went unanswered". CBC News. June 2, 2015. Retrieved August 16, 2015. Metrolinx recently placed a notice of expropriation in a local newspaper, which is normally a last resort when the owners can't be located. The commercial property at 1565 Eglinton Ave. W., near Dufferin Street, is near the construction site for the Oakwood station of the Eglinton Crosstown LRT.
  12. "Overhead crane at Oakwood Station". Metrolinx. October 13, 2017. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
  13. "Changes to TTC Bus Routes in Eglinton Corridor for Line 5 Rapid Transit Line" (PDF). Toronto Transit Commission. February 25, 2016.
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