Rendering of what the new Woodbine GO station will look like when it’s completed. A finish date for the project is not yet known. (Image: Metrolinx)

Major construction is underway on a new GO station being built in west Toronto that’s also expected to dramatically improve public transit for riders in Mississauga, Brampton, York and elsewhere across the region.

Crews working on the Woodbine GO station, located just steps from Mississauga at Woodbine Racetrack, “are now building station platforms that will connect thousands of daily riders to the Kitchener GO Line, Union Pearson Express and regional transit services across Toronto, York Region, Brampton and Mississauga,” said the provincial government, adding the latest stage of construction is “another significant milestone” in its plan to provide two-way, all-day service across core segments of the GO Transit network.

The province also noted Thursday morning the huge project will create more than 300 “good-paying jobs” and is part of Ontario’s “historic investment of nearly $70 billion to deliver the largest transit expansion in North America.”

Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who last year described a completed Woodbine station as a “game changer” for commuters, said on Thursday latest progress on the new GO depot “is great news for families and commuters in Etobicoke and along the entire Kitchener Line,” which also runs through Toronto, Mississauga (Malton GO station), Brampton, Halton Hills and Guelph among other municipalities.

“As part of our historic expansion of GO service across the Greater Golden Horseshoe, this new station will increase capacity, cut travel times and connect thousands more people to reliable, affordable transit,” Ford added.

When completed at a yet-to-be-determined date, Woodbine GO station will include island platforms serving GO Transit and UP Express trains, a bus loop connecting riders to local transit, dedicated GO parking, pedestrian bridges and fully accessible, barrier-free facilities, the province said in a news release.

In addition to Woodbine Racetrack, the station will create new links between the UP Express, Kitchener GO train and Toronto Pearson Airport, as well as local bus services including the TTC, MiWay, York Region Transit and Brampton Transit, the Ontario government added.

Prabmeet Sarkaria, Ontario’s minister of transportation, noted the new station will cut travel times, fight gridlock and connect more people to jobs, housing and opportunities across the province.

“Woodbine GO station will make it faster and easier for Ontarians to get where they’re going, whether they’re travelling for work, school, entertainment or catching a flight at Pearson Airport,” Sarkaria said.

The latest phase of construction “builds on the site clearing, grading and excavation that began last year, as well as the completion of a temporary track separation and two access bridges that paved the way for platform construction,” the province added.

Woodbine GO station, situated on Highway 27, will replace the nearby Etobicoke North GO station, which lacks the capacity to accommodate future growth along the line, the province said.

Michael Lindsay, president and CEO of Metrolinx, the provincial agency that oversees GO Transit, said the new station will improve travel for many people.

“Not only will the new Woodbine station serve as the front door to world-class gaming and racing, but its completion will also provide new ways to access Pearson (airport) and better enable greater service on the Kitchener Line.”

Woodbine Entertainment CEO Michael Copeland said the new station, when completed, “will be transformative for Toronto’s northwest, improving transit access and unlocking the delivery of more than 20,000 new homes as part of a major new urban development centred around Woodbine Racetrack.”

The new terminal is expected to serve approximately 7,000 daily riders by 2041, officials said earlier.


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