Dupont (TTC)

Dupont
Location 263 Dupont Street
Toronto, Ontario
Canada
Coordinates 43°40′29″N 79°24′25″W / 43.674584°N 79.40683°W / 43.674584; -79.40683Coordinates: 43°40′29″N 79°24′25″W / 43.674584°N 79.40683°W / 43.674584; -79.40683
Platforms side platforms
Tracks 2
Connections
Construction
Structure type underground
Disabled access No
Architect Dunlop-Farrow Architects
History
Opened 28 January 1978
Traffic
Passengers (2014[1]) 16,490
Services
Preceding station   TTC   Following station
toward Downsview
 Yonge–University
toward Finch

Dupont is a subway station on the Yonge–University line in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located on Spadina Road at Dupont Street in The Annex neighbourhood of the city.

History

The station opened in 1978, as part of the "Spadina" extension of the subway line from St. George to Wilson Station.

The 1995 Russell Hill subway accident happened on August 11, 1995, when a train southbound from St. Clair West station rear-ended another stationary train just north of Dupont station. Three people were killed and 30 were taken to hospital with injuries, and this section of the subway line was shut down for five days. Subsequent investigations found that a combination of human error and a design flaw in a mechanical safety device caused the accident.[2]

On 1 June 2006, at 9:30 a.m., as a train entered the station, a metal cover in the bottom of the last subway car came loose and wedged in the third rail. This filled the train with smoke, forcing the evacuation of the station and disrupting service for about an hour.[3] The possibility that this incident may have resulted from sabotage by striking TTC personnel was discarded by the Toronto Police.[4]

Three elevators and improved fare gates are to be constructed, to make the station accessible.[5] An open house was held on September 24, 2015 to outline the work involved.[6]

Architecture and art

Dupont Station was designed by Dunlop-Farrow Architects.[7] The two entrances to the station, located at the northwest and southeast corners of Dupont Street and Spadina Road, take the form of glass "bubbles" with orange-painted metal frames covering the stairways and escalators. A motif of rounded surfaces and finishes is used, with the interior walls of the station being clad in small circular orange tiles and all corners curved. On the platforms unique built-in concrete benches are also rounded and covered with the same tiles as the walls and the use of large circular lighting fixtures throughout the station reinforces the theme. The overall effect of the interior's rounded surfaces and colour scheme is of an earthly cavern.[8]

The main artwork in the station consists of murals designed by James Sutherland, entitled Spadina Summer Under All Seasons.[9] Using thousands of pieces of glass, colourful mosaics of flowers were created directly into the station’s tiling. Two large mosaics of a giant flower in cross-section face each other across the tracks, reaching upward into a mezzanine level lined with smaller flower mosaics. Sculptor Ron Baird designed massive circular interlocking doors which provide access to the electrical substation, which is nestled behind the northwest entrance.[10]

Platform lighting, tiled wall and built-in bench
Flower mosaic by James Sutherland

Nearby landmarks

The station is located on the north side of The Annex neighbourhood. Nearby landmarks and destinations include Casa Loma, Spadina House, Casa Loma campus of George Brown College and the City of Toronto Archives.

Surface connections

Bus stop beside northwest entrance

A transfer is required to connect between the subway system and these surface routes:

References

  1. ↑ "Subway ridership, 2014" (PDF). Toronto Transit Commission. Retrieved September 12, 2015. This table shows the typical number of customer-trips made on each subway on an average weekday and the typical number of customers travelling to and from each station platform on an average weekday.
  2. ↑ Hall, Joseph (2005-08-06). "Ten Years After". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2010-06-02.
  3. ↑ Staff reporter (2006-06-01). "Mechanical failure leads to evacuation of Dupont subway station". CBC News. Retrieved 2009-06-26.
  4. ↑ "Dupont Station". MyTTC.ca. Retrieved 2009-06-26.
  5. ↑ "Dupont Station: Easier Access Program". TTC. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  6. ↑ "Open House" (PDF). Dupont Station – Easier Access Project. TTC. September 24, 2015. Retrieved May 2016. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  7. ↑ "Dupont Subway Station". TO Built. Bob Krawczyk. 2008. Retrieved 2009-06-26.
  8. ↑ Bow, James (2008-04-24). "The Spadina Subway". Transit Toronto. Retrieved 2009-06-26.
  9. ↑ McIlveen, Eli (2006-12-17). "Art on the TTC". Transit Toronto. Retrieved 2009-06-26.
  10. ↑ Ron Baird: Dupont Subway Gate

Media related to Dupont Station at Wikimedia Commons

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