Metrolinx has reached an important milestone on the way to building better transit connections between York Region and Toronto.

A new station in Thornhill at the intersection of Clark Avenue and Yonge Street will be included as the fourth station on the Yonge North Subway Extension. Metrolinx confirmed today that Clark Station will join Steeles, Bridge and High Tech stations to serve growing neighbourhoods along the Yonge Street corridor and beyond, becoming part of an expansive map of integrated projects, routes and even transit carriers that are rewiring the way riders can easily get to points all around the Greater Golden Horseshoe Region of Ontario.

Part of a Connected Network

The Yonge North Subway Extension will make it faster and easier to get around York Region and open up new ways to travel around the entire Greater Golden Horseshoe by extending TTC Line 1 subway service roughly eight kilometres north from Finch Station, passing through Vaughan and Markham on its way to Richmond Hill.

“One of the most important benefits of the project’s design is that it allows for a fourth station to be built,” says Metrolinx Yonge North Subway Extension project sponsor Stephen Collins.

“A close look at the numbers reveals why Clark Station best complements the other three confirmed stations and is the right fit for the project.”

The latest analysis from Metrolinx shows Clark Station will put 8,100 people and 1,900 jobs within a 10-minute walk of the subway by 2041, which will feature transit hubs that will provide seamless connections to local and regional travel options.

Those travel options include a quick and easy transfers between Bridge Station and Langstaff GO, where riders can get on a Richmond Hill GO train and reach destinations in northern York Region from the brand-new Bloomington GO station. That’s in addition to future 407 Transitway services, regional GO bus and Viva bus rapid transit services, and the many local bus routes the extension will link up with.

Reducing Traffic

Clark Station will also help reduce traffic congestion by getting more people out of their cars and onto transit. Metrolinx expects 2,500 riders will use the subway at Clark Station during the peak of the morning rush, with more than half of those riders connecting to the subway from a bus. One of the most important bus connections will be with the future extension of Viva Orange service, which will bring convenient access to areas like the Bathurst-and-Centre corridor and Promenade Centre, which is expected to be home to more than 11,000 people and almost 6,000 jobs in the years to come.

It’ll be convenient to get to Clark Station by bicycle because the new station will be located along new separated bike lanes along Clark Avenue that extend from west of Dufferin Street to Yonge Street.

While this major milestone confirms important benefits of the project, Metrolinx is also looking at other ways to make the subway extension the best possible fit for the communities it will serve.

“We’re exploring ways we can refine our initial plans and make the project even better by enhancing the benefits and reducing impacts,” says Collins.

“We are looking at how we can build the subway tunnels even deeper underground in some areas and how we can adjust the route of the subway so that it travels under fewer homes.”

Collins says the steps Metrolinx is taking to refine the project will be informed by detailed environmental studies and community input from every neighbourhood along the route of the extension.

If you have questions about stations, timelines and the latest plans for the Yonge North Subway Extension you can find answers on the Frequently Asked Questions page.