Connecting the GO Bus Network at Don Mills Subway Station

Posted on by Rishi

Now that we have a comprehensive map of the GO bus network overlaid on the GO train map, I couldn’t resist taking a look at the map to find opportunities for improved connectivity within the network. Of the many I saw, one stood out like a sore thumb.

There is a concentration of GO bus routes along Highway 404 between Highways 401 and 407.  Both the M1 and M2 Suburban Connectors as well as several routes from Union Station pass through this section of the 404 so it seemed like a natural place to have a transfer point between the routes. And then it became clear – Don Mills station on Line 4 of the Toronto subway system! It is only a couple of hundred metres from this busy GO bus corridor as seen below:

Don Mills Google Map

Five GO bus routes pass by Don Mills subway station (Line 4) on their routes along Highway 404 (I’ve highlighted Don Mills in purple on the map below):

  • M1 Suburban Connector (GO bus route 51+, except 51B);
  • M2 Suburban Connector (GO bus route 67);
  • RH-1, RH-2 (GO bus route 61+);
  • BA-1, BA-2, BA-3 (GO bus route 65+); and
  • ST-1 (GO bus route 71+).

GO System Map - All GO Bus Routes v2 plus Don Mills Stop Enlarged

There has been a lot of conversation in Toronto on the construction of a subway relief line (click here for a 2012 TTC study describing the need for one) and its potential to reduce congestion at the Yonge-Bloor subway interchange.

Connecting the five GO bus routes above to Line 4 would create an express service to Union from Don Mills (GO bus routes 61+, 65+ and 71+) and a two stop express service from Scarborough Centre (GO bus route 51+) to Union. These express services have the potential to alleviate the ridership volumes choking the Yonge-Bloor subway interchange by providing commuters from Scarborough Centre (and the massive number of TTC bus routes that connect there) an alternative from taking the Line 3/Line 2/Line 1 combination and instead taking a one-connection bus. It would be one less transfer for those going to Union from Scarborough Centre, commuters would have access to their smartphone data plans on their journeys and it would be a lot more comfortable. Below is what these GO bus look like on the TTC subway network map:

TTC Map with GO Bus Connection at Don Mills

Aside from potentially re-directing commuters from Scarborough away from Yonge-Bloor, it might also potentially funnel commuters from TTC bus routes that connect with Don Mills station, directly to Union instead of using Line 4/Line 1, which could also result in reduced commuter volumes at Yonge-Bloor as well.

Other than the potential benefits of reducing ridership volumes at Yonge-Bloor, there are other possible upsides:

  • Would provide an alternative connection to the train stations on the Barrie, Richmond Hill and Stouffville lines (ie. the north part of the GTHA) with the North York portion of the TTC subway system, and vice versa, in place of using slower, local bus services;
  • Would provide a faster route to get from North York to the east part of the GTHA via Scarborough Centre and vice versa (effectively connecting Line 3 and Line 4 with an express bus service); and
  • This connection could be deployed relatively quickly and provide much needed relief to the Yonge subway line while the city waits at least another 10-12 years until the construction of the subway relief line.

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