Northern Main Line

The Sheppard Line first opened in 2002 between Sheppard station at Yonge and Parkway Forest station (currently Don Mills) at Fairview Mall.   Ridership on this subway line has always been lower than originally anticipated for three key reasons: (a) because most trips in the area are far quicker by car with the 401 nearby and transit services in most directions limited, (b) the line was originally intended to be built to Scarborough Centre and is currently too short, and (c) service does not continue west of Yonge.   

The GTA Transit 2050 Plan seeks to solve all the issues with Sheppard Line 4 that exist today by providing a service that takes people to more places more quickly to allow competition with the car, delivers line extensions beyond what was originally envisioned, and service that goes far west of Yonge.  In the west the line would service Pearson Airport and its nearby hotels and conference centres, apartment neighbourhoods on Dixon Road and at Jane, employment areas along the 401, and provide connections to high-speed rail and many urban, suburban, and regional connections.   In the east the line would service many employment areas and increasingly dense residential areas along the 401 to Scarborough Centre, and eastward would serve major post-secondary institutions and the growing Pickering Centre.  This line will transform from the Sheppard "Stubway" into a new Northern Main Line connecting people to places across northern Toronto.

This plan proposes the Sheppard Line be extended in four phases:

1. Sheppard East Extension:  Opening in 2036, this extension currently under study, would follow the original route proposed in early environmental assessments and the official plan to Scarborough Centre, and continue further east to serve employment areas immediately east of Scarborough Centre, Centennial College, and the University of Toronto at Scarborough campus.   This extension would have key connections to Line C that whisks people to Markham, the Alto high-speed rail line to Ottawa and Montreal, Line 2 at Scarborough Center, and Finch and Eglinton light rail lines at UTSC.

2. Wilson Dixon Extension:  This section, which would be planned to open in 2039, would provide service west of Yonge almost reaching the airport.   It connects to the west side of Line 1 at Wilson with connections to Yorkdale, York University, and Vaughan, employment areas along the 401, an apartment neighbourhood and a new neighbourhood to be built near Falstaff and Finch, Weston and Line C to Kitchener, the apartment neighbourhood along Dixon, and the hotels and convention centres near the airport.

3. GTAA "Union Station West":  When the new GTAA ground side opens in 2040, so would Line 4's connection to Pearson station.  At Pearson connections would be available to Ontario Line 3 bound for Etobicoke and Vaughan, Airport Line C bound for London, Kitchener, Guelph, and downtown, Alto high-speed rail, the Airport People Mover between the terminals, and a massive bus terminal servicing inter-city, regional, and local routes.

4. Pickering Extension:  The next extension, and last deliverable on the GTA Transit 2050 Plan, would open in 2050 connecting subway service to Pickering Centre.   Much of this route is not very dense today but it is expected that stations other than Highland Creek would see significant intensification over the next 25 years and that the Pickering Centre area would become a major urban centre and destination over that time period.  This extension would also allow connections to the DRT Busway east that would run east of Pickering Centre, the Lakeshore Line A, and VIA services to Belleville and Kingston.