Line 4 Sheppard

Name

When the subway opened, it was given the name "Sheppard line" and the official name 4 Sheppard Subway.

In October 2013, the TTC announced plans to give the lines official numbers to help riders and visitors to navigate the system. The Sheppard line is numbered as Line 4 and the new signage commenced in March 2014.

Origins

The Sheppard Line was proposed as part of the Network 2011 transportation plan, unveiled in 1985, which called for a line from Yonge Street to Victoria Park Avenue. The plan was approved by Metropolitan Toronto, but funding was delayed by the provincial government of David Peterson's Liberal Party.

In 1993, the governing New Democratic Party (NDP) under Bob Rae proposed provincial funding for four subway/LRT projects for the TTC. Included in these four proposals were plans to build new subway lines along Eglinton and Sheppard Avenues and work was begun on both projects. The NDP was defeated in the 1995 provincial election, and the Progressive Conservatives under Mike Harris were elected. Harris cancelled the Eglinton subway (and filled in the hole near Eglinton West station), but continued work on the Sheppard Line.

Funding for the Sheppard Line was rejected by city council. However, after a number of votes on different alterations to the project (including only building the subway to Leslie Street), the proposal to build the Sheppard Line tunnels only, without tracks, was passed by a narrow margin. After this vote passed city council, a re-vote was taken on the entire Sheppard line project to Don Mills, which then passed by the narrowest of margins. James Bow, a Toronto Transit reporter, has documented that the political clout of North York Mayor Mel Lastman (he was later elected Mayor of the amalgamated City of Toronto) was crucial to the Sheppard Line proposal being implemented.

Completion and opening

The Sheppard line was opened on November 22, 2002. It was the city's first new subway line since the opening of the Bloor–Danforth line in 1966. It is shorter than had been planned, running from Yonge Street (at the former Sheppard station, renamed Sheppard–Yonge when the Sheppard line opened) east to Don Mills Road rather than further west to Downsview Station and southeast to Scarborough Centre Station.

The Sheppard line cost just under C$1 billion and took eight years to build. It is the first subway line in Canada that had plain tunnel sections built entirely by tunnel boring machine. All stations on the line are in cut-and-cover sections, and just east of Leslie Station, there is an enclosed bridge over the east branch of the Don River. The Sheppard line is the only subway line in Toronto not to have any open sections. It was the first line to have accessibility elevators at every station Yonge Street had to be diverted for several years in order to accommodate the expansion of Sheppard Station.

Platform screen doors were proposed for the Sheppard line. Installed at the edge of the platforms, platform screen doors would align themselves with the subway-car doors when in station for safety and suicide prevention. The system was dropped because of the cost.

Stations are built to take the TTC's standard subway trains of six 23-metre (75 ft) cars eventually, but part of each platform has been blocked off, since only four-car trains are needed to carry the amount of traffic on the line. The line was designed so that it can be extended at both ends, allowing for the construction of the planned westward and eastward branches. Likewise, the Sheppard line level of Sheppard–Yonge station is constructed as a roughed-in Spanish solution station to anticipate increased ridership.

The automated system to announce each stop was installed in January 2006.

Rolling stock

From its opening in November 2002 to May 2016, the line was operated solely with four-car T1 subway trains with two staff members operating the trains - one driver and one guard who operates the doors. On May 30, 2016, new four-car Toronto Rocket (TR) subway trains were introduced on this line. They replaced the older T1 subway trains which were moved to Line 2 Bloor–Danforth. The TRs are based on Bombardier Transportation's Movia-styled train sets and are the first TTC trains which have no separators between the cars. This allows passengers to walk freely from one end to the other unlike Toronto's previous subway cars. This was necessary because Line 4 trains are based in Davisville Yard, which is accessed via Line 1 Yonge–University. That line will operate using an Automatic train control system which is scheduled to go online in 2020 and the T1 trains are not compatible with this system. Beginning October 9, 2016, Line 4 trains operated by one staff member who will drive the train and operate the doors.

Residential development

From its opening in 2002 to 2014, the Sheppard line spurred over $1 billion of construction of new housing, including several high-rise condominium towers, along its route as transit-oriented developments. Since 2000, condominium towers have been built around Bayview Station.

In 2007, the Leslie and Bessarion stations were the least used stations in the system; in 2015, four of twenty planned buildings of Concord Adex Investments' new condominium complex, Concord Park Place, located between these two stations, have been completed. The complex is being developed on the site of a former Canadian Tire warehouse/distribution centre, though Canadian Tire retains a retail location there. There is also development around Swedish furniture chain IKEA in the immediate area; IKEA runs a free shuttle bus between the store and Leslie station.

The Daniels Corporation built a six-tower development, called NY Towers, north of Highway 401 between Bayview and Bessarion; Arc Condominiums on the northeast corner of Bayview/Sheppard; and terraced condos just east of their NY Towers. Shane Baghai built a multi-tower development in the area.

Ridership

From late 2002 to 2011, ridership on the Sheppard subway rose from about 10.7 million riders annually to a peak of 15.9 million. However, in 2014, ridership on the line dropped slightly by 5% to 15.1 million. (The TTC does not consider that a statistically significant decline.)

The following list shows the typical number of customer-trips made on the Sheppard subway on an average weekday:

Criticism

The line has been derided as a "subway to nowhere", a "stubway", or a "white elephant". Apart from the Sheppard–Yonge and Don Mills terminals, its stations are rarely used, even during rush hour. The total ridership on the Sheppard subway line is approximately 47,000 per average weekday, similar to a few of the TTC's busiest streetcar and bus routes, though these routes are generally much longer than Sheppard's 5.5-kilometre (3.4 mi) length. The Sheppard line feeds into the already overcrowded Yonge segment of Line 1 Yonge–University because the Sheppard line does not have its own train yard. During the City of Toronto's 2008 budget crisis, the TTC considered shutting the line down on weekends or entirely.

Jarrett Walker, a transportation consultant and the author of the book Human Transit, says "Sheppard's technology makes it both expensive to abandon and expensive to extend; that's the trap."

Councillor Josh Colle, who has been chairing the TTC since December 2014, said in May 2015 that, given the existing Sheppard subway's performance, he cannot rationalize spending more money to expand it east from Don Mills or west from Sheppard–Yonge. He estimates that the Sheppard subway receives a subsidy of more than $10 per ride.

According to the Metro commuter newspaper, between the opening of the Sheppard line in 2002 and December 2014, there was over $1 billion in development along that corridor, much of it in the vicinity of Bayview, Bessarion and Don Mills stations. The latter station has a density suitable for a subway at 10,182 people per square kilometre. Yet, despite this, a majority of commuters along the Sheppard subway drive to work rather than using public transit. According to Royson James of the Toronto Star, residents in the area are commuting to jobs throughout the Greater Toronto Area where the car is almost always more effective than transit. James states that subways are designed for corridors with four to eight times the ridership along Sheppard.

Future expansion

Several informal proposals have been made to extend the line in both directions. The original proposal for the Sheppard line was for a major subway line running from Downsview Station on the Spadina line to Scarborough Centre Station. Instead, funding was only approved for a truncated line, with several phased expansions.

Eastward extension

The TTC considered the eastward extension of the Sheppard line to Scarborough Centre Station as one of its top priorities for rapid-transit expansion, which would expand rapid transit in Scarborough for the first time since the completion of Line 3 Scarborough. The eastward extension would include new stations at Consumers Road, Victoria Park Avenue, Warden Avenue, Kennedy Road, Agincourt GO Station, and Progress Avenue, terminating at the existing Scarborough Centre Station on the Scarborough RT line. The expansion proposal also included the possible addition of a station at Willowdale Avenue between Sheppard–Yonge and Bayview stations on the existing portion of the line.

The TTC estimates that a Sheppard subway to Scarborough Centre would have 7,800 riders per hour while 10,000 per hour is the minimum number of riders per hour considered appropriate for a subway. The maximum capacity of the subway is about 30,000 riders per hour, approximately the load the Yonge line carries in the morning rush.

Westward extension

A separate 4.5-kilometre (2.8 mi) westward extension to Downsview Station considered the creation of stations at Senlac Road, Bathurst Street, and Faywood Boulevard. Lower population density made this expansion a much lower priority, as the minimal increase in ridership was insufficient to justify the costs. The approval of the Spadina subway extension into York Region renewed interest in this phase, as a subway connection between Downsview and Sheppard–Yonge stations would significantly lower commuting times for York University students. The tunnel from Sheppard–Yonge to Welbeck Road (east of Senlac) was built for train storage at the time of original construction.

In 2013, this extension was listed as being considered as a "Unfunded Future Rapid Transit Project" in the City of Toronto's "Feeling Congested?" report.

Transit City

In March 2007, the City of Toronto and the TTC released the Transit City proposal to begin a new round of transit expansion using light rail technology on dedicated rights-of-way instead of subway technology. Under this plan the Sheppard East subway extension had been replaced by a light rail line running from Don Mills Station along Sheppard Avenue East to Meadowvale Road, where it would meet the northern terminus of an extended Line 3 Scarborough. Under this proposal, there would be no direct connection between North York City Centre and Scarborough City Centre.

In 2009, a westward extension was again considered by the TTC to link the line to Wilson Subway Yard. It was immediately dismissed due to cost.

Ford era

As a result of the election of Rob Ford as mayor of Toronto in 2010, the western extension of the Sheppard subway to Downsview Station and the eastern extension to Scarborough Centre were considered a priority again. Ford indicated in a December 2010 interview with The Globe and Mail newspaper that all other transit projects would come second to completing the Sheppard line. Ford stated "I'm just focusing on doing the Sheppard subway underground".

On March 31, 2011, Toronto Mayor Rob Ford announced that the proposed Sheppard East LRT line would be replaced by western and eastern extensions for the Sheppard Subway so that the completed line would run from Downsview Station to Scarborough Centre. The Province of Ontario approved this plan, which is estimated to cost $4.2 billion. The City of Toronto will assume complete financial responsibility for the project, which is proposed to be funded through a public–private partnership, as well as surplus funds from the proposed Eglinton Crosstown line, if there will be any. Massive redevelopment along the route would be needed to generate these funds, as the current population density and projected ridership is too low to support the cost of the expansion by itself.

Metrolinx estimates that the Sheppard West extension to Downsview would be 5.45 km (3.39 mi) long, add two stations, and cost $1.48 billion. The Sheppard East extension would be 8 km (5.0 mi) long, add seven stations, and cost $2.75 billion.

Gordon Chong, head of the TTC agency tasked with analyzing the new subway plans, has said it is possible that no new transit development will occur along Sheppard.

Stintz's alternative

On January 23, 2012, TTC Chair Karen Stintz suggested a plan to extend the line two stops eastwards funded by making the eastern portion of Line 5 Eglinton at street level. This motion was defeated by the TTC board. She then got 24 councillors (a majority) to sign a petition calling for a special council meeting for February 8 of that year.

In the meeting, council voted to build the Eglinton project according to the original Transit City plan (partly underground and partly at grade), build an at-grade Finch LRT, and to appoint a panel to recommend whether to pursue the eastward extension of the Sheppard subway or construct the Sheppard East LRT instead. The panel reported back to council on March 31, 2012. At this council meeting, council approved light rail rather than a subway extension for Sheppard. On April 26 of that year, the motion to build the LRT was announced by the Minister of Transportation after being approved unanimously by Metrolinx. The plan still needs to be approved by Ontario's cabinet, though on June 29, 2012, the Board of Directors of Metrolinx unanimously approved the same motion approved by Metrolinx in April.

Tory era and beyond

During the 2014 Toronto mayoral election, incumbent Rob Ford (and his brother Doug Ford after the prior's withdrawal) were the only major candidates who supported completing the Sheppard Line east to Sheppard and McCowan (phase one projects) and west to Downsview Station (phase two projects). John Tory, who won the election, did not include anything on the Sheppard corridor in his maps; instead, he favoured SmartTrack. However, he did say that he would proceed with the LRT, although the project would not be a priority for him.

On April 27, 2015, Steven Del Duca, the Ontario Minister of Transportation, said that the LRT project would not start until at least 2021. Another municipal election will be held in 2018. On July 2016, Toronto City Council approved a one-stop subway extension on Line 2 (Bloor–Danforth line) to Scarborough Centre Station. During this vote, city council also approved putting an extension of the Sheppard Subway into Scarborough back into consideration.

Service frequency

The frequency for this line is 5–6 minutes at all times.

On September 4, 2005, an overnight service on Sheppard Avenue East was introduced. The 385 Sheppard East Blue Night bus provides late-night service when the subway is not in operation with the frequency of 30 minutes. This service terminates at Sheppard–Yonge Station and follows Sheppard Avenue to Meadowvale.