York Mills

I used to work at Yonge and York Mills, so I’ve been to this station a zillion times. Not too many of the affluent inhabitants of the area patronize the stop, but it does service two adjoining mid-size office complexes straddling Yonge.

York Mills: NW entrance

There’s more to York Mills than meets the eye. Although non-descript from the street, the station boasts: a sizeable bus bay, built into the underside of the north-east office building that replaced the original, forgotten-but-stylish surface bus station; a GO Transit bus platform connection (up until 2019, this was where you went to go to Wonderland); a Kiss ’N Ride dropoff point; a parking lot; and the system’s longest escalators (until those at Highway 407 were completed).

York Mills subway station, from the lonely end.

The subterranean station was constructed extremely deep, ‘floating’ beneath the Don River (West branch). Originally the proposed station design involved a massive elevated bridge above the river valley, but local residents objected.

Consequently, for decades, the escalators at the south end of the station were the TTC system’s longest (many people mistakenly think of the north end of Lawrence, but they’re wrong).

76 steps to freedom!

For artwork, the station houses Breaking Ground, a large, detailed tapestry by noted Canadian artist Laurie Swim. The piece (which took over 4,000 hours of sewing to create) commemorates the Hogg’s Hollow Disaster, the 1960 tunnel-collapse tragedy that took the lives of five Italian immigrant workers. The incident prompted an outcry over safety standards, and a partial review of Ontario’s labour laws.

Detail from Breaking Ground, by Laurie Swim

York Mills connects directly to two office complexes

The surprisingly airy enclosed bus bay with a red theme

A hint of ominous horror-film lighting.

The neighbourhood of York Mills is named for the flour-, cider-, and saw-mills that operated close by on the Don River. The immediate area is also referred to as Hogg’s Hollow, after James Hogg, a prominent settler and mill owner.

The station was opened March 31, 1973 and was briefly the Yonge line’s northern terminus.

Photo Gallery

Tour the station, and view captioned historical images from its past (including some fascinating photos of the original surface bus station): 

(hint: turn on the captions)

My transfer:

York Mills station transfer

More about York Mills

TTC Station info | Map | Wikipedia: York Mills

My next stop: Bessarion
My previous station: Museum

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