Aurora GO Station

Aurora
Location 121 Wellington Street East
Aurora, Ontario
Canada
Coordinates 44°00′02″N 79°27′35″W / 44.00056°N 79.45972°W / 44.00056; -79.45972Coordinates: 44°00′02″N 79°27′35″W / 44.00056°N 79.45972°W / 44.00056; -79.45972
Owned by Metrolinx
Platforms 1 side platform
Tracks 1
Connections York Region Transit
Construction
Structure type Heritage wood frame station building
Parking 1725 spaces
Bicycle facilities Yes
Disabled access Yes
Other information
Station code GO Transit: AUGO
Fare zone 63
History
Opened 1853 (OS&H)
Rebuilt 1900 (GTR)
1982 (GOT)
Services
Preceding station   GO Transit   Following station
Barrie
Designated 1990
Reference no. 6500

Aurora GO Station is a railway station and bus station in the GO Transit network located on Wellington Street East between Yonge Street and Bayview Avenue in Aurora, Ontario, Canada. It is a stop on the Barrie line train service, and connects with York Region Transit local bus routes, and the GO Express Bus between Newmarket Bus Terminal and Union Station Bus Terminal.

History

Centennial plaque installed at Union Station in 1953
Commemorative locomotive bell at the station.

Rail presence in Aurora dates to 16 May 1853, when steam train service began between Toronto and Machell's Corners, as Aurora was then known, on the Ontario, Simcoe and Huron railway.[1] The first train was led by the Toronto, the first locomotive built in Canada, completed at the James Good foundry Toronto Locomotive Works on 16 April 1853.[2] The train consist included two boxcars carrying freight, one passenger coach car, and one mixed passenger and baggage car.[3] This first voyage is commemorated by a plaque installed in 1953 at Union Station in Toronto, [4] as well as a steam locomotive bell placed first at Centennial Park (in May 1963), now (as of 2016) at the station. There is also a plaque placed in a small parkette at the station by the Board of Trade and another placed by the Province of Ontario to remember the event. [5]

The train's arrival at the Wellington Street train station was greeted with cheers from nearly all residents of the community, who had assembled at the station, and the event was celebrated with a fireworks display.[1] Connection to the railway led to prosperity for Aurora, with the development of two hotels, a wagon maker, a brewery, and other businesses.[1] In 1855 the line was completed to Collingwood.

In 1900, Grand Trunk Railway constructed the present building to a standard plan design with a porte-cochère and low profile.[6] The building was designated a provincial heritage building in 1971 and a federal heritage railway station in 1990.[7]

The station building was renovated after GO Transit became the exclusive passenger carrier in 1992.

On August 21, 2012, GO Transit opened a new bus loop to accommodate all GO and York Region Transit bus service at the station.[8]

Services

Aurora station is served by five Barrie Line trains southbound from Barrie to Toronto Union Station in the morning, and seven trains northbound to Barrie in the afternoon.

There is also an hourly bus service to Toronto, with 19 southbound bus trips, and 19 return bus trips from Toronto.

Weekend and holiday service is provided all day in both directions during summer months. During summer 2014, the service consists of four trains in each direction between Allandale Waterfront Station and Union Station.[9]

Connecting York Region Transit buses

References

  1. 1 2 3 Bradford, Robert (2015). Keeping Ontario Moving: The History of Roads and Road Building in Ontario. Dundurn Press. p. 26. ISBN 9781459724112.
  2. ↑ "The Toronto No. 2". North America Railway Hall of Fame. Retrieved 11 June 2014.
  3. ↑ Carter, Robert Terence (2011). Stories of Newmarket: An Old Ontario Town. Dundurn Press. ISBN 9781554888818.
  4. ↑ Boles, Derek (2009). Toronto's Railway Heritage. Images of Rail. Arcadia Publishing. p. 14. ISBN 9780738565705. LCCN 2009925477.
  5. ↑ "Aurora station first train bell sign". Flickr. 2016. Retrieved September 4, 2016. see other photos inthe stream for plaques, details.
  6. ↑ "Canadian National Railway Station". Parks Canada. Archived from the original on 18 December 2013. Retrieved 13 May 2014.
  7. ↑ "The Directory of Designated Heritage Railway Stations in Ontario". Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada. Parks Canada. Archived from the original on 14 May 2014. Retrieved 13 May 2014.
  8. ↑ http://transit.toronto.on.ca/archives/weblog/2012/08/24-new_bus_lo.shtml
  9. ↑ "Barrie Line Seasonal Schedule" (PDF). GO Transit. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-07-17. Retrieved 2013-06-06.

External links

Media related to Aurora GO Station at Wikimedia Commons


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