INFRASTRUCTURE TRANSPORTATION
February 27, 2026 3.3K
Ranking Eglinton Line 5’s Stations
I love transit, and I love subways, and so the opening of the Eglinton Crosstown — or Line 5 as it’s now known — has long excited me. The line, which spends roughly half its length in a grade-separated “subway” form with a top-notch right-of-way indistinguishable in quality from Lines 1, 2, or 4, brings with it what amount to 15 new subway stations (that is, if you consider the major additions at the interchange points to constitute “new” stations as well as the entirely-underground-but-bookended-by-surface-sections Don Valley station, which as you’ll see I do).
Eglinton Line 5 before Science Centre station was renamed Don Valley, image by Metrolinx
This raises the question — how are these stations? Are there standouts? Which is best? This is what I aim to discuss here, taking a look at the stations holistically, from their art, to architecture, and functionality, and trying to rank them from the worst to the best — basically what I’d suggest an out-of-towner check out if they are into public transport but short on time.
The new stations include, from east to west — Kennedy, Don Valley, Laird, Leaside, Mt. Pleasant, Eglinton-Yonge, Avenue, Chaplin, Forest Hill, Cedarvale, Oakwood, Fairbank, Caledonia, Keelesdale, and Mt. Dennis.
15. Fairbank
In absolute last place is Fairbank, which is located at Dufferin Street (since we quite reasonably aren’t going with station names based on cross streets as we already have those, and modifiers like “north” eventually would become “northernmost of the norths” — this means the “subtext” is used heavily on the platform level signs, like you’d see at Bay — Yorkville).
Overall, Fairbank just has very little to write home about. There are no real towering spaces, no amazing art (from what I can tell), and no bus terminal (which I’m not convinced such stations need but which does make them more interesting). The spaces certainly feel liminal, and functionality-wise, navigating is a bit more annoying if you go up the wrong way since the mezzanine level above the platform is split. There are three entrances with only the northeast corner of the Dufferin-Eglinton intersection not featuring one.
14. Leaside
Leaside, which is located at Bayview, is mostly similar to Fairbank — liminal spaces, not super impressive inside, with bog-standard finishes and the same design details that you will see everywhere else along the line. This station has two entrances, with a more minor one at the northwest and the main one at the southeast. The way the entrances connect up diagonally felt a bit novel. Also of interest is that the big southeastern headhouse has a different design than most others along the line with more visible concrete and a flat roof, because it’s one of only a few structures designed to support an over-station development.
One oddity about Leaside is that it seems some below-ground utilities may have limited the ceiling heights over part of the platform.
13. Keelesdale
Liminal space at Keelesdale station, image by Reece Martin
Keelesdale is — shocker — at Keele street, and has three entrances, with two minor ones on the west, and a major one at the northeast. The below-grade station structure itself is not really anything to write home about (somewhat unlike regular-old Keele) besides its full-length mezzanine, but it sets itself apart by having a small bus terminal that you access at the back of the main headhouse. That being said, it’s more of a loop really, cutting between Keele and Yore road. I actually do like that, unlike many similarly small facilities on, say, Line 2, this does not try to be within the fare paid zone (and the fare zone is generally not at street level for most of these stations anyways).
12. Forest Hill
Platform level at Forest Hill station, image by Reece Martin
Still in the “sort of boring” category, we have Forest Hill — named after the famously affluent neighbourhood and located at Bathurst Street. This station has a split mezzanine design like Fairbank, and two entrances both on the north side of Eglinton, with the main one being at the northeast corner. This station ranks higher because it will actually have an entrance within the newish condo building at the southeast corner, although the necessary paperwork to finish work on it has apparently not yet been done.
11. Chaplin
Side-eyeing Chaplin station, image by Reece Martin
The last of the sort of initial crop of rather boring stations is Chaplin — located at, whadya know, Chaplin Crescent. This station has three entrances spread along the length of what was a cut-and-cover station box, which feels a bit excessive for this quiet station. I also have a bit of a personal bone to pick with the design as someone who used to live in the area: the Beltline trail, which travels directly west of the station running just metres west of the westernmost entrance, has no direct entrance access. This might sound like a nitpick, but the Beltline trail is a fantastic amenity in midtown, and this station is directly adjacent to it. Moreover, creating an entrance likely would have just required expanding one of the landings on the staircase down from this entrance and adding a door. Instead, those looking to use the trail will need to ascend to street level, and then head right back down again.
10. Oakwood
Things start to get more interesting with Oakwood (some folks complained initially that Metrolinx wasn’t naming stations after streets, but like Keelesdale and Chaplin, Oakwood is named after the street it’s located at the end of) because it’s our first mined station and one of only three at a ‘T’ intersection. The main entrance is at the top of the ‘T’, while the secondary entrance is to the southwest. That secondary entrance to Oakwood is incredibly stair-heavy, and features a number of angled surfaces next to the stairs that, like a few other stations, feel like total hazards for an irresponsible teen who might think it’s funny to slide down before falling several storeys off of the end.
Eglinton Avenue at Oakwood station, image by Metrolinx
I guess it’s as good of a time as any to make note that most of these “stair-heavy” entrances, which many stations have, seem unlikely to get much use — since regular users will likely learn which entrance has escalators. It feels like they ought to better label them, and one wonders if there were not substantial savings to be had (in absolute terms, and not relative to the project cost) to leave these as barely-finished emergency exits only.
9. Laird
Laird is quite similar to Oakwood, also being mined and lacking a full-length mezzanine. The station has two entrances, both south of Eglinton, with one to the west and one to the east of Laird Drive. There are well-placed windows over the station cavern from the mezzanine, but the combination of a dropping ceiling and cheapened angular windows takes some of the excitement away.
Looking down to the platform at Laird station from the mezzanine, image by Reece Martin
These stations really just pale in comparison to the similarly-constructed but much more interesting and attractive downtown stations on the Ottawa O-Train.
Laird is the final station in the continuous subway section at the east end, and just east of the station in the same huge mined cavern is a central turnback track with walkway, which should eventually allow additional service to be operated on the grade-separated portion of the line (until this is hopefully extended to Don Valley). For now, riders can just appreciate the size and length of this cavern.
8. Don Valley
Speaking of Don Valley (formerly to have been Science Centre) station, this is where we start to get into more interesting facilities. The station has two entrances — at the southwest and northeast corners, and reminds me a bit of something you’d see in China, with the huge station “lightbox” really standing out next to the parking lots, wide arterials, and several under-construction skyscrapers.
In both directions from platform level, you can see the steep grades as trains climb back to the surface. The Mezzanine level features a number of glassed-in rooms, which are probably meant to be retail, and a reminder that the Crosstown still isn’t fully done. Roughly midway along the passage to the bus terminal is supposedly where the escalators up to the under-construction Ontario Line station will be. Once you ascend to the bus terminal, which has a long linear design, you may notice that there is no accessible route here, and getting to the terminal in a wheelchair means an absolute trek to the other corner of the intersection and around the block. The terminal has temporarily been bent back on itself with a bus loop as Ontario Line construction progresses over the westernmost part of it. I’m tempted to complain, but a station being partly closed because we are already building another connecting line feels like a good news story.
All in all, from the suburban location with big arterials, many towers, and the big linear bus terminal, this station feels a bit like it might resemble Finch in a few years.
7. Mount Pleasant
Mt Pleasant is what I expect to be a sleeper hit. The station has two entrances, both on the north side of Eglinton, and includes both a main entrance to the east, and a second entrance inside a restored old bank building to the west (okay, really this was a facadectomy). This is a good indicator of what we can expect to see at several Ontario Line stations in the downtown core in the future, which are being built in a similar way.
Mt Pleasant’s sleeper hit status is something I mention because really it’s just at the southeastern corner of the enormous cluster of high rises the projects northeast from Yonge and Eglinton. For many living here, this will be the local station, and I expect it to be busy.
6. Avenue
Avenue is my top ranking non-interchange station, and is like so many of these stations is named after the road it’s located along. The station has two entrances both north of Eglinton, and with the eastern one featuring what is Toronto’s first “there are a lot of stairs here, be warned” exit — the type that is fairly common in London. There really are a lot of stairs, and a good view down them.
Looking down the stairs at Avenue station, image by Reece Martin
It’s entrances like this that make me most feel like they ought to have just been more minimal, unfinished emergency exits, because I expect few non-transit fans or exercise enthusiasts will enjoy the 5 minute hike to the surface.
Looking up the stairs at Avenue station, image by Reece Martin
On the bright side, this is one place where you can sort of appreciate how the all white aesthetic of the stations really does help reflect some sunlight down into them.
5. Kennedy
Kennedy is a station I’ve used a lot in the past, and is now a really substantial hub with through service on the GO Stouffville line, eventual through service on the under-extension Line 2, and maybe someday through service, or some form of rail east on Eglinton, not to mention the big bus terminal and under construction busway. It remains remarkable given all this transit connectivity how barren and desolate the area around the station is, certainly not helped by the road overpass over the rail corridor.
Long hallways and high ceilings at Kennedy station, image by Reece Martin
Inside the station, which I waited outside of for several hours wondering if I’d keep my toes on opening day, the scale is truly impressive, with high ceilings and an expansive concourse level interconnected with Line 2. It really is so large that one sort of wonders if it had to be so big, but at the very least this is another facility so capacious that it makes me go, “yeah this could be China”. The answer is at least in part that it might as well be because if you noticed the curve of the tail tracks, the concourse is actually just built above in space that was already excavated.
Platform level at Kennedy station, by Reece Martin
Nicely, there is access outside of the fare paid zone between the western entrances, and the much-enhanced new eastern entrance and GO platform (the second one will theoretically be finished and put into service when the Scarborough RT guideway is removed, and the Stouffville second tracking progresses further). There are also now multiple washrooms at this station, something a lot of stations on the line have thanks to all the interchanges (someone ought to make a map of all the subway stations with a public washroom in them, or an easy, almost always open one connected underground — such as at Queen).
4. Eglinton-Yonge
It may come as a surprise that the interchange station between Line 5 and the Yonge subway, the most important transit line in Canada, ranks at just fourth, especially because this station to a significant extent held up the whole line.
Diagram detailing how to get around Eglinton station, image by Reece Martin
The reality is Eglinton-Yonge, while very important, is just super chaotic, and not always in a good way. There is some nice public art as you descend to the Crosstown platforms, but overall the station is one of our most maze-like with Eglinton already being a bit confusing with multiple entrances, underground connections, and the bus terminal off to the side, and all kinds of new passageways and connections now being added in.
The good thing here is that the station feels like it’s at the centre of a new sort of mini northern Path system. The bad however is that it seems that the station is going to have severe crowding problems. The access up to the Yonge line platforms is awkwardly crammed in, and there is little space in the station, no doubt as a result of having to squeeze it in however possible. One can imagine how a shutdown of one line could easily lead to severe crowding that backs all the way onto the platform for the other line, because the access routes are short and narrow. The station just doesn’t feel like it’s built for high capacity — which it really ought to have — but to just tick the “connection” box.
Art above the Line 5 platform at Eglinton station, image by Reece Martin
My positive takeaway here is that the similarly crammed in interchange with the Yonge line from the Ontario line at Queen might actually benefit from being so deep. This will provide a lot of space in the connecting routes (to a large extent vertical) for throngs of passengers to disperse, and to absorb large crowds during disruptions.
3. Caledonia
Caledonia comes in at number 3, which might be a surprise — right now it only has a single entrance, and isn’t even an interchange… yet!
Look waaaaay down, Caledonia station, image by Reece Martin
Caledonia however has big things in store for it. GO platforms on the Barrie line are already moving along through construction and will provide a very useful connection, including for passengers headed to Pearson Airport at Mt Dennis. This will also effectively extend the current single entrance (a unique feature of Caledonia) east of the rail corridor to Croham Road.
Art above the platform at Caledonia station, image by Reece Martin
What’s better is that the station is quite good as it stands today. At first it might not seem like a lot, but the station’s depth makes for a soaring ceiling and quite impressive views down to the platform from above. The station also features the excellent “Ride of Your Life” artwork.
2. Cedarvale
Eglinton West station now has the name Cedarvale — which seems sensible to me given the location. It is really good. The station has gone from its former single entrance and bus loop at the north of the intersection between Eglinton and the Allen, to four entrances, with new ones to the east, west, and south.
Wide spaces for transfers at Cedarvale station, image by Reece Martin
Inside you find huge feeling spaces filled with escalators (something that feels like it’s straight out of the Montreal Metro, or some other grand system) leading from the new entrances down to the transfer concourse, accented with beautiful art from Douglas Coupland and a nice new heated washroom. The interchange here is also both efficient, fairly simple, and high-capacity, with wide hallways connecting the transfer concourse to each of the Line 1 platforms. You can also see the steel added at the Eglinton platform level supporting the Line 1 tunnel above.
Douglas Coupland-designed artwork in a mezzanine at Cedarvale station, image by Reece Martin
While it’s nice that you only have to go up one level to connect to Line 1 from Line 5, the stations design is perhaps less straightforward than it could be, with the transfer concourse being the only way to go between the new entrances, and the old one, meaning that if you use the wrong entrance or go the wrong way there may be some backtracking.
1. Mount Dennis
You might be surprised that I ranked Mt Dennis as my number one, but I don’t think you should be. The station is both very interesting, filled with tons of features, and the first entirely new station on the line to also be an interchange.
GO and Union Pearson Express platforms at Mount Dennis station, image by Metrolinx
Mt Dennis is great because there is just so much to it, the GO and UP Express platforms are out on the west side, with one of the station entrances connected by passageways to a sort of central core where you can also head north to one set of washrooms (there are multiple!) and a rather large and impressive bus terminal, or to the ground floor of the famous Kodak building, a remnant of the sites original tenant and a passenger pick up and drop off area. From here, you can also see the railyard which serves Line 5, the operations building, and even a battery storage system which can power the whole line for a while if power is cut.
Bus terminal at Mount Dennis station, image by Reece Martin
To the south there is a bridge over the Line 5 platforms, which along with the colocation of the yard gives me Davisville vibes. Heading to the platforms, you get some lovely art on the way down, and the only station so far on the “subway” section of the line that gets sunlight, as it’s above grade and wrapped in glass. Because of the elevation, you can get very cool views right in from the sidewalk.
Platform level at Mount Dennis station, image by Reece Martin
Now, while the station is sort of masterplanned, it doesn’t entirely feel like the plan was sensible. The connection to the regional trains is a bit awkward, and likely to be very crowded as ridership continues to increase. It also doesn’t feel compact and really sprawls out over the site, meaning a lot of walking. In some ways this feels like an opportunity. In a far off future you could imagine the station ringed with high-density development, and perhaps even some towers directly connected into the station replacing some existing parking, perhaps even a Hong Kong-style arrangement with a deck built over the yard someday.
Suffice it to say, while the new set of stations on the Crosstown is a real mixed bag, there are lots of nice stations, and more importantly, every one of these stations will transform lives, and Toronto.
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Reece Martin is a well-known advocate for good transit, worldwide. He is based in Toronto and blogs at nextmetro.substack.
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UrbanToronto will continue to follow developments on Line 5, but in the meantime, you can learn more about it from our Database file, linked below. If you’d like, you can join in on the conversation in the associated Line 5 Forum thread, or leave a comment in the space provided on this page.
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