Dupont (TTC)

Dupont
File:Bubble entrance to Dupont TTC.jpg
Location	263 Dupont Street Toronto, Ontario Canada
Coordinates
Platforms	side platforms
Tracks	2
Construction
Structure type	underground
Architect	Dunlop-Farrow Architects
History
Opened	28 January 1978
Traffic
Passengers (2013)	14,550
Services
Preceding station   TTC   Following station St. Clair West toward Downsview Yonge–University Spadina toward Finch

Dupont is a subway station on the Yonge–University line in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located on Spadina Road at Dupont Street in The Annex neighbourhood of the city.

History

The station opened in 1978, as part of the "Spadina" extension of the subway line from St. George to Wilson Station.

The 1995 Russell Hill subway accident happened on August 11, 1995, when a train southbound from St. Clair West station rear-ended another stationary train just north of Dupont station. Three people were killed and 30 were taken to hospital with injuries, and this section of the subway line was shut down for five days. Subsequent investigations found that a combination of human error and a design flaw in a mechanical safety device caused the accident.

On 1 June 2006, at 9:30 a.m., as a train entered the station, a metal cover in the bottom of the last subway car came loose and wedged in the third rail. This filled the train with smoke, forcing the evacuation of the station and disrupting service for about an hour. The possibility that this incident may have resulted from sabotage by striking TTC personnel was discarded by the Toronto Police.

Three elevators and improved fare gates will be constructed, beginning in 2015, to make the station accessible.

Architecture and art

Dupont Station was designed by Dunlop-Farrow Architects. The two entrances to the station, located at the northwest and southeast corners of Dupont Street and Spadina Road, take the form of glass "bubbles" with orange-painted metal frames covering the stairways and escalators. A motif of rounded surfaces and finishes is used, with the interior walls of the station being clad in small circular orange tiles and all corners curved. On the platforms unique built-in concrete benches are also rounded and covered with the same tiles as the walls and the use of large circular lighting fixtures throughout the station reinforces the theme. The overall effect of the interior's rounded surfaces and colour scheme is of an earthly cavern.

The main artwork in the station consists of murals designed by James Sutherland, entitled Spadina Summer Under All Seasons. Using thousands of pieces of glass, colourful mosaics of flowers were created directly into the station’s tiling. Two large mosaics of a giant flower in cross-section face each other across the tracks, reaching upward into a mezzanine level lined with smaller flower mosaics. Sculptor Ron Baird designed massive circular interlocking doors which provide access to the electrical substation, which is nestled behind the northwest entrance.

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Platform lighting, tiled wall and built-in bench

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Flower mosaic by James Sutherland

Nearby landmarks

The station is located on the north side of The Annex neighbourhood. Nearby landmarks and destinations include Casa Loma, Spadina House, Casa Loma campus of George Brown College and the City of Toronto Archives.

Surface connections

File:Dupont TTC bus stop at entrance.jpg

Bus stop beside northwest entrance

A transfer is required to connect between the subway system and these surface routes:

Main article: List of Toronto Transit Commission bus routes

• 26 Dupont eastbound to St. George Station and westbound to Jane Station
• 127 Davenport eastbound to Spadina Station and westbound to St. Clair Avenue West & Old Weston Road

External links

Media related to at Wikimedia Commons

• Dupont Station at the Toronto Transit Commission