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Guelph Central Station

Coordinates: 43°32′39″N 80°14′49″W / 43.54417°N 80.24694°W / 43.54417; -80.24694
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Guelph
The heritage Grand Trunk Railway building
General information
Location79 Carden Street
Guelph, Ontario
N1H 3A4
Coordinates43°32′39″N 80°14′49″W / 43.54417°N 80.24694°W / 43.54417; -80.24694
Owned byCity of Guelph
Platforms1 side platform
Tracks1
Bus stands22
Bus operators
ConnectionsGuelph Transit
Construction
Structure typeUnstaffed station
ParkingNo
AccessibleYes
Other information
Station code
  • GO Transit: GL
Fare zone39
History
Opened1911 (1911)
RebuiltMay 13, 2012
Services
Preceding station Via Rail Following station
Kitchener
toward Sarnia
 Sarnia–Toronto Georgetown
toward Toronto
Preceding station GO Transit Following station
Kitchener
Terminus
 Kitchener Acton
towards Union Station
Former services
Preceding station Amtrak Following station
Kitchener
toward Chicago
 International Georgetown
toward Toronto
Preceding station Canadian National Railway Following station
Mosborough
toward Sarnia
 Sarnia – Toronto
via Lucan Crossing 		Rockwood
toward Toronto
Marden
toward Owen Sound
 Owen Sound – Hamilton Guelph Junction
toward Hamilton
Future services
Preceding station Via Rail Following station
Kitchener Central
Opening 2027[1]
toward Sarnia
 Sarnia–Toronto Georgetown
toward Toronto
Preceding station GO Transit Following station
Kitchener Central
Opening 2027[1]
Terminus
 Kitchener Acton
towards Union Station
Breslau
TBD
towards Kitchener Central
Designated1992
Reference no.4569

Guelph Central Station (also known as Guelph Central GO Station[2]) is the main inter-modal transportation terminal in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. It is used by Via Rail and GO Transit trains, as well as Guelph Transit local buses, GO Transit regional buses and intercity buses. It is located at 79 Carden Street and includes the historic Guelph Railway Station, as well as the site of the former Guelph Bus Terminal.

History

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GTR station

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The International at Guelph in 2004

The current station building was built in 1911 by the Grand Trunk Railway, which had been serving Guelph since 1856.[3] In addition to serving regional trains, in the pre-Amtrak era, it served the Grand Trunk Western's Maple Leaf (Chicago - Toronto). The station is a classic example of early 20th century Canadian railway station design and has been designated as a heritage structure per the Heritage Railway Stations Protection Act.[4][5] The Romanesque Revival building, with an Italianate tower, has been listed on the Canadian Register since 2006 and was formally recognized as one of Canada's Historic Places in November 1992.[6]

In 1923, the Grand Trunk Railway was merged into the Canadian National Railway.

Between 1982 and 2004, the Central station was served by the International Limited, a train service between Chicago and Toronto that was then operated jointly by Via Rail and Amtrak.[7]

Guelph was also served by GO Transit trains between 1990 and 1993, when it served as the terminus of the then Georgetown line. Provincial cutbacks in 1993 caused GO Transit to cut back service to Georgetown.

The current GO Train service through Guelph Station began on December 19, 2011, when two daily trains in each direction on the then Georgetown line were extended to Kitchener.[8]

Intermodal Terminal

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The Intermodal Transit Terminal was first proposed in 2002 to consolidate intercity bus, local bus and railway services into one facility.[9] At the time, the downtown terminal for Guelph Transit was three blocks away at St. George's Square. A feasibility study was initiated in 2004, and Guelph City Council endorsed the Carden Street location and the concept design that same year. The project received federal and provincial infrastructure stimulus funding in 2009, and detailed design and stakeholder consultations were conducted. Construction began in April 2010.[10]

The name "Guelph Central" was chosen with input from the community and the transit service providers using the new station.[11]

The station opened to the public on May 13, 2012.[12] The project was projected to cost $8 million, of which $5.3 million was from the Provincial and Federal Infrastructure Stimulus Funds.[13]

The opening of the bus portion of the station was delayed from October 2011 to May 2012 to allow time for the renovations of the railway station building to be completed.[13]

Additional renovations, with a $2.1 million budget, were completed in 2016–2017. The work also helped to preserve and restore heritage characteristics.[4][14]

Services

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Guelph Transit

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On January 1, 2012, all the Guelph Transit routes were changed.[15] While it was originally planned to have the new bus routes meeting at the new station on the same date, this change was delayed until May 6, 2012.[16] In September 2016, Guelph Transit began offering early morning shuttle service for those connecting with early GO Trains. The PRESTO co-fare cards can be used through all of the hours of GO service in Guelph.[17]

Via Rail

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Via Rail operates one daily train in each direction on the Sarnia - London - Toronto line.[18]

GO Transit

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Guelph Owen Sound Transportation

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Starting August 31, 2020, the GOST (Guelph Owen Sound Transportation) operates a bus service between Guelph Central Station and Owen Sound Transit Terminal twice a day.[22]

Bus platforms

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Guelph Central Station provides an exchange with both local and regional bus services. Bays 1-20 are located on an island bus platform, while bays 21 and 22 are located on the south side of Macdonell Street, immediately adjacent to the island platform. Bus platform allocation are as follows:[23]

Bay Provider No. Route / Note
1 Guelph Transit 2A West Loop Clockwise
2 16 Southgate
3 10 Imperial
4 5 Gordon
5 3A East Loop Clockwise
6 3B East Loop Counter Clockwise
7 8 Stone Road Mall
8 9 Waterloo
9 CS Community Bus South
10 CN Community Bus North
11
12 GO Transit[20][21] 29 Guelph - Mississauga
31 Guelph - Georgetown
13 33 Guelph - North York
14 Guelph Transit 20 Northwest Industrial
15 11 Willow West
18 13 Victoria Road Recreation Centre
19 12 General Hospital
20 2B West Loop Counter Clockwise
21 4 York
22 14 Grange

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Kitchener transit hub now expected to cost $130M, Phase 1 to start later this year". CBC News. 7 February 2024.
  2. ^ "Guelph Central GO". Gotransit.com. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
  3. ^ Seto, Chris (19 April 2017). "Guelph Central Station is officially reopened". Guelpmercury.com. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  4. ^ a b "Fact sheet: Guelph Central Train Station". City of Guelph. April 11, 2017. Archived from the original on October 5, 2017.
  5. ^ "Guelph Via-GO". Ontario Heritage Properties Database. Archived from the original on 2011-07-06. Retrieved 18 March 2008.
  6. ^ "HistoricPlaces.ca - HistoricPlaces.ca". Historicplaces.ca. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  7. ^ Melzer, Matt (23 April 2004). "Final Run of the Amtrak / VIA International". TrainWeb.org. Retrieved 1 August 2015. From 1982, Amtrak and VIA Rail Canada had jointly operated the International train between Chicago and Toronto
  8. ^ "Guelph's first GO train late, but still a hit". GuelphMercury.com. Metroland Media Group. Archived from the original on January 8, 2012.
  9. ^ "Guelph-Wellington Transportation Study - 5. Public Transit" (PDF). City of Guelph. 2005. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-09-29. Retrieved 9 November 2011.
  10. ^ "Transit Terminal Timeline". City of Guelph. Archived from the original on 2013-03-11. Retrieved 6 May 2012.
  11. ^ "Guelph Central Station top pick for new transportation terminal". Guelph Tribune. Metroland Media Group. September 20, 2011. Archived from the original on October 20, 2011.
  12. ^ "Guelph Central Station". City of Guelph. Archived from the original on 2012-05-19. Retrieved May 6, 2012.
  13. ^ a b "About the Inter-Modal Transit Terminal". City of Guelph. July 13, 2011. Archived from the original on December 27, 2011.
  14. ^ "Guelph Central Station Building to be Renovated - Steven Petric for Ward 3 Guelph City Council". Stevenpetric.com. March 6, 2016. Archived from the original on March 16, 2017. Retrieved September 29, 2018.
  15. ^ "Guelph Transit Routes" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-10-14. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  16. ^ "New timing for transit terminal". City of Guelph. July 13, 2011. Archived from the original on December 27, 2011.
  17. ^ "Guelph Transit offers earlier morning service to connect with GO train as well as Co-Fare Rate - Steven Petric for Ward 3 Guelph City Council". Stevenpetric.com. 31 August 2016. Archived from the original on 26 October 2016. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  18. ^ "Via Rail Timetable: Toronto-London-Sarnia". Viarail.ca. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
  19. ^ "Kitchener Line Schedule" (PDF). GO Transit. 31 August 2019. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 December 2022. Retrieved 8 September 2019.
  20. ^ a b "Kitchener Line GO Bus & Train Schedule" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on December 14, 2022. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
  21. ^ a b "Table 29 Guelph Mississauga" (PDF). GO Transit. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 14, 2022. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
  22. ^ Guelph Owen Sound Transportation
  23. ^ "Guelph Central Station Platforms" (PDF). Guelph.ca. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
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