Toronto Civic Railways
 Toronto Civic Railways Preston-built car 55 is preserved at the Halton County Radial Railway museum. | |
| Locale | new areas annexed to Toronto after 1880s to 1910s |
|---|---|
| Dates of operation | 1912–1921 |
| Predecessor | None - new lines not served by Toronto Railway Company |
| Successor | Toronto Transportation Commission |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 10 7⁄8 in (1,495 mm) Toronto gauge |
| Length | 36 km (22.4 mi) |
| Headquarters | Toronto |
Toronto Civic Railways (TCR) was an agency created and owned by the City of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, to run streetcars in newly annexed areas of the city that the private operator Toronto Railway Company refused to serve. When the Toronto Railway Company's franchise expired in 1921, its services were combined with those of the Toronto Civic Railways, and are now assumed by the new Toronto Transportation Commission (TTC).
Contents
1 Routes
2 Facilities
3 Fleet
4 See also
5 References
Routes
The routes of the Toronto Civic Railways included:
Division | Service Commenced | Route | Notes |
Gerrard Division | 1912 | Gerrard Street from Greenwood Avenue east to Main Street | now served by the 506 Carlton streetcar |
Bloor Division | 1915 | Bloor Street West from Dundas Street West west to Quebec Avenue and later to Runnymede Road | Continued as Bloor by the Toronto Transportation Commission from 1921 to 1954 and Toronto Transit Commission to 1966, including Danforth Tripper; now served by the Bloor-Danforth subway |
Danforth Division | 1915 | Danforth Avenue from Broadview east to city limits at Luttrell Avenue | renamed Broadview and then as Bloor from November 1921 to 1966; now served by the Bloor-Danforth subway |
Lansdowne Division | 1917 | Lansdowne Avenue from St. Clair Street West south to CPR tracks north of Dupont Street | Ended 1921 |
St. Clair Division | 1914 | St. Clair Avenue West from Yonge Street west to Lansdowne Avenue | Construction was begun 1911 and service completed in 1914; now served by the 512 St. Clair streetcar |
Facilities
A few facilities of the TCR were retained by the TTC, but most were abandoned and sites re-developed. Only two carbarns survived today and have been recycled for other uses.
Yard | Location | Year Open | Notes |
| St Clair Carhouse | St. Clair Avenue West and Christie Street | 1913–1921 | rename as Wychwood Barns and used by the TTC until 1978 as streetcar barn; it is now an arts and culture centre |
| T&YRR Deer Park Carhouse and Shops | 25 St. Clair Avenue West | 1913–1924 | Built by Metropolitan Street Railway and home to T&YRR St. Clair Division from 1913 to 1921; Sold to Badminton and Racquet Club of Toronto in 1924 by the TTC and retained carhouse and shops, site later re-developed with current office building housing the BRCT Club House; Yonge Street portion sold by Club and occupied by commercial businesses. Building partially destroyed in a fire on February 14, 2017. |
| Station Street Carhouse | Station Street (Caledonia Road) and St. Clair Avenue West | 1911–1913 | outdoor storage facility next to railway line; replaced by St. Clair Carhouse; site now industrial-commercial buildings along active railway line |
| GTR Davenport Station | Davenport Road between Wiltshire and Lansdowne Avenue | 1917–1921 | Operating for Lansdowne Division from 1917–1921; closed and demolished site is now Davenport-Perth Community Centre and United Church surrounded by homes |
| Danforth Carhouse | Danforth Avenue and Coxwell Avenue | 1915–1921 | Replaced Gerrard Street Yard and Carhouse, acquired by the TTC and used as a carhouse until 1966; converted as bus garage in 1967 and operational until 2002; bus barns now home to Habitat for Humanity Toronto (1627 Danforth Avenue) |
| Hanson Street Yard | Hanson Street and Coxwell Avenue | now residential neighbourhood in East Danforth | |
| Gerrard Street Yard and Carhouse | Gerrard Street East near Morton Road | 1912–1915 | Home to Gerrard Division, later abandoned and operations moved to Coxwell Yard; residential neighbourhood and rail corridor |
| T&YRR Walter Station and Carhouse | Walter Street and Kingston Road | now residential neighborhood of Upper Beaches | |
| Indian Road Carhouse | Indian Road and Howard Park Avenue | 1915–1921? | now residential neighbourhood in High Park |
Management of the TCR:
Fleet
TCR began service in 1911 with all wooden cars and acquire steel cars in 1917.
Make/Model | Description | Fleet size | Year acquired | Year retired | Notes |
McGuire-Cummings Manufacturing Company (Paris, Illinois) | wood double end double truck closed electric streetcar | 4 | 1912 | 1936 | later reclassified as 1-4 Group A (later TTC Class I) |
Niles Car and Manufacturing Company (Niles, Ohio) | wood double end double truck closed electric streetcar | 20 | 1913 | 1948[1] | #100-#119 later classified as Group B (later TTC Class H, H1, H3) |
Preston Car Company (Preston, Ontario) | wood double end single truck closed electric streetcar | 8 | 1915-17 | N/A | later reclassified as 50-57 Group D (later TTC Class F) Used as scrapers, grinders, and in subway service as grinders. |
Preston Car Company (Preston, Ontario) | Steel, arch roof, double end, double truck closed electric streetcar | 13 | 1918 | 1948-9 | later TTC class J. Steel double-ended cars used on Weston Rd. and Spadina, and on shuttle services. |
J.G. Brill and Company (Philadelphia, PA) Birney | Birney cars, 60-84. Steel, double end single truck closed streetcar. | 25 | 1920 | 1920s, 1940s | (later TTC Class G); sold 3 to Cornwall (1926), 8 to Halifax (1927) and another 14 (1941) |
See also
- Toronto Transit Commission
References
Wyatt, David A. "Transit History of Toronto, Ontario". Retrieved 2007-07-21..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg/12px-Wikisource-logo.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#33aa33;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
Hood, J. William (1986). "4". The Toronto Civic Railways, an Illustrated History. Toronto, Ontario: Upper Canada Railway Society. pp. 30, 35, 42.
^ http://www.trainweb.org/oldtimetrains/Toronto/streets/keele.htm
| Preceded by Toronto Railway Company | Public Transit in Toronto 1915-1921 | Succeeded by Toronto Transportation Commission |
Toronto Transit Commission | ||
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| Subway |
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| Streetcars |
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| History |
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| Predecessors |
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| Facilities |
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| Proposed |
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| Miscellaneous |
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Italics indicate a project under construction | ||
