Maple GO Station

Maple GO Station is a train and bus station on GO Transit's Barrie line, located in Maple, Ontario, Canada. It is Ontario's oldest operating railway station, with passenger service dating back to 1853.

Maple
General information
Location	30 Station Street Maple, Ontario Canada
Coordinates	43°51′34″N 79°30′25″W
Owned by	Metrolinx
Platforms	1 side platform
Tracks	1
Connections	York Region Transit
Construction
Structure type	Historic wood frame Grand Trunk Railway station building
Parking	1146 spaces
Bicycle facilities	Yes
Accessible	Yes
Other information
Station code	GO Transit: MP
Fare zone	61
History
Opened	1853 (OS&H)
Rebuilt	1903 (GTR) 1982 (GOT)
Services
Preceding station GO Transit Following station King City towards Allandale Waterfront Barrie Rutherford towards Union Station
Former services Preceding station Canadian National Railway Following station King toward North Bay North Bay – Toronto Concord toward Toronto
Heritage Railway Station (Canada)
Designated	1992
Reference no.	6765
Ontario Heritage Act
Official name	Maple Heritage Conservation District
Designated	2005

History

The Maple Grand Trunk station in 1909.

Maple Station opened on May 16, 1853, when the service began on the Ontario, Simcoe, and Huron Railroad between Toronto and Machell's Corners (now Aurora). At the time, the station was named "Richmond Hill", despite being six kilometres west of that community. Train service was extended to Barrie later in 1853, and to Collingwood in 1855.^[1]

The current station building was constructed in 1903 by the Grand Trunk Railway to replace the original Ontario, Simcoe and Huron building, which had burned down.^[2] The Queen Anne style timber frame structure is clad in wood using stick style patterns, and features large gables in its roofline. It is federally protected by the Heritage Railway Stations Protection Act.^[2][3] The building is also protected under Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act, as part of the Maple Heritage Conservation District.^[4]

The building underwent renovations that were completed in January 2014 for CA$1.7 million.^[5] It included repairs to the facade and interior, replacement of the floor, and an upgrade to the accessibility ramps.^[6] An additional 60 parking spaces were added to the station in the spring of 2015.^[7]

The station will undergo a redevelopment starting in 2019 including the addition of a second rail track, new rail platforms with a full canopy, two pedestrian tunnels to connect the new platforms, more parking, and the bus loop will be upgraded.^[8]

Services

As of January 2018, train service operates approximately every 15–30 minutes in the morning peak period, every 30 minutes in the afternoon peak period and every hour at other times. Outside of peak periods, most trains terminate at Aurora with connecting buses for stations further north.^[9]

On weekends and holidays, service operates approximately hourly between Aurora and Toronto. Three daily trains in each direction cover the full route from Barrie to Toronto, while the remainder have bus connections at Aurora station for stations further north.^[9]

Connecting transit

York Region Transit:

• 4 Major Mackenzie
• 26 Maple

In film

• The station was used in a 1981 episode of The Littlest Hobo.^[10]

See also

• Railways portal
• Ontario portal

• List of designated heritage railway stations of Canada

References

1. "Early Days in Richmond Hill: A History of the Community to 1930". Richmond Hill Public Library Board. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
2. "Former Canadian National Railway Station". Canadian Register of Historic Places. Parks Canada. Retrieved 13 May 2014.
3. "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.
4. "Village of Maple Heritage Conservation District Plan 2007 Volume 3" (PDF). City of Vaughan. 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 17, 2018. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
5. "Maple Go Station Building Rehabilitation". Bondfield Construction. Retrieved 13 May 2014.
6. "Improvements on the GO" (PDF). GO News. Spring 2014. Retrieved 13 May 2014.
7. "Expanding Parking – Maple GO Station". GO Transit. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016.
8. "Maple GO | Construction Projects | The Future & GO | GO Transit". www.gotransit.com. GO Transit. Retrieved 21 January 2020.
9. "Barrie Line - table 65" (PDF). GO Transit. January 5, 2019. Retrieved February 22, 2019.
10. "Runaway". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved March 8, 2017. This episode featured the Maple Railway Station, Ontario's oldest with passenger service dating back to 1853. It is designated under Canada's Heritage Railway Stations Protection Act.

External links

• Media related to Maple GO Station at Wikimedia Commons
• GO Transit station page for Maple GO Station

• Maple GO Station improvements at GO Transit
• CNR Maple
• Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada Railway Station Report RSR-139, CNR, Maple, Ontario