TTC celebrates accessibility at Wellesley, Chester stations

Two Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) subway stations are now fully accessible. Wellesley and Chester are the 47th and 48th stations to become accessible.

On Oct. 3, Toronto-Danforth Councilor Paula Fletcher and Mazin Aribi, chair of the Advisory Committee on Accessible Transit (ACAT), joined TTC CEO Rick Leary at Chester Station to celebrate the completion.

As part of the upgrade, ceramic and glass mosaics will be installed next to the elevators and above the main entrance door before the end of the year. The art is Katharine Harvey's Florae, a piece inspired by the native plants and flowers that define the east-end neighborhoods surrounding the station like milkweed, verbena, trout lily and blue flag iris. It will be translated into double-exposed ceramic and glass mosaics by Mosaika of Montreal Studio.

On Wed., Oct. 7, Toronto Centre Councilor Kristyn Wong-Tam and Aribi will join Leary to commemorate accessibility at Wellesley Station. This station will also be receiving an artistic injection featuring a large, curved ceramic tile mosaic based on the colors of subway tiles from Line 1 stations designed by Montreal artist Gisele Amantea. The installation will also take place later this year.

Accessibility improvements such as these support the TTC's Family of Services model, which gives Wheel-Trans customers the option to use accessible conventional transit services, such as buses, the subway and the growing fleet of low-floor streetcars. Family of Services is a part of the Wheel-Trans 10-Year Strategy that aims to reimagine and transform the accessible public transit services that are delivered to customers with disabilities.

The TTC says it remains committed to full system accessibility by 2025 under its Easier Access Program.