A Toronto mayoral candidate is promising to put a policing “substation” in the country’s busiest transit hub if he’s elected — a plan the police say has actually been in the works for months amid rising service calls.
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police → promise → calls
Last week, Brad Bradford announced that if he’s elected mayor he will place a Toronto police “substation” inside Union Station, in addition to other election campaign policies he’s pitched since last year about TTC safety.
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he → announce → safety
The substation would be “a permanent and visible police presence in the busiest building in Canada, so help is never more than a few seconds away,” he said.
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he → say → Canada
Police plan was already in the works
But provincial transit agency Metrolinx and the city, which jointly own Union Station, say they have been working together for the past several months to establish a permanent police presence there — including a sort of substation.
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they → own → substation
“Metrolinx has been working directly with the Toronto Police Service to establish a permanent police presence at Union Station,” said Lyndsay Miller, spokesperson for the provincial transit agency.
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Miller → work → agency
Miller said the move followed a request from Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria earlier this year.
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move → say → Sarkaria
Toronto Police Service (TPS) has safety hubs and mobile command posts throughout the city, including at Fairview Mall and the Bathurst-Sheppard intersection, but this would be the first dedicated space for officers in the city’s public transit system.
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this → have → system
The plans include a “dedicated physical space” for Toronto police officers, said TPS spokesperson Stephanie Sayer in a statement.
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Sayer → include → statement
Over the past several months, “TPS has significantly increased its presence at Union, with officers there daily and working alongside Metrolinx special constables,” Sayer added.
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Sayer → increase → constables
“The work now underway builds on that enhanced presence, with the goal of establishing a permanent TPS presence and space at the station.”
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work → build → station
It’s unclear where at Union the new police facility would be located — or its size and how many officers might be stationed there.
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officers → ’ → Union
Sayer said more details would be shared in the coming months.
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details → say → months
According to sources who spoke with the Star on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations, Metrolinx and Toronto police have discussed increasing police presence at Union Station, including the possibility of 24-hour patrols and expanded patrols to areas surrounding Union, not just inside the station.
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Metrolinx → accord → station
These sources said the plan was to start rolling out some form of expanded police presence at Union, including the permanent space, by the end of this year.
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plan → say → year
Union is Canada’s busiest transit hub, with more than 300,000 people travelling through every day.
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people → travel → ?
It’s common for local police around the world to set up some kind of a permanent post inside major transit hubs.
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police → ’ → hubs
Stuart Green, a spokesperson for the TTC, said the agency would welcome the addition of “any additional safety and security measures at the broader campus (of Union Station),” even if the proposed substation isn’t placed on TTC property.
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substation → say → property
What police data reveals
Last November, Toronto police expanded its neighbourhood community officers program into the TTC subway system and dedicated eight officers to patrol the Yonge Line between Eglinton and Union stations seven days a week, with a particular focus on major transit hubs like Union and Bloor during peak hours.
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police → reveal → hours
Data provided to the Star by Toronto police shows that calls for police service at Union Station steadily increased between 2021 and 2023, rising from 702 to 1,039 calls a year, before plateauing in the following two years at around 1,020 calls.
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calls → provide → calls
This year calls for service at Union Station are set to greatly surpass that trend, but Sayer said that doesn’t mean there’s been a significant increase in crime.
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that → set → crime
A more visible police presence at Union Station can contribute to a “greater sense of safety and comfort in approaching police or other partners, making people more likely to report an incident or seek assistance when an issue arises,” she said.
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she → contribute → assistance
The increase has been driven by “significant growth” in calls for disorderly behaviour, well-being checks, overdoses and arrests, said Sayer.
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Sayer → drive → behaviour
Union Station has been “the focus of significant, co-ordinated engagement aimed at addressing complex social and public-safety issues,” Sayer said, noting it’s “important context” for this year’s increase in service calls.
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it → aim → calls
Mayoral campaigns respond
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campaigns → respond → ?
Bradford’s campaign team did not respond to questions about how his platform promise differs.
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promise → respond → questions
It’s also unclear if Bradford or his team were aware of the plans by police and Metrolinx.
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Bradford → ’ → police
“Our campaign commitment on cleaning up Union Station was based off of the daily experience visitors and residents face at Toronto’s front door,” said campaign spokesperson Mark Pelayo.
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Pelayo → clean → door
Pelayo said if these plans are already underway that incumbent Olivia Chow “should have thrown her full support behind our plan” at Monday night’s first mayoral debate, and she should have “said it was something she’s already committed to.
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she → say → debate
That didn’t happen.”
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That → happen → ?
Unlike Chow, Bradford has promised to sit on the police board where he could have more direct influence over the police budget and hiring.
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he → promise → budget
By law, city council cannot direct police operations or specific spending.
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council → direct → operations
Jesse Towsen, a spokesperson for the mayor’s office, did not answer questions about whether Chow was aware of the Union Station plans, but said councillors shouldn’t “pre-empt” and reveal police operations as it could jeopardize public safety.
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it → answer → safety
“If the councillor shared enforcement or safety information before the police, that would be very concerning,” said Towsen.
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Towsen → share → police
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