Arriving at Toronto Union Station: VIA Rail, Amtrak and GO

Union Station’s Front Street facade, photographed on 3 April 2026. Photo: Dillan Payne / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Toronto Union Station is at 65 Front Street West, between Bay and York Streets, opposite the Royal York Hotel. After your train, use the concourse signs to choose your way out: Front Street for the main entrance and taxis, York Street for a walk south, or TTC signs for the subway.

For a short walk south of the tracks, I would take the York Street exit rather than join a Front Street taxi queue. That recommendation is for someone comfortable walking with their bags; a step-free arrival needs the platform-specific elevator route below.

Which concourse do I use after my train?

The platforms are above the passenger concourses. Getting off the train does not put you straight into the high-ceilinged Great Hall.

• VIA Rail from Montreal, Ottawa or Windsor: Union has three concourses under the tracks. From west to east they are York, VIA and Bay, with the VIA Concourse in the middle, south of the Great Hall (station map). Platforms 20 and 21 are reached through the VIA Concourse. Whichever stairs you come down, follow the signs for the street you want.
• Amtrak Maple Leaf from New York: your Toronto stop is the same Union Station, listed by Amtrak as TWO. Use the VIA area and Great Hall as landmarks for your onward exit.
• GO train: look for York Concourse on the west side or Bay Concourse on the east. GO's concourse guide identifies York as a connection to the PATH; Bay reopened on 27 July 2021.

Pick an exit by the street you need. “Meet me at Union” leaves far too much to work out with a suitcase in your hand.

Front Street, York Street, the subway or the PATH?

Front Street: head towards the Great Hall and main doors for the Royal York side of the station. VIA identifies the Front Street main-entrance kerb as its pickup/drop-off and curbside-assistance zone, with taxi stands in front of the station and on surrounding streets.

York Street: use the west-side exit for the street walk south. The York East Teamway is the pedestrian passage beside York Street under the railway tracks; it is a useful name to recognise on the station map.

TTC subway: from Bay Concourse, go down to the retail level and towards its north end. GO's access instructions put the elevators for that level at the north end of Bay Concourse; our TTC payment and One Fare guide covers the fare question.

PATH: York Concourse connects to the pedestrian network, with different branches for the Financial District and South Core. Use the PATH guide for its opening-hours limitations and the Financial District page for the neighbourhood north of Union.

For UP Express, follow signs west to its terminal in the SkyWalk, described in our SkyWalk guide; airport fares and journey planning belong in the Pearson connection guide.

A connecting coach uses the separate Union Station Bus Terminal at 81 Bay Street.

Can I leave my bags at Union Station?

VIA's checkroom is for same-day storage by VIA passengers. Economy passengers pay CA$6 per bag; storage is included for Business, Sleeper and Prestige passengers. VIA's station page lists these daily hours, in Toronto local time:

• Station: 5:30 a.m. to 12:45 a.m.
• VIA ticket counter: 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.
• Amtrak ticket counter: 7:20 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Baggage checkroom: 7:30 a.m. to 7:45 p.m.
• Business Lounge: 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The checkroom closes well before the station. Collecting a bag is a separate deadline from catching your train.

On an Amtrak or GO ticket alone, skip the VIA checkroom. Plan to take your bags to your base.

VIA calls its lounge the Business Lounge and lists Wi-Fi there. For an overnight connection, use the one-night Toronto stopover guide.

What is the step-free route?

Do not treat Bay Concourse as the elevator route to every platform. GO's access page lists Bay elevators for platforms 10/11 and directs passengers needing other platform access towards York.

The April 2026 station map makes the distinction clearer: York Concourse for barrier-free access to platforms 3 to 13; VIA Concourse for platforms 20/21. If you need step-free access and find yourself in Bay, use those platform-specific directions, not the nearest staircase.

For a later VIA departure, report to staff in the Great Hall at least 30 minutes before departure for assistance. Request curbside assistance at least 48 hours ahead. VIA also places its service-animal relief area beside the York Street entrance.

Coming from New York on the Maple Leaf

The Maple Leaf connects New York and Toronto. Its border inspection happens at Niagara Falls: Amtrak says passengers get off with their baggage and then reboard the same train.

Keep your travel documents with you. On the Canadian portion, the onboard café accepts credit cards, prepaid credit cards and VIA Rail gift cards, rather than cash.

Walking to 12 and 14 York Street

StayToronto's York suites are at 12 and 14 York Street, in ICE Condominiums, south of the tracks. For this arrival, the useful choice is a short street route versus a longer indoor connection.

• Street route: from Union's mapped York Street north entrance, take the York East Teamway south, then the signed pedestrian crossings towards the ICE block at Bremner Boulevard or Lake Shore Boulevard. The mapped routes to its two York Street entrances are 0.3 to 0.4 km, five to six minutes.
• Indoor route: from the same York-side starting point, the mapped connection goes back through Union, towards the Scotiabank Arena Galleria, then through Maple Leaf Square to the ICE PATH entrance. That is 0.7 km, nine minutes. It includes level changes.

Those OpenStreetMap route estimates explain my street-route preference: it is shorter and keeps the destination street in front of you. The PATH buys weather protection, with more navigation.

Skip directions using the old VIA-Telus ramp to 25 York Street. GO's construction notice, checked on 19 October 2026, says that connection is permanently closed for the new south concourse works.

A real York one-bedroom plus den suite.

The York building guide covers the layouts. For the wider accommodation choice, use the existing guide to staying near Union Station.

Before you go

• Check VIA's station information for current counter, checkroom and lounge hours and eligibility; use VIA for corridor fares and schedules.
• Follow current Union signs and staff instructions for your arrival platform, elevator route and construction detours.
• Treat the walking figures as map estimates at 4.5 km/h, with minutes rounded up. They run from the York-side station entrance to mapped ICE entrances, excluding platform exit time, signals, lift waits and check-in; the indoor calculation is not a verified step-free route or a suite-door route.
• Confirm the PATH opening arrangements and use your accommodation's assigned arrival entrance. Being connected on a map does not establish access to a particular residential door.
• Review Amtrak's border-document requirements for your own journey and leave room for border delays.

About this guide

Written by Declan Moss. Station and operator facts were checked against the linked official sources on 19 October 2026. York's address was checked against StayToronto's listing, and walking estimates were calculated from OpenStreetMap pedestrian geometry on the same date. No timed site visit is claimed.

This is an independent StayToronto guide, not affiliated with or endorsed by VIA Rail, Amtrak, GO Transit, Metrolinx, TTC or Union Station.

A short stay south of Union

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