Caption: A sunny Saturday morning visit to the new TTC Wilson Subway Yard finds a 4-pack of Hawker Siddeley Canada H-series subway cars visible at the south end of the yard: TTC H1's 5450-5451 (built 1965 for the Bloor-Danforth line) mated to newer H5 cars 5678-5679 (built 1976 for the Spadina line).

The new Spadina subway extension from St. George to Wilson Station had opened a few months earlier in January of 1978, and with it came the need for more subway cars (the H5's) to run the line, an increase in storage capacity to handle them, and the chance to construct a newer, larger and more modern facility for maintenance of trains on the Yonge-University-Spadina line compared to the small and constrained Davisville Yard (which dated from the original Yonge subway opening in the mid-50's). As a result, a new yard, maintenance complex and bus garage were built just to the north of the end of the Spadina line's original end terminus of Wilson Station.

Judging from the angle, Mr. McMann probably shot this off the edge of the Allen Road (traffic was likely lighter on Saturdays back then, allowing for this kind of "pull over and get out" shot). One of the TTC's classic red and cream painted GMC New Look (or "fishbowl") buses is even visible, peeking out of the Wilson bus garage.

Robert D. McMann photo, Dan Dell'Unto collection.