An iconic Canadian railway station and travel hub could get a very different name if one Toronto politician gets his way.
On Tuesday, Toronto councillor Denzil Minnan-Wong made a motion to the city's executive committee to rename Union Station after Sir John A. Macdonald, Canada's first prime minister.
"In the spirit of recognizing this Canadian giant, I am proposing that the City of Toronto consider renaming Union Station after Sir John A. Macdonald. His association with nation building and Canada is clear and unassailable. His links to railways is clear. Furthermore, given the current reconstruction of Union Station and its rebirth, the timing could not be better," Minnan-Wong wrote in his motion
The councillor also tweeted that the current name isn't exactly unique to the city.
The station's current name commemorates the point where some of Canada's oldest railways— Northern Railway, the Great Western Railway and the Grand Trunk Railway — met and while the terminal's current location is no where near that point, the name has since stuck. The station earned a designation as a national historic site in 1975.
Today, Union Station serves as a transportation hub for commuters and travellers alike, with Via Rail, Go Transit, and the TTC all using the building. The station will soon have a new rail line to shuttle travellers to and from Terminal One at Person International.
While Denzil Minnan-Wong says the timing is right, other Toronto councillors say the move is unnecessary.
“I don’t think you obliterate history to honour history,” said Councillor Adam Vaughan. “I think you find ways to take things that aren’t named. There’s a new plaza in front of Union Station that’s being built. Maybe it’s the plaza that’s appropriately named for Sir John A. Macdonald.”
Reaction on Twitter was less kind to Denzil Minnan-Wong's idea, some questioning the whole point, others saying Macdonald is a poor choice.
What say you? Should Toronto Union Station change its name? Let us know in the comments below or on Twitter @HPCaTravel