Turntable

Turntable. . A circular building with radial tracks was the most efficient way to maximize the number of locomotives under cover in a given space. Steam locomotives were usually operated in one direction only and turntables provided a compact and efficient means to turn them around. This turntable was built by the Canadian Bridge Company of Walkerville, Ontario in 1929. It is a twin-span, three-point turntable that pivots on a central axis. The weight of the locomotive is supported in the centre and at both ends on trucks that ride on a circular rail extending the circumference of the reinforced concrete pit. An air motor at each end propels the turntable by compressed air pumped up from an underground generator. At 120 feet, the John Street turntable is one of the longest ever built in Canada and was sufficient to accommodate the largest steam locomotives used by Canadian Pacific in Toronto passenger service. These were two 4-8-4 Northerns built by the CPR's Angus Shops in 1928 and used to haul overnight passenger trains between Toronto and Montreal until 1954. In the 1990s, the Metro Toronto Convention Centre was built underneath what is now Roundhouse Park and the turntable was dismantled and stored in the roundhouse until 2007 when it was moved to Barrie and restored by Western Mechanical.