Brace yourself, Toronto. Busy construction season ahead means more traffic delays

CBC.ca
May 17, 2023

Toronto drivers will need to plan ahead for busy construction season that will see more than $1.14 billion go into roads, TTC tracks and sewers repairs this summer, Deputy Mayor Jennifer McKelvie announced on Monday.

The announcement comes amid the closure of four blocks of Queen Street, from Bay to Victoria streets. Many business owners and workers have already called the closure disruptive and are worried it could reduce pedestrian traffic.

The closure, which began on Monday, is due to construction of the future Queen station of the Ontario Line. The station is one of 15 new stations on the line that will stretch from Exhibition Place to the Ontario Science Centre.

McKelvie said that of the $1.1 billion funding, $426 million will be spent improving transportation infrastructure. That includes 32 bridge and culvert and major road rehabilitation, 80 new school zones and 25 kilometres of bikeways which she said are critical for reducing green house gas emissions.

Bridges, expressways, and watermains will also be undergoing repairs across the city.

"The 2023 construction season is going to be busy and we continue to actively coordinate this work to minimize disruption as best as possible," said McKelvie.

What is the city doing to help ease congestion?
With so many projects underway, general manager of the city's Transportation Services, Barbara Gray, who was also at the news conference, said the city is working on installing smart traffic signals, looking into adjusting or removing on-street parking and having priority travel routes in place to help ease congestion.

She points to the the priority route put into place for the construction of the future Queen station, on Dundas Street, from Jarvis Street to Bathurst Street. That route has no lane restrictions or on-street parking to ease the flow of traffic.

Gray said the city would consider applying similar priority travel routes to other streets as construction projects progress, if needed.

"We have more technology, data and traffic management tactics than ever before," she said.

To better manage traffic congestion, Gray said the city is also continuing to install smart signals that automatically respond to changing traffic patterns on the street and dynamically adjust signal timing to improve traffic efficiency.

There are currently 59 smart signals installed across Toronto and the city is planning to install 30 more.

Here's what's changing for drivers and TTC riders on Queen Street for Ontario Line closure
Gray did not say when or where they'll be installed, but did say that Lake Shore Boulevard will be getting smart signals by the end of 2023.

"For now, the traffic signals across this busy road have been upgraded to give the staff the ability to remotely control and adjust each signal's timing as necessary," said Gray.

She also said that city traffic agents are back in higher numbers and will be deployed to busy intersections in the coming months to improve safety.

"If you're traveling downtown or near construction areas, give yourself extra time and consider taking transit, walking or cycling and follow signage to keep yourself and others safe," said Gray.