The intersection of Queen Street East, Eastern Avenue and Kingston Road will be fully closed from September 7 until early November as the City of Toronto and the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) complete important state-of-good-repair construction to streetcar and other transportation infrastructure.
This work will replace streetcar tracks, upgrade overhead streetcar wires and make the eastbound streetcar platform accessible, as well as make other improvements to the road and sidewalk.
During the full intersection closure, the following traffic restrictions and changes will be in effect:
• Queen Street East will be closed to through traffic between Coxwell Avenue and Woodbine Avenue. (There will be local access on Queen Street East from Coxwell Avenue to just west of Orchard Park Boulevard and from Lark Street to Woodbine Avenue.)
• Kingston Road will be closed at Woodbine Avenue to through traffic; local access will be available from Lark Street to Woodbine Avenue.
• Eastern Avenue will be closed at Coxwell Avenue to through traffic; local access will be available from Coxwell Avenue to Queen Street East.
There will be other lane restrictions in this area before and after the full intersection closure from September 7 to early November as crews complete construction activities that do not require the full intersection closure:
• From September 3 to 7, there will be overnight lane restrictions of the Queen Street East, Eastern Avenue and Kingston Road intersection.
• From early-to-mid November, Queen Street East and Kingston Road will be reduced to one lane in each direction.
• From mid-November to the end of December, there will be additional overnight lane restrictions on Queen Street East and on Kingston Road as crews continue to install the new overhead streetcar infrastructure.
Signs will be posted in the area to help manage traffic and ensure the safe travel of all local road users, pedestrians and cyclists. For safety, cyclists are advised to avoid riding through the construction zone and are encouraged to consider riding on Coxwell Avenue between Dundas Street East and Lockwood Road as an alternative route.
For the most part, work on this project will take place 24 hours a day, seven days a week to complete construction as quickly as possible. The most disruptive construction activities, such as breaking concrete, will occur at various times throughout the day but should end by 11 p.m.
As a result of this work, several TTC routes will be affected, including the 22 and 322 Coxwell and 143 Downtown/Beach Express bus routes and the 501/301 Queen, 502 Downtowner and 503 Kingston Rd streetcar routes. More detailed information about TTC route changes will be available at http://www.ttc.ca.
Motorists driving eastbound or westbound are advised to take Lake Shore Boulevard East or Dundas Street East as alternative routes. Motorists driving northbound or southbound can take Woodbine, Carlaw, Greenwood or Jones Avenues.
When possible, motorists in the area are advised to avoid taking Gerrard Street East or Coxwell Avenue as alternative routes because of bridge rehabilitation and pedestrian path resurfacing work between Fairford Avenue/Gerrard Street East and Hanson Street.
During construction, local businesses in this area will be open as usual and pedestrian access to businesses will be maintained.
This work is part of the planned $1 billion in construction to renew Toronto’s aging roads, bridges, expressways, sewers and watermains. During the construction season, people are encouraged to plan their travel in advance and consider taking alternative routes or using public transit, obey signs around work zones for the safety of the work crews and be patient while driving.
More information about this work is available at http://www.toronto.ca/downtownconstructionprojects.
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