A complete revamp of a Toronto intersection that has forever been a bit confusing to everyone who comes across it officially kicked off on Tuesday, meaning that the area will now remain under construction for a whole two more years, much to the exasperation of drivers and locals.
Workers will be on site where King West, Queen West, the Queensway and Roncesvalles meet, tearing up the road to replace it and some underground infrastructure in stages over the next 24 months.
09/04 King-Queen-Roncesvalles Update September 2020 | #TTC | via @SwanBoatSteve https://t.co/aJ1P9wuipr pic.twitter.com/FM3sY2xN7K
— Transit Toronto (@transittoronto) September 6, 2020
The Queensway bridge over Parkside Drive will be fully reconstructed first, limiting lanes in each direction on Parkside north of Lakeshore until February 2021.
Next, overhead TTC wires and the streetcar tracks below will be replaced, transit platforms redone and relocated, lighting redone for improved visibility, and roadwork along both the Queensway and Queen West completed while the outerlanes of the Queensway bridge are tackled. This phase will last until July 2021, with east/west lane reductions and sidewalk restrictions.
From July until April 2022, watermains will be replaced and sewers relined under King and the Queensway median while TTC track and platform work is continued, along with the bridge work, this time on the inner lanes. This will also impact east/west vehicular and foot travel for months.
The TTC work as well as the underground work on sewers and waterlines will extend through the next stage of work until August 2022, this time along Roncesvalles. During this stage, Roncey will be completely closed to all traffic.
By the end of this all, cars and pedestrians will approach the intersection differently thanks to some reconfigurations: the eastbound right-turn channel will be nixed, while a dedicated streetcar lane, through, left-turn and right-turn lane will be added on the eastbound approach.
The northbound approach coming from King Street will also be altered, and more eastbound left-turn lanes will be added on the Queensway further down at Sunnywide and Glendale Avenue. Cycling lanes will also be replaced, and some "streetscape improvements" including bicycle facilities at north and southbound transit stops will be added.
The Queensway's bike lane will also be extended, and a new sidewalk installed on the street's south side.
It's an entirely new look to the intersection and a new approach to Toronto.
— Moaz Ahmad (@yyzMYA) April 20, 2020
And it almost looks like there is enough room to add north to east & west to south connections, making a grand union. It would be pretty tight though, much like the new design for the northeast corner.
The work will span from Parkside Drive to the intersection itself, and up to Dundas West, and is taking place from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Friday and 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturdays for the remainder of this year, though the City notes that the project will necessitate "some extended hours or additional weekend work."
Starting next year, though, things will be ramping up to 24/7 improvements, so locals had better invest in some earplugs and expect delays and obstructions when walking or driving in the area. Hopefully, though, the much-needed redo of the corner will be worth the wait.
by Becky Robertson via blogTO
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