Amid all the noise about the newly effective Garden Highway lane closure and the impact on commuting for the next three years, drivers in and around Toronto won't be happy to find that another local highway is about to suffer from similar traffic slowness.
Those driving on Highway 401 will be similarly troubled by lane closures starting Wednesday as the Department of Transportation begins work on the necessary repairs.
"Currently, the Department of Transportation is working on the rehabilitation of the express lane of Highway 401 and the bridge between Dufferin Street, Bathurst Street and Wilson Avenue," the Department of Transportation said. ”
"This will extend the life of the existing infrastructure and reduce the need for maintenance. ”
The Eastbound Fast Lane rehabilitation work was completed in 2022, but the Westbound Fast Lane restoration work will continue until 2025.
"Beginning April 24, 2024, westbound Highway 401 will be closed for a long period of time until the winter closure," the Ontario Ministry of Transportation said. ”
Construction crews will reduce the westbound express lanes, from three lanes to two lanes from Avenue Road to Allen Road, and from four lanes to three lanes from Allen Road to Highway 400.
These lane restrictions are in place throughout the 2023 construction season, but MTO says important changes will be made this year to help reduce congestion.
"An additional lane has been added to the westbound catchment lane of Highway 401 to help maintain the highway's public transit capacity during construction. ”
Lane restrictions in the fast lane will remain in effect until the arrival of cold weather at the end of 2024, and then resume again next spring.
The entire project is expected to be completed by the end of 2025.
The Gardiner Highway, a key inner-city section of Toronto's main east-west thoroughfare, runs one lane less in each direction from Strachan to Dufferin, a state that unfortunately will continue for up to three years.
The project has just begun, and the highway has become a dog.
According to 680 News, the highway will lose one lane between Avner Street and Allen Road, reducing the length of the section to a total of two lanes (from the original three), and also losing one lane between Allen Road and Highway 400, reducing the total length of the section to three lanes (from the original four).
Thankfully, during this roadbuilding period, unlike previous works, an additional lane will be added to the westbound turnpike to help compensate for the traffic congestion that inevitably arises as a result of this round of roadworks, while many other arteries in the surrounding city are also being repaired.
This stretch of highway is near the Yorkdale shopping mall, which is already easy to get congested, and it looks like it's going to get even more congested in the future.