Gardiner gets a fast track

Province kicks in $73 million to speed up expressway repairs, but expect gridlock to remain until 2026

- BEN SPURR, MAHDIS HABIBINIA

Traffic-clogging construction on the Gardiner Expressway could end at least one year earlier than originally planned, thanks to a funding injection from the provincial government.

Drivers will still be suffering through gridlock for another two years or so.

But at a news conference at city hall on Wednesday, Ontario Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria joined Mayor Olivia Chow to announce Queen's Park would spend up to $73 million to shave at least 12 months off the project, which since it began in April has been causing maddening bottlenecks on the highway and some downtown roads.

The new funding moves up the estimated date of completion from April 2027 to April 2026. The province says it's providing the moneywhich will pay for measures like additional workers, equipment and modified construction techniques - on the condition crews are allowed to work 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The funding will also support decongestion efforts like modifying the Jameson on-ramp, opening a left-turn lane on Spadina Avenue from eastbound Lake Shore Boulevard and "relaxing" overnight lane closures.

Sarkaria said he knows first-hand how frustrating the construction has been for the 140,000 drivers who use the Gardiner every day.

The MPP for Brampton South said it's added 40 minutes to his commute to Queen's Park.