'It's going to be horrible'

Spadina streetcars to be pulled for TTC upgrades as traffic woes mount

- MAHDIS HABIBINIA AND NATHAN BAWAAN

Buses will be added to the busy downtown route while infrastructure upgrades are made along Spadina from June 23 through to December.

Spadina Avenue and Front Street is ground zero for Toronto’s traffic congestion problems.

On Wednesday evening at rush hour, cars were lined up bumper-to-bumper as drivers honked, blocked the box, threw middle fingers at each other, and made illegal U-turns or drove onto the streetcar right-of-way as they headed in the direction of the under-construction Gardiner Expressway.

This is the daily state of that intersection, and it’s set to get worse as transit riders on one of downtown’s busiest streetcars will leave the route’s right-of-way and join Spadina Avenue’s congested traffic in buses, as the TTC upgrades infrastructure on the street.

“I’d rather walk than be stuck on a Spadina bus, even during the colder months,” said Chinatown resident Shun Hang To, who takes the 510 streetcar multiple times a week. “It’s going to be horrible.”

Starting June 23, the TTC said in a press release Wednesday, the 510 and 310 Spadina streetcars will be replaced by buses and run along the street’s three lanes each way while upgrades are made to the tracks and overhead power network on the transit corridor until December. The transit agency and city say they are co-ordinating the work to minimize disruption, but riders affected by Toronto’s gridlock aren’t convinced it will help.