Drivers in Toronto’s east end speak out on commute chaos

Two words sum up how many drivers who live east of the Don River feel abut their commute lately.

“It’s brutal,” a driver told us.

Both for the morning commute heading west — to either downtown or to access the nearest Gardiner expressway ramp at Jarvis — and the evening commute for those same drivers returning home to Riverdale, Leslieville or the Beaches communities.

“I work half remote, half from the office, and I don’t look forward to the days where I have to go into the office,” said Cameron Wicks, who lives in Leslieville.

After the demolition of the Gardiner Expressway Logan Avenue ramp in 2021, drivers are left with two major routes to and from downtown and both are littered with construction projects which have led to morning and evening backups.

On Lake Shore, east of the DVP, drivers have dealt with reduced lanes for several months as crews continue work on the Port Lands project, a long-term plan that will transform the east end, making space for new communities and protecting existing neighbourhoods from flooding.

On Eastern Avenue, just east of Broadview, crews have reduced lanes as they continue bridge work for the Metrolinx Ontario Line.

“We’re not opposed to what’s being done, we just feel as though it wasn’t very well planned out,” Wicks said.

“If you look at all those projects, Ontario Line, waterfront development, you’re kind of in a pickle,” Toronto-Danforth City Councillor Paula Fletcher added.

She’s been hearing from her constituents about this for several months.

“This isn’t just impacting commuters but those who are building the city as well,” she said, pointing to the many trucks that come and go from concrete facilities on Commissioners Street, south of Lake Shore. “All of those cement trucks are also having a hard time getting out, so it’s not just people who are going to work, it’s people who are building the economy that are having a hard time.”

Fletcher says these projects have been years in the making and there’s little she can do.

“The Port Lands project has to get done as this is important work to protect the area from flooding and we knew this was coming because it was approved in 2014.”

The Ontario Line project, meanwhile, was approved by the province.

“It’s just a litany of problems that’s attached to having an above ground line rather than putting it underground like everywhere else,” she said. “If it had gone underground, I don’t think we would have had all the traffic problems that we’re having now.”

As for when drivers can see relief, restricted lanes on Eastern Avenue are not expected to reopen until fall of next year.

“The work to rebuild Lake Shore Boulevard is scheduled to be complete by the end of 2025,” a Waterfront Toronto spokesperson told us. 

They say unexpected underground infrastructure problems have led to delays near Lake Shore and Carlaw Avenue.

“There is also one area waiting to be paved. Paving is weather dependent, so as soon as they can, crews will get that done.”

The spokesperson went on to say they understand the frustration this causes for people who live in the area and who commute through there. They say their project team has been working extended hours, including weekends, to minimizes the impact of this additional work.

“It is really tough for drivers, and I’d say take transit, but we currently don’t have it here in this part of town, so it’s going to be like this for a while longer, and I’m sorry about that,” Fletcher added.

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