ActiveTO closure of Lake Shore Boulevard East lanes between Coxwell and Kew Beach avenues to continue on May 30 weekend

By ALI RAZA, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A part of Lake Shore Boulevard East will be closed this weekend as part of ActiveTO to help residents get out and enjoy the weather while safely physically distancing.

Eastbound lanes on Lake Shore Boulevard East from Coxwell Avenue to Woodbine Avenue/Kew Beach Avenue will be closed on Saturday, May 30 from 6 a.m. to Sunday, May 31 at 11 p.m.

Beach parking lots, including those for Ashbridges Bay Park and Woodbine Park, will remain closed as they were last weekend.

There is a possibility of the lots reopening next weekend (June 6 and 7), depending on how people in the area follow physical distancing guidelines.

This weekend the Gardiner Expressway will be closed in both directions between Hwy. 427/QEW and the Don Valley Parkway beginning on Friday, May 29 at 11 p.m. until Monday, June 1 at 5 a.m. for maintenance and improvements.

Lake Shore Boulevard East is also expected to partially close further west towards Leslie Street from Coxwell Avenue beginning the weekend of June 6 and 7 as part of the ActiveTO initiative.

Toronto-Danforth Councillor Paula Fletcher made a request to the city’s transportation services to extend the ActiveTO closure on Lake Shore Boulevard East to take in areas west of Coxwell Avenue as well.

In East Toronto, there’s a number of roads being designated as Quiet Streets and traffic barrels and signs have been up by the city to mark them as such.

“This weekend presents a unique scenario where we balance important expressway maintenance while following through on a commitment to provide space for people to get outside and be active while respecting physical distancing,” Mayor John Tory said in a statement regarding maintenance work on the Gardiner Expressway as part of this weekend’s road closures.

Traditionally, when the Gardiner Expressway is closed for maintenance or special events, traffic on Lake Shore Boulevard increases.

Local Quiet Streets, which are designated as closed to all but local traffic, include:

•     Monarch Park Avenue (from Felstead to Sammon avenues)
•     Fulton/Sammon avenues (from Broadview to Monarch Park avenues)
•     Woodfield Road to Knox Avenue
•     Lee Avenue (from Kingston Road to Alfresco Lawn)
•     Secord/Eastdale/Lumsden avenues/Main Street/Hamstead/West Lake avenues (from Dawes Road to Oak Park Avenue)
•     Kew Beach Avenue (from Waverly Road to Lake Shore Boulevard East)

For more on the City of Toronto’s ActiveTO plans and the Gardiner Expressway closure, please go to https://www.toronto.ca/news/city-of-toronto-planning-for-expressway-closure-accelerated-road-construction-and-activeto-this-weekend/

• Ali Raza is a Local Journalism Initiative Reporter for Beach Metro News. His reporting is funded by the Government of Canada through its Local Journalism Initiative.

---