Keeping eastern Gardiner Expressway would cost $870M
Posted April 14, 2015 7:06 am.
Last Updated April 14, 2015 7:45 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Retaining the eastern part of the Gardiner Expressway as an elevated highway would cost the city $870 million, CityNews has learned.
The details are part of an environmental assessment prepared by city staff and Waterfront Toronto. The report will go before council next month.
The assessment looks at the possibility of creating a “hybrid option” that would mostly maintain the elevated roadway for a 1.7-kilometre stretch and reroute the highway between Jarvis Street and the Don Valley Parkway. That option would cost $920 million.
Staff also looked at the possibility of tearing the elevated section down and converting the road into a boulevard at a cost of $470 million.
“This is a once in a lifetime decision and we need to make sure we get it right,” said Coun. Jaye Robinson. “It’s all about balance but congestion from my perspective is the number one issue. We have to keep the city moving.”
The stretch in question now carries 5,700 vehicles an hour in both directions during morning rush hour.
City staff previously recommended that removing the elevated section would be the cheapest and best option, but it would also delay drivers by about 10 minutes. The decision was unpalatable to politicians, who asked for more options at the time.
However the latest report finds that the boulevard option, tearing down the elevated highway, will slow drivers less than originally thought — adding around three minutes.
