Weekend need to know: Labour Day long weekend, Air Show at CNE, Toronto Dragon Festival

It’s the last weekend to check out the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) at Exhibition Place. The Canadian International Air Show is on this weekend at the fair, alongside live performances and more.

It’s also the Labour Day long weekend, meaning certain businesses and services are closed on the holiday Monday. Click here to see what’s open and closed.

The TTC will operate on a holiday service schedule on Labour Day.

There are no scheduled subway closures this weekend, but starting on Sunday, the 512 St. Clair streetcars will be replaced by buses from St. Clair Station to Gunns Loop, until the middle of next year.

The TTC also recently announced it will be restoring 126 school trips for elementary and high school students and adding more vehicles to nine routes that serve colleges or universities after Labour Day.

Other road closures for events and construction are in place for the weekend. Scroll below for details.

Here’s what to do this long weekend:

Top events

Last weekend of CNE

The Canadian International Air Show is taking place this weekend from Saturday to Monday at 12 p.m.

The air show is Canada’s largest and longest-running airshow and can be seen from within the CNE fair.

The 2023 Air Show features two headliners, the Canadian Forces Snowbirds and the U.S. Navy Blue Angels.

In addition to these jet teams, the show will include the United States Air Force F-16 Viper demonstration, the Canadian Forces CF-18 demonstration, and 81-year-old Gord Price in his Yak50.

Other events at the CNE include live performances from The Sheepdogs, The Bee Gees, and more.

The Polar Express ride at the fair reopened to the public on Thursday after a man was thrown off mid-operation and seriously injured earlier in the week.

The Technical Standards and Safety Authority has confirmed the Polar Express ride is safe to resume operation, but says the investigation into the incident’s root cause is still ongoing.

All other rides, including the 150 feet tall Super Wheel, can also be enjoyed at the fair.

WATCH CityNews reporter Stella Acquisto take an exclusive ride-along with the U.S. Navy Blue Angels:

Toronto Dragon Festival

The Toronto Dragon Festival returns to Nathan Phillips Square this weekend from Friday to Sunday.

The annual event includes new lion dance competitions, Inuit throat-singing, Caribbean drumming, Philippine folk dances, and dozens of food and merchandise booths.

Toronto Dragon Festival at Nathan Phillips Square. Photo: Canadian Association of Chinese Performing Arts

Casa Loma

Events at Casa Loma are open for the long weekend.

Symphony in the Gardens is a weekly live performance by the Casa Loma Symphony Orchestra and the last performance takes place on Labour Day at 7:30 p.m. at the castle gardens.

People can also play an immersive escape game, and experience other evens and exhibits.

The Gardens of Casa Loma. Photo: Casa Loma

Guns N’ Roses, weekend concerts

Guns N’ Roses are playing at Rogers Centre on Sunday, alongside The Pretenders as their opening act.

There is also a full slate of shows happening at Budweiser Stage this weekend, including Arctic Monkeys and the Smashing Pumpkins. List of concerts here.

Guns N’ Roses are playing at Rogers Centre on Sunday, September 3. Photo: Guns N’ Roses

TTC updates

512 St. Clair streetcar bus replacement

Starting on Sunday, multiple construction projects will take place along St. Clair Avenue and at St. Clair West Station, requiring 512 St.Clair streetcars to be replaced by buses from St. Clair Station to Gunns Loop, until mid-2024.

Road closures

Toronto and York Region Labour Day Parade

On Monday, the Annual Toronto & York Region Labour Day Parade is taking place downtown Toronto.

The parade will depart at 9:30 a.m., from the corner of University Avenue and Queen Street West.

The parade continues west on Queen Street West to south on Dufferin Street.

Road closures will begin in and around the formation area at 7 a.m., and continue along the route commencing at 9 a.m.

The public is being asked not to park within the parade route after 7 a.m.

Traffic diversions and delays can be expected in the area commencing at 9 a.m. until approximately 2 p.m.

Parade route formation area:

• University Avenue, between Queen street West and Richmond Street West
• Queen Street West, between University Avenue and York Street
• Armoury Street, between University Avenue and Centre Avenue
• Centre Avenue, between Dundas Street West and Armoury Street

Route:

• Southbound University Avenue
• Westbound Queen Street West
• Southbound Dufferin Street

Dispersal Areas:

• Participants on Foot: Exhibition Place Grounds – CNE Entrance
• Vehicles: Liberty Street (Liberty Street and Mowat Avenue, Fraser Avenue, Jefferson Avenue)
• Accessibility Vehicles: Springhurst Avenue

Parade road closures:

• University Avenue from Adelaide Street West to Dundas Street West
• Armoury Street from University Avenue to Chestnut Street
• Centre Avenue from Armoury Street to Dundas Street West
• Queen Street West from Bay Street to Dufferin Street
• York Street from Queen Street West to Richmond Street West
• Dufferin Street to Queen Street West to CNE entrance
• Liberty Street from Dufferin Street to Atlantic Avenue
• Mowat Avenue south of King Street
• Fraser Avenue south of King Street
• Jefferson Avenue south of King Street
• Pardee Avenue south of Liberty Street

Ongoing road closures

• The westbound lane on Gerrard Street is closed at Main Street for track replacement and is expected to reopen on Sunday.
• Danforth and Broadview Avenues will reopen on Monday, but southbound on Broadview will remain closed from south of Danforth to Gerrard until the end of November.
• In Brampton the intersection of Queen and Main Streets is closed until September 8 for construction.
• Dufferin Street Bridge has a full emergency closure for repair work and it’s expected to last into the fall.
• Broadview Avenue, between Gerrard Street East and Danforth Avenue, will be closed to southbound traffic and reduced to one northbound lane until November to replace TTC streetcar tracks.
• Teston Road in Vaughan will be closed between Pine Valley Drive and Weston Road until the end of the year for road reconstruction and bridge work.
• Queen Street is fully closed to traffic between Bay and Victoria Streets to accommodate work on a new station for the Ontario Line subway. The closure is scheduled to last for at least four-and-a-half years, until 2027.
• Lake Shore Boulevard West, from Rees Street to Spadina Avenue, is reduced to two lanes until May 31, 2024, for Enwave construction.
• Military Trail is closed from Ellesmere Road to Highcastle Road for road rehabilitation and slope stabilization. The project completion date has been delayed to the summer.
• Keele Street is reduced to a single lane about 100 metres north of Langstaff in Vaughan. Construction work is scheduled to finish later this year.
• Northbound Yonge Street is reduced to one lane between Wellington and King Streets for TTC construction. The project is scheduled to continue into 2024.

With files from Jordan Kerr of CityNews