‘It’s not enough’: Drivers call out plan to widen busy roadway on Toronto-Pickering border

Like thousands of other drivers everyday, Steve Garvin spends a lot of his time using Steeles Avenue East to get to and from work.

He sums up the experience in two words: “It’s brutal.”

It’s a statement echoed by other drivers tasked with using the increasingly busy roadway, which connects East Scarborough in Toronto to Durham Region.

“We have a lot of people moving to Pickering and we have a lot of people coming from Toronto who work in Pickering,” says Pickering Coun. David Pickles, Ward 3. “Steeles Avenue is a critical link between the two regions.”

At issue is the portion of the roadway — more than five kilometers — that has just two lanes between Tapscott Road and the Pickering line.

“It’s four lanes up until those points but as soon as it goes down to two lanes, it’s chaos,” says Garvin. “The traffic just bottlenecks and backs up, especially if other drivers have to make a turn, you can’t pass them.”

City of Toronto has plans to widen road

In response to the complaints and after traffic studies, the City of Toronto, which maintains control of the entire roadway, began plans to widen Steeles Avenue East. The project is still in the design phase.

“It will be reconstructed as a six-lane urban street with sidewalks and protected cycling infrastructure,” the city states on a website updating the public on current plans.

But drivers and some leaders say the plan, as it stands now, is incomplete.

According to the City, the proposal will widen Steeles but only an additional 1.5 kilometres, from Tapscott Road to Ninth Line.

“That will help but still only moves the bottleneck further down the roadway,” Pickles says.

The councillor has been proposing that the entire two-lane stretch, between Tapscott Road and the Pickering line, be widened to solve issues.

“Once you hit Pickering it’s widened already, so if this project can go further, it would alleviate a lot of traffic congestion.”

According to the City, the current plan is still being studied with the design phase expected to last until late 2024.

“It’s subject to the completion of additional analysis, detailed design and available funding.”

Project has been in discussion for decades

Coun. Pickles was first elected in 1997 and says the widening of Steeles Avenue East has been a major discussion since that time.

“I’ve been talking about this problem for more than 20 years.”

There’s been an explosion of growth since then on both the East Scarborough and Pickering side. In 2019, Amazon built a one-million-square-foot fulfillment centre at the corner of Tapscott and Steeles. Last month, Canada Post also opened a 585,000-square-foot processing facility nearby.

“This just adds so much volume to the traffic we’re already seeing in this area,” Garvin says. “Seeing all the new buildings going up, I would assume the infrastructure would follow, so I’m just trying to be patient.”

Pickles is patient too but is working on his end to change the current plans.

“We’re in discussion with the City of Toronto and the Ontario Ministry of Transportation,” he says.

“We’re happy with some of the progress Toronto is making but we just have to get the whole thing done to make it a complete project. I’m hoping those discussions are going to be fruitful.”

Public will have the chance to weigh in

Once the design phase is complete the City of Toronto says a public comment period will open where those impacted by the project can give input. Those meetings have yet to be scheduled.

As for any relief in that area — even the portion slated for widening — don’t expect to see construction anytime soon.

According to the City’s capital budget, construction won’t begin until at least 2025 with an expected completion in 2027.

 “The construction schedule will be refined over time and is subject to change,” the City states.

 Pickles is encouraged the city is working on a plan but says he’ll continue putting pressure to expand the project.

“It’s a benefit to both sides,” he says. “A benefit to Pickering and a benefit to Toronto. I’ll keep talking about it until it’s expanded all the way through.”

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