Weekend need-to-know: Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day across the city

Pubs across Toronto will be opening their doors on Sunday to St. Patrick’s Day revellers, but for those who would like to keep it more low-key, there are still events to attend across the city during the weekend-long celebrations.

There are no subway or GO Transit closures over the weekend, however there are some new road closures to keep in mind.

Toronto St. Patrick’s Day Celebrations

The annual Toronto St. Patrick’s Day Parade with live entertainment and local dignitaries will get moving along Bloor Street at 12 p.m. Sunday. The parade will paint the city green as it starts at St. George and Bloor before turning south on Yonge Street and finishing at Dundas Street. It’s expect to last for an hour and a half.

The TTC says extra trains will be in running on Line 1 Yonge-University and Line 2 Bloor-Danforth, along with additional streetcars on the 505 Dundas route to accommodate those heading down to the parade.

If you want to get moving instead, the 24th annual St. Patrick’s Day Race is happening through the heart of downtown Toronto. With options for a 10-kilometre, five kilometre and one kilometre Kid Run, the race is raising funds for Achilles Canada, a non-profit that provides Canadians with an opportunity to receive the physical, psychological and communal benefits of running.

Registration is still open for the run which will kick off at a new location this year, Evergreen Brickworks. Participants will be running along the Bayview Extension and Rosedale Valley Road before looping back for the after party at Brickworks. The race starts at 10 a.m.

Toronto Comicon

Fans of comics, sci-fi, gaming and cosplay are in for a treat this weekend as the annual Toronto Comicon is happening this weekend. The show kicks of on Friday at 10 a.m.

The show is offering family-friendly attractions, events and celebrities offering meet-and-greets and autographs. There will also be panels to get the inside scoop on movies and television shows.

Tickets are still available for the show which will run every day this weekend, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday.

Catch the Harlem Globetrotters, Leafs and Raptors in action

There is lots of action to take in this weekend in the world of sports. The Harlem Globetrotters are in town for an appearance at the Paramount Fine Foods Centre in Mississauga on Saturday. Tickets are still available.

Meanwhile, both the Maple Leafs and Raptors are in action at the Scotiabank Arena. Toronto Raptors are taking on the Orlando Magic on Friday night while Toronto Maple Leafs will take on the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday at 7 p.m.

TTC/GO closures

TTC service updates

No weekend subway closures.

GO Transit

No weekend GO Transit closures

Road closures

Weekend temporary road closures

St Patrick’s Day 5K:

From 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Sunday, the following roads will be closed:

• Bayview Avenue from Pottery Road to River Street
• Rosedale Valley Road from Park Road to Bayview Avenue

St. Patrick’s Day Parade: 

From 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Sunday, the following roads will be closed: 

• St. George Street from Bloor Street West to College Street 
• Devonshire Place from Bloor Street West to Hoskin Avenue 
• Sussex Avenue from Huron Street to St. George Street 
• Harbord Street from Huron Street to St. George Street 
• Hoskin Avenue from St. George Street to Queens Park Crescent West 

From 12 p.m. to 2 p.m., the following roads will be closed: 

• Bloor Street West from St. George Street to Yonge Street  
• Yonge Street from Bloor Street West to Richmond Street 

From 12:30 to 2 p.m., Yonge Street will be closed between Dundas and Shuter Streets. 

Jarvis Street:   

From Friday, March 16 until Sunday, March 17, Jarvis Street will be reduced to one lane in each direction between Front and King Streets for the safe use of a crane.  

Richmond Street East: 

From 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, March 16, Richmond Street East will be reduced to one lane between Ontario and Sherbourne Streets for the safe use of a crane. The bicycle lane and sidewalk on the north side of Richmond Street East will remain open. 

Ongoing city closures

• O’Connor Drive is down to a single lane each way between Bermondsey and Sandra for road reconstruction, and sewer and watermain installation until summer 2024.
• The Yonge and Bloor intersection is reduced to a single lane all ways for condo construction and sewer installation until 2025.
• University Avenue will be reduced to a single lane in both directions between College Street and Queen Street West to complete several infrastructure projects for the next several months.
• 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.
• Northbound Yonge Street is reduced to one lane between Wellington and King Streets for TTC construction. The project is scheduled to continue into 2024.
• Two northbound lanes of Yonge Street from King Street to Wellington Street are closed for TTC construction until Sept. 30, 2024.
• Two westbound lanes of Lake Shore Boulevard East from Cherry Street to Carlaw Avenue are closed until April 10, 2024.
• Finch Avenue West is reduced to a single lane in both directions from Dufferin to Wilmington for sewer installation until October 2024.
• Eglinton Avenue West is down to a single lane east of Islington and west of Scarlett Road for tunnelling work related to the multi-year Eglinton Crosstown West Extension project.
• Front Street will be reduced to one lane in each direction from Cherry Street to Trinity Street for the installation of a new sanitary sewer and water lines for a new condominium building from 8 a.m. on Monday, March 11 to 5 p.m. on Friday, March 29.
• The Esplanade will be closed to private vehicles between Jarvis and George Streets to replace a gas main and associated gas pipeline work from 7 a.m. on Wednesday, March 13 to 7 p.m. on Friday, April 5. Access will be maintained for TTC bus routes, pedestrians and cyclists with the assistance of Paid Duty Officers and Traffic Control personnel.