Weekend need-to-know: Greater Toronto Area Remembrance Day services

With Remembrance Day being recognized across Canada on Saturday, there will be several services across the Greater Toronto Area.

This weekend will also be the last one to enjoy the 101st Royal Agricultural Winter Fair at Exhibition Place.

Meanwhile, there will be a number of Diwali celebrations in the GTA.

Here’s what’s going on this weekend:

Remembrance Day events on Saturday

• Old City Hall (60 Queen St. W., Toronto) at 10:45 a.m.
• Scarborough War Memorial (2190 Kingston Rd.) at 10:45 a.m.
• East York Civic Centre Memorial Gardens (850 Coxwell Ave.) at 10:45 a.m.
• York Cemetery Cenotaph (160 Beecroft Rd.) at 10:45 a.m.
• York Civic Centre Cenotaph (2700 Eglinton Ave. W.) at 10:45 a.m.
• Etobicoke Civic Centre Cenotaph (399 The West Mall) at 10:45 a.m.
• Fort York National Historic Site (100 Garrison Rd.) at 10:40 a.m.
• Ken Whillans Square at Brampton City Hall (2 Wellington St. W.) at 10:30 a.m.
• Mississauga Civic Centre Community Memorial (300 City Centre Dr.) at 10:30 a.m.
• Richmond Hill’s McConaghy Centre Cenotaph (10100 Yonge St.) at 10:30 a.m.
• Pickering’s Esplanade Park (1 The Esplanade) at 10:45 a.m.
• Oshawa’s Memorial Park (110 Simcoe St. S.) at 10 a.m.
• Click here to access the Royal Canadian Legion’s list of services

The TTC will pause all service for two minutes at 11 a.m. on Saturday. All subway trains will be held at station platforms, bus and streetcar operators will stop their vehicles at a regular service stop.

LCBO and Beer Store locations will operate on reduced hours on Remembrance Day with all stores opening from noon until their normal closing hours.

Reminder that banks, federal government offices and Canada Post offices will be closed on Monday to recognize the federal holiday.

Other events

Royal Agricultural Winter Fair

Billed as the biggest indoor agricultural and equestrian fair, The Royal Agricultural Winter Fair will be closing its 2023 event at Exhibition Place in Toronto on Sunday. It’ll be open on Saturday between 9 a.m. and 8 p.m., and on Sunday between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. Tickets for adults are $30 while tickets for youth (four to 17) and seniors (65 and older) are $20. Family passes (two adults and two youths) are $70. If you’re travelling by GO Transit, there are fare discounts.

Diwali

Diwali, a festival of lights marking the victory of light over darkness celebrated by Hindu, Jain, Sikh and Buddhist communities, falls on Sunday

Toronto’s Gerrard India Bazaar (1432 Gerrard St. E.) will be hosting a party between 6 and 10 p.m. on Saturday. There will be a live DJ, dancing, sparklers and other events.

In the city’s north end, North York Diwali Fest will be held between 11 a.m. and 9 p.m. on Saturday at Mel Lastman Square (5100 Yonge St.). There will be performances, workshops and food on offer.

The City of Brampton will be hosting its inaugural Diwali Mela between 4 and 10 p.m. at Sesquicentennial Park (11333 Bramalea Rd.). There will be several performances and vendors. A fireworks show will happen at 7:30 p.m.

Transit updates

TTC Line 2 closure

Subways won’t be running on Line 2 between Kipling and Islington stations on Saturday and Sunday due to track work. Shuttle buses will be running.

Riders who require accessible assistance can exit the train at Royal York Station and speak to TTC staff near the collectors booth.

Kipling and Islington stations will remain open for riders connecting to surface routes and for Presto purchases.

Regular subway service will resume at 6 a.m. on Monday.

Greater Toronto Area road closures

There will be a number of road closures on Saturday for Remembrance Day services downtown. Parts of Bay and Queen streets near Old City Hall will be closed. TTC 19 and 501 routes will be on diversion.

Partial road and sidewalk closures will be in effect on Bay Street near Union Station Friday evening until Monday due to pedestrian bridge installation work.

Ongoing closures

• No westbound traffic on Bloor Street West between Spadina Avenue and Avenue Road for construction until the end of December.
• The intersection of Adelaide and York Streets will be fully closed to traffic for TTC construction until mid-December.
• Kingston Road and Lawrence Avenue is down a single lane in all directions for construction until the end of October.
• Southbound Bayview Avenue is closed from Rosedale Valley Road to River Street from 7 p.m. to 5 a.m. nightly until early January.
• In Brampton, northbound Main Street is closed from Queen Street to Nelson Street until December for watermain replacement.
• Southbound on Broadview Avenue remains closed from south of Danforth Avenue to Gerrard Street until the end of November.
• 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 until further notice.
• 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.