For the second straight day, the entire Don Valley Parkway will be closed on Sunday, and drivers will have to pack a little more patience navigating their way into the city as a marathon will result in several other road closures from approximately 4 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The Sporting Life 10K Run, which has raised more than $29 million since 2000 for Campfire Circle – a charity that provides camp programs to kids with cancer or serious illness – features a refreshed route and a new finish line in the east end of the city.
From the start line, at Yonge Street and Glengrove Avenue, the race proceeds south to Front Street. The route continues east along Front Street toward the Canary District. More than 24,000 participants will finish on Front Street by Cherry Street and then make their way to Corktown Common for the Post-Event Party.
The following road closures will be in effect on Sunday due to the race:
- From 4 a.m. to noon, Yonge Street will be closed between Lawrence Avenue and Eglinton Avenue.
- From 4 a.m. to 5 p.m., Bayview Avenue will be closed between River Street and Mill Street and Mill Street will be closed between Tannery Road and Bayview Avenue.
- From 4 a.m. to 2 p.m., Front Street will be closed between Eastern Avenue and Bayview Avenue.
- From 6:30 a.m. to noon, Yonge Street will be closed between Eglinton Avenue and Front Street.
- From 6:30 a.m. to noon, Front Street will be closed between Yonge Street and Eastern Avenue.
The TTC will also be diverting buses and streetcars on as many as 20 affected routes.
“To avoid disruptions to travel plans, customers are strongly encouraged to visit the TTC website for detailed information on route changes and schedules,” the transit agency said.
The DVP remains closed from Highway 401 to the Jarvis Street ramp on the Gardiner Expressway as maintenance work continues, including full-width resurfacing of sections of the parkway, as well as work on the Eastern Avenue bridge project, the Bayview-Bloor ramp, the Ontario Line project and electrical maintenance.
As for criticism regarding the timing of this weekend’s closure, with all the events scheduled to take place, Mayor Olivia Chow says there are not many options available over the next few weeks to get the necessary work done with the World Cup set to arrive in a months time.
“We have to be ready for the World Cup. We don’t want to close the DVP in the middle of the World Cup, so we had to get it done,” said Mayor Olivia Chow. “We’ll have traffic agents deployed, signal priority, lots of people working overtime to ensure that things are moving as fast as possible.”
The City says crews will complete work this weekend that would equal more than 30 overnight road closures, saving drivers up to 150 hours of disruption.