Sidewalks in Toronto neighbourhood are a hot mess and locals have had enough
Roncesvalles Village has been enduring the harsh reality of Toronto construction for a long time now.
The bustling strip of cafes, restaurants and retail locations has received numerous facelifts to its roads, sidewalks and public transit infrastructure, and likely will continue to for months to come.
The main culprit for recent construction woes is the KQQR Construction Project.
While the concerns that come with construction like noise and accessibility are present in the area, a new variable has emerged that residents can no longer ignore — community safety.
TTC stops in Roncesvalles consist of 'city pavers,' which are brick inlays that give a more rustic feel to the area. These bricks have recently been removed, stacked and abandoned by city construction teams.
As of result, TTC stops have more or less been reduced to craters, and many who live and work in the area are wondering when their daily commute will no longer come with the risk of falling into a mud pit.
@311Toronto @gordperks Is the work on the east side of Roncesvalles ever going to be completed? The sidewalk is collapsing next to these holes alongside most of the transit stops.
— Pete Anderson (@peteanderson) June 14, 2023
Adam Langley, the chair of the Roncesvalles BIA, has been involved in construction correspondence with the City of Toronto for years, and has had to endure several broken construction promises.
"These pavers are now sitting in palettes and on the streets and in front of the stores," says Langley.
#TTC 504 so, the 504 is back on Roncesvalles. Yay! Now they decided to tear up the stops?!? pic.twitter.com/8XWF1F9LlY
— Ellen Peters (@EllenMPeters) March 22, 2023
The city recently reached out to Langley regarding this specific issue, and informed him construction will resume later this month with a completion date of sometime in August.
"What we're being told is the work is continuing but there's no work actually happening on the street," says Langley. "I've been told that the construction team is prioritizing another part of the project in order to get the TTC running in that area."
This has left the sidewalks on Roncesvalles in a state of construction limbo, as resources remain scattered.
The workmanship shown on the #TTC streetcar stops on Roncesvalles is total disaster. Is the @TTChelps happy with this? #TOpoli pic.twitter.com/N9iYgqCljn
— Armin 🍁🇩🇪 ~ ❤️☕️ ~ 😷 💉💉💉💉💉 (@mackrauss) May 7, 2023
"So we have about these two-foot holes in the sidewalk, and while there are pylons and tape cautioning people around it, the main concern is the narrow walkway," says Langley.
When it comes to when these sidewalks will be fixed, Langley isn't optimistic that it will be anytime soon.
"We haven't had any proper deadlines met at this point, deadlines only get met after they get delayed," says Langley.
Jacob Pesaruk
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