The Gardiner Expressway will be closed this weekend for fall maintenance, which will make downtown driving a bit an adventure from 11 p.m. tonight until 5 a.m. on Monday morning. The scheduled shutdown stretches between Carlaw Ave. and Highway 427.

Maintenance-oriented closures typically happen twice a year, once in spring and once in fall. Of the various work on the docket is resurfacing, bridge inspection, guardrail repair, and a host of other boring things that keep the highway in a good state of repair (though that's a relative statement when it comes to the Gardiner).

According a City of Toronto press release, there will be "changes to traffic-signal timing to enhance traffic flow on nearby routes, mitigating traffic congestion associated with the expressway's closure." That sounds fancy, but one would do best to leave ample time if travelling along the bottom of the city this weekend.

In other closure news, the a portion of the subway is also closed for maintenance. The TTC will be doing track repair between Lawrence and Finch stations on both the 22nd and 23rd. Regular service will resume at the outset of the day on Monday. Until then, shuttle buses will cover that portion of the route.