Toronto making major changes to King St. Pilot project

We're now two months into the King Street Transit Pilot and, while things have been going exceptionally well on some fronts, the City of Toronto wants to make a few tweaks.

"The benefit of pilot projects is that they allow us to learn as we go," said Ward 20 Councillor Joe Cressy in a press release on Friday. 

"We're able to make improvements, adjust to fill gaps and continue to evaluate options," he continued, "and work together to ensure the pilot works better for everyone." 

Based on the discourse surrounding King Street in recent weeks, Cressy was referring to local business owners – and maybe also people who are cold.

Restaurants and stores along King have been complaining of lower sales figures since the start of the pilot project, blaming a lack of business on a lack of parking now that car traffic is restricted.

The City announced today that it would be taking a number of measures to "support the pilot's objectives of moving people more efficiently" while "supporting economic prosperity."

These changes include:

• Two hours of free parking in Green P spots close to the pilot area
• 90 new parking spaces on nearby side streets (replacing 50 per cent of the spaces that were removed from King Street, with additional spaces currently under review)
• More locations for passenger pickup/drop offs and deliveries along King Street itself
• New, larger signs at major intersections to improve driver awareness
• Adjusted signal timing at Bathurst, Church and Jarvis Streets 
• The expansion of a streetcar stop at Yonge Street to provide more passenger waiting space

The City says it's addressing overcrowding on streetcars along King by adding more new, low-floor vehicles to the 504 and 514 routes as they become available.

"I believe these updates to the Pilot will help transit riders, businesses and drivers," said Mayor John Tory on Friday. "I remain committed to listening to everyone about this project and making changes where they make sense."