Busy Toronto intersection shut down indefinitely after dump truck catastrophe

Those riding Toronto's busiest streetcar line or otherwise travelling through one of its most bustling downtown intersections are in for an indefinite period of detours after a dump truck accidentally destroyed some key transit infrastructure at the corner of King and Spadina.

Overhead wiring that powers TTC vehicles that traverse the corner — most notably the 504 King and the 510 Spadina routes — was ripped down by a GFL Environmental waste management truck during rush hour Tuesday morning.

One image taken from a bystander at the scene around 8 a.m. shows the large green vehicle stopped in the southbound lanes of Spadina just past King, with a commercial dumpster extended high above its roof, apparently tipped at the very wrong time.

"Someone is in trouble!" the person wrote along with their photo, in which wires that used to criss-cross orderly over the corner can be seen broken and dangling in various different directions.

YIKES https://t.co/HQWZ5c4jI4

— Reece "Think Positive" Martin🚇 (@RM_Transit) December 17, 2024

The TTC has since released a statement about the repairs that are now underway, stating that crews are currently assessing the damage and starting to clean things up.

"Once the site is cleared of all down wires and is deemed safe, TTC engineers will begin repairing salvageable wires, installing and configuring new wires, and ensuring breakers and other power systems are operational before testing the system for safe operations," the commission writes.

And then, the worse news: "Although the timeline for restoring service remains uncertain, the process is expected to be lengthy, and streetcar diversions are likely to persist throughout the day."

HAZARD:
King St & Spadina Ave
8:13am
- garbage truck struck TTC street car wires
- wires are damaged
- live wires are down
- no injuries
- intersection is closed
- use alternate routes#GO2721402
^se

— Toronto Police Operations (@TPSOperations) December 17, 2024

TTC spokesperson Stuart Green also confirmed to blogTO over email Tuesday afternoon that the agency did have an ETA for the completion of the fixes.

As a result of the serious bungle, multiple transit lines are being diverted, including the 501 Queen, 504 King, 508 Lake Shore, 511 Bathurst and 510 Spadina. "Buses are supplementing service where possible," the TTC adds.

504 King: Detour eastbound via Dufferin St, Queen St E, Mccaul St and Dundas St E due to a downed wire.Please board shuttle buses at street level. https://t.co/Qsp1vkmXtt

— TTC Service Alerts (@TTCnotices) December 17, 2024

Replacement buses already took over for streetcars along the latter line many weeks ago due to construction, a change that was initially cause for complaint, but which now today is undoubtedly coming in handy.

Though some reports pegged that it would take about two weeks of work to fix the downed lines, the Toronto Police Service tells blogTO that the incident is still being investigated and that "the intersection will be closed for an extended period of time, but we do not have an ETA."

King and Spadina is fully closed right now after a dump truck knocked down the intersection's overhead streetcar wires🥲 pic.twitter.com/gtQ0qLU0zx

— blogTO (@blogTO) December 17, 2024

Since publication, the TTC has provided subsequent public updates, writing on X shortly before 5 p.m. that "this is an extensive repair that we estimate could take until the end of the week to complete." Full road closures will remain in effect along Spadina Avenue between Front and Adelaide streets, and on King Street between Charlotte and Brant streets.

Given that Spadina is a key access point for the Gardiner Expressway, expect downtown traffic to be even more of a mess than usual in the meantime.