Stretch of Toronto's Eglinton Ave. about to be construction mess for months

Just when you thought the Crosstown LRT project was finally done causing havoc along Toronto's Eglinton Ave., the busy thoroughfare is once again preparing to face a months-long closure to accommodate the next phase of the never-ending transit expansion.

The 19-kilometre first phase of the Eglinton Crosstown LRT project finally entered service as the TTC's Line 5 in February, but a westerly addition that will carry the line another 9.2 kilometres into Etobicoke and Mississauga is still a few years away, not expected to enter service until the early 2030s.

Metrolinx kicked off construction of the Eglinton Crosstown West Extension project in April 2022, and is now preparing to carve out the large voids that will support the extension's underground stations.

The transit agency issued a construction notice last week, advising the public of a months-long disruption while crews realign a portion of Eglinton Ave. W., near Kipling Ave.

According to Metrolinx, realignment of this stretch of Eglinton will last from April until at least this fall, with the disruption necessary to accommodate excavation of the underground Kipling-Eglinton Station.

Metrolinx

The closure will require restrictions to one eastbound lane and one westbound lane of Eglinton. TTC buses will also be forced to stop in different locations amid the disruption, with three bus stops in the work area to be relocated between 10 and 90 metres from their original positions.

Metrolinx

Metrolinx states that the realignment is temporary, and will remain in place throughout the station's construction — indicating that this "fall" completion date likely won't mean the end of traffic and pedestrian disruptions along this stretch.