The fall closure of a key route into Toronto’s downtown at southern leg of the Don Valley Parkway has been contributing to traffic snarls, while teasing drivers with an ambiguous reopening date of “spring 2026,” which the city is confirming will happen Friday morning.
When it closed for rehabilitation work last October, the impact of the Richmond Street off-ramp’s absence was felt almost immediately by commuters and residents trying to get around. Without it, drivers’ last chance to get off the highway’s southbound lanes is at Bayview Avenue. Otherwise, drivers need to find alternate routes by doubling back on Lakeshore Boulevard East or the Gardiner Expressway.
Drivers opting for the Bayview Avenue option have resulted in traffic snarls, sometimes stretching as far north as the Don Mills Road exit. The southern options haven’t fared much better, especially for people who live close to the parkway’s southern terminus.
Warren Brown said his drive home to his Corktown neighbourhood often saw an addition of 20 minutes since the exit closed. On a good day.
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“You have to be strategic about getting off,” said Brown, adding that other closures for Ontario Line construction nearby make the obstacles feel relentless.
But the city’s chief engineer said in an interview with Global News that those frustrations are mercifully nearing an end.
“We’re just doing some additional final things,” said Jennifer Graham Harkness, which include installing lighting and painting lane markers.
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“So it’s very close, we’re watching it day-to-day.”
Pressed to be a little more specific, Graham Harkness said it would likely be around April 28 to the beginning of May. The city told Global News Thursday morning that it would now reopen Friday ahead of the morning commute.
The city announced earlier this week that it will be shutting down the Gardiner Expressway this weekend and DVP next weekend for annual spring maintenance. Graham Harkness said those closures are intended to be choreographed in a way to minimize the amount of longer disruptions.
“Everything is all tied together. We look at the Gardiner closure, we’re looking at the DVP closure, and looking at what we can do with the Richmond ramp at the same time,” she said.
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