It's only packed at 3 pm? I used to commute up to York Mills and DVP, and if I came in late, I had to fight congestion as early as 11:30 AM. And by 2 pm, it was packed.
Are you finding it's more congested now than pre-pandemic.
I've noticed a significant increase in traffic everywhere throughout September. The closing of the ramp has coincided with the traffic increase. Meanwhile there still seems to be this trend of rush-hour starting earlier than pre-pandemic.
Canoe Landing is near the lake - do you mean Lakeshore and not Bloor - which wouldn't require the Gardiner?
Personally to there, I'd take the GO Train in from Scarborough (which runs every 15 minutes now on Lakeshore), and change to the 509 streetcar at Union. Is there a GO station nearby, or can you drive to a Lakeshore East station?
The key question is where are you starting from in Scarborough? Kingston certainly is near the Lakeshore line