[Coolstar]

5,649 days since the first post of this thread:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1463996923937968133

And 15 years since the first post.

 

[daniel_kryz]

From the project website...

 

[DSC]

November 26, 2021


City of Toronto celebrates completion of the Six Points Interchange Reconfiguration in Etobicoke

Today, Mayor John Tory and Deputy Mayor Stephen Holyday (Etobicoke Centre) were joined by representatives from the Mississaugas of the Credit, and long-time Etobicoke resident and broadcaster Jerry Howarth to celebrate the completion of the Six Points Interchange Reconfiguration. This marks a significant milestone in the continuing evolution of Etobicoke Centre as a vital mixed-use, transit-oriented community.

Three new street names that represent local community landmarks, Indigenous language and a notable local individual were officially unveiled:

• Adobigok Pathway: Adobigok means “where the alders grow” in Anishinaabemowin (Ojibwe). The Mississauga First Nation called Etobicoke Creek and the area around it “Adobigok”.

• Biindagen Trail: Biindagen means "enter", "come in" or "welcome" in Anishinaabemowin (Ojibwe). This name was proposed as an encouraging phrase that welcomes residents to the new Etobicoke Centre.

• Jerry Howarth Drive: Jerry Howarth – voice of the Toronto Blue Jays for 36 years – was one of the first sports broadcasters to refuse to use team names that were offensive to Indigenous peoples, bringing the issue to the forefront in traditional media.

In 2018, the design of the new roadway configuration received a Certificate of Merit from the National Urban Design Awards in the Urban Design Plans category, as it provides excellent transit accessibility where jobs, housing and services are concentrated and implements the City's Complete Streets and Green Streets initiatives. The new roadway provides safe and easier options for pedestrians, cyclists and motorists.

With roadway construction complete, space has been made available to provide new parks and generous boulevards, as well as housing, services for existing and new residents, and employment within the area.

The construction of a new Etobicoke Civic Centre, at the intersection of Dundas Street West and Kipling Avenue, is expected to begin in February 2023. It will include municipal offices, a City-operated community recreation centre, a public library, a child care centre, a civic square, a multipurpose Council Chamber and underground parking. Learn more at www.createto.ca.

As part of the first phase of the Housing Now Initiative, two sites have been identified in Etobicoke Centre for new mixed-income housing, including new affordable rental units. More information is available at www.toronto.ca/HousingNow

More information about the Six Points Interchange Reconfiguration is available at www.toronto.ca/SixPoints

 

[W. K. Lis]

Why build the traffic lanes so that it would be "safe" for the speeders doing 100+ km/h, instead of narrower for the safety of pedestrians? Speed limit signs are useless.

 

[crs1026]

Why build the traffic lanes so that it would be "safe" for the speeders doing 100+ km/h, instead of narrower for the safety of pedestrians? Speed limit signs are useless.

I don't see much speeding happening through there. There are sufficient curves, and multiple lights to pass through, that most drivers pay attention. Enough cars collect at the traffic lights to force drivers to slow or stop. No right turns allowed on red lights, which is an improvement.

And actually, the sidewalks/cycling lanes within the project zone are an oasis of safety compared to what extends from the limits of this project. All three major arterials are utterly cycling unfriendly, in every direction.

The question will be, will the quality of development create something worthwhile, or just an unremarkable precinct of high rises. No point in making an area walkable/cyclable if it's not developed to be somewhere people want to be.

- Paul

 

[fanoftoronto]

I don't see much speeding happening through there. There are sufficient curves, and multiple lights to pass through, that most drivers pay attention. Enough cars collect at the traffic lights to force drivers to slow or stop. No right turns allowed on red lights, which is an improvement.

And actually, the sidewalks/cycling lanes within the project zone are an oasis of safety compared to what extends from the limits of this project. All three major arterials are utterly cycling unfriendly, in every direction.

The question will be, will the quality of development create something worthwhile, or just an unremarkable precinct of high rises. No point in making an area walkable/cyclable if it's not developed to be somewhere people want to be.

- Paul

You bring up really good points. And to answer your question, the HousingNow designs for the buildings to be built at the site include a good mix of retail use at street level. With the ample amount of sidewalk space and setbacks from said sidewalks, we might entice quite a few patio restaurants to take up residence at these locations further improving the streetscape.

Even without any buildings and just barren land, there is a marked increase in the number of pedestrians and cyclists that use this area right now compared to when this area was the Six Points Interchange spaghetti junction. We have nowhere to go but up from this state as long as they execute the street-level retail stores correctly.

 

[allengeorge]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1465460104506101770

 

[Translude15]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1465460104506101770

I run through this area regularly, though much less so in winter. The wider sidewalks are welcome and I guess the distinct "bike lanes" are an improvement but realistically, this reconfiguration pales in comparison to what exists in other cities, especially European cities. The entire stretch of Dundas from Mississauga/Oakville to Islington could easily remove one car lane in each direction, widen the sidewalks and add a transit/BRT lane AND protected bike lanes. The political will just simply isn't there nor is the desire to remove on-street parking along major arterials within the 416.

 

[duffo]

I run through this area regularly, though much less so in winter. The wider sidewalks are welcome and I guess the distinct "bike lanes" are an improvement but realistically, this reconfiguration pales in comparison to what exists in other cities, especially European cities. The entire stretch of Dundas from Mississauga/Oakville to Islington could easily remove one car lane in each direction, widen the sidewalks and add a transit/BRT lane AND protected bike lanes. The political will just simply isn't there nor is the desire to remove on-street parking along major arterials within the 416.

Metrolinx is currently planning the Dundas BRT which will do exactly that!

 

[Amare]

The thing I dont understand about this stretch of Etobicoke City Centre (Dundas St in particular) is how we got separated bike lanes between Aukland and the eastern portion of Bloor.

Meanwhile west of Aukland (right where we're seeing new developments with sidewalks and roads being redone), there's absolutely 0 provision (that im aware of) for separated bike lanes and we're seeing the generic bland City of Toronto by-the-books streetscape coming into play. Prime example of hacked up, dysfunctional planning.

^All this can be a moot point if the Dundas BRT that @duffo is alluding to has this in the cards. Thing is, lord knows when we'll ever see that BRT built.

 

[W. K. Lis]

The Six Points intersection is split between Councillor Mark Grimes (Ward 3) and Councillor Stephen Holyday (Ward 2). Not the best councillors/people for pro-pedestrian or pro-transit causes. These two would agree on pro-automobile issues in my books.

 

[Undead]

I can't be the only one perplexed that it took 15 years to reconfigure an intersection?

5,649 days since the first post of this thread:

And 15 years since the first post.

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

The actual construction didn't start until March 2017. So really, it's 10 years trying to design, decide and fund the thing, and 5 years of actual construction.

AoD

 

[W. K. Lis]

I can't be the only one perplexed that it took 15 years to reconfigure an intersection?

See PDF link.

The intersection from above in 1959, a year before construction started on the interchange,

In the 1950s as suburban development mushroomed in the area, and in Mississauga further to the west, traffic built as more and more people poured along Toronto's gridded arterial roads—Kipling and Bloor—plus along Dundas, a wandering former trail that has always bucked Toronto's gridded order but which slips neatly into Mississauga's grid where it vaults over the Etobicoke Creek. With the three main streets crossing each other at virtually the same spot, and with further increases foreseen with the opening of Islington subway station—drawing many people to its commuter parking lots, kiss'n'ride, and multi-bay bus terminal—an interchange was built, starting in 1960, to handle the expected traffic.

If all you wanted for the area was smooth traffic flow, the interchange worked. Cars got through the area more quickly, and traffic accidents decreased. In 1980, however, the subway was extended to Kipling, plans to move Mississauga buses to Kipling were also considered, and plans to improve the land between the two stations began to slowly percolate. Many notions were considered over time, including using much of the area for a subway yard, but that was rejected as Toronto got more serious about a new downtown for Etobicoke without an interchange carving up the land

Years worth of planning finally began to be realized when construction started in the summer of 2017, preparing the land for new roads. ...

See link.

 

[allengeorge]

I will say that I’m not a fan of how NotJustBikes made the point, but, those roads are overly wide (they could stand to lose the left-turn lanes, for example) and will do little - in my opinion - to create a lively, walkable neighborhood.