The City of Toronto and the TTC recently held an open house at Malvern to gather input into a study on transit improvements for Kingston Road. The study is looking at a large portion of Kingston, from Victoria Park to Eglinton, just past Markham Road. Also included is a look at how to best integrate the streetcar service between Queen and Victoria Park into any new plan.

The overall goal of the plan is to reduce congestion, by offering a more continuous, higher capacity transit route along Kingston. The study also aims to minimize negative impacts on the environment and on the communities in the study area.

The open house was part of the Schedule ‘C’ Transit Class Environmental Assessment process. The open houses, which were also held in the Kingston and Markham Road and Kingston and St. Clair Avenue areas, were part of Stage 2 of the process, which the City identifies as the stage for identifying and evaluating planning alternatives. The two alternatives offered in the presentation were Transit Improvements and Do Nothing.

As part of the doing something option, the TTC has two route options for transit improvements, although there are no specifics being considered at this point. One alternative would be continuous service along Kingston Road, with a possibility of heading north to meet up with either the Main Street or Victoria Park subway stations. The second possible route would offer continuous service along Kingston until branching off on Danforth, just west of Kennedy. This option also includes the possibility of connecting to either subway station.

The study looked at traffic patterns and problem areas along Kingston, with some findings that will be no surprise to anyone who has driven or taken transit along the route in rush hour. During the morning rush, the study found that 33% of westbound Kingston and Danforth in the study area move at the lowest level of service, while in the afternoon, 26% of eastbound traffic moves at the lowest level.

Of course, when traffic moves slowly, that includes the TTC, which is currently limited to bus and streetcar along Kingston Road. The study found that over 60% of trips along Kingston were made by car, while a quarter or less of trips use the TTC.

Options that may be considered include buses, streetcars and other light rail technology. Reserved lanes in fully or partially protected rights-of-way may be part of the plan, or reserved curb lanes, and possibly transit signal priority. Any more specific design plans will be based on public input gathered through the three open houses.

The City and the TTC welcome comments and input from the public; visit www.toronto.ca/involved/projects/kingston_road_ea for information on the study, to see a digital version of the presentation from the open houses, or for contact information.