Amare
Senior Member
I am going to go out on a limb and compare this situation to what is going on in the Humber Bay West area but not for the reasons people may think. The similarities between these 2 areas are pretty striking when you look at them. Humber Bay is essentially landlocked by the Gardiner and the Rail Corridor, and even if the Gardiner was removed in this area (which will never happen) and if Lake Shore was expanded, this community would continue to be landlocked and suffer from increased congestion since the rail corrider would still be blocking access to other roads. The Queensway (an 8 lane alternative to the Gardiner further north) is already congested due to the increased population and lack of alternatives.
Now take the Gardiner East. The future West Don Lands and Lower Don Lands community is already constrained by the Don River, Keating Channel, and the Rail Corridor. Remove the Gardiner, and the only access these future neighborhoods will have to downtown will be Lake Shore. If the Lake Shore gets congested (as it is in the west end) commuters from these neighborhood will have to use Cherry St, Carlaw St, or a future N-S link around the Don Valley Pkwy, in order to access Front, and Richmond (the alternatives to Lake Shore). These N-S links cannot handle increased traffic from the thousands of residents that will move into the area over the next 10-30 years, and that is fact.
If people are looking for similarities as to what may happen if the Gardiner is removed, just look at Humber Bay. But of course, the Don Lands have not been developed yet so it may not be striking obvious to some as to how these 2 areas are similar.
Now take the Gardiner East. The future West Don Lands and Lower Don Lands community is already constrained by the Don River, Keating Channel, and the Rail Corridor. Remove the Gardiner, and the only access these future neighborhoods will have to downtown will be Lake Shore. If the Lake Shore gets congested (as it is in the west end) commuters from these neighborhood will have to use Cherry St, Carlaw St, or a future N-S link around the Don Valley Pkwy, in order to access Front, and Richmond (the alternatives to Lake Shore). These N-S links cannot handle increased traffic from the thousands of residents that will move into the area over the next 10-30 years, and that is fact.
If people are looking for similarities as to what may happen if the Gardiner is removed, just look at Humber Bay. But of course, the Don Lands have not been developed yet so it may not be striking obvious to some as to how these 2 areas are similar.