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rfmcdonaldVia blogTO's Jerrold comes Jeff Gray's article in The Globe and Mail
"Underpass will ease the way at Dufferin jog".
Jerrold's right to point out that it will be an expensive project. That said, it will straighten out a really annoying kink in Dufferin Street and perhaps help Parkdale feel more integrated with Queen Street West.
"Underpass will ease the way at Dufferin jog".
After almost two decades of planning and delays, construction is finally set to begin on a $34-million project to liberate drivers in the west end from the obstacle known as the Dufferin jog.
The corner - familiar to locals but confusing for others - now cuts Dufferin Street in half at Queen Street West because of the railway tracks, forcing traffic to edge over to nearby Gladstone Avenue and Peel Avenue to continue north or south on Dufferin.
Soon, city officials say, it will be known for its brand-new underpass, which will take drivers, one of the TTC's busiest bus routes and cyclists in new bike lanes under the train tracks to reconnect Dufferin's two disjointed ends.
Gone will be some of the corner's gritty, industrial feel, replaced with new parks on both sides of the underpass, which will feature lit-up public art installations. The change comes as nearby stretches of Queen Street West continue to gentrify. The existing metal railway bridge across Queen, deemed a heritage structure, will remain.
[. . .]
The city works committee recommended yesterday that council approve a $25-million contract with St. Lawrence Cement Inc. (operating as Dufferin Construction Co.), the lowest of two bidders by $6-million, to build the tunnel. If approved, construction could start in three months and finish next year.
Jerrold's right to point out that it will be an expensive project. That said, it will straighten out a really annoying kink in Dufferin Street and perhaps help Parkdale feel more integrated with Queen Street West.
