ssiguy2 said:
Again........what is the plan for Gould to Dupont? As I understand it, and correct me if I'm wrong, all of downtown Yonge is going to have to be torn up to replace it's antiquated sewage system so what about the non-Dundas area?
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Again what?

That sounds rather demanding.....

***

This proposal covers Carlton to Queen.

Yonge does not meet Dupont, I assume you meant Davenport.

There is no formal process around Carlton to Davenport at this time; however, the intent is to take it from 4 lanes to 2 just like this section.

Edit to add, the intent also included full Cycle Tracks from Bloor northwards.

Not aware of them being considered for the Bloor to Carlton segment.
 
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If they really move forward with the 2-lane option it should not have separate bike lanes. That way, car traffic will be even more discouraged.
 
Shane Gates put up this great piece in Spacing explaining why Yonge Street deserves pedestrianization.

spacing.ca

OP-ED: Yonge Street deserves pedestrianization - Spacing Toronto

I live near the intersection of Yonge and Dundas Streets, where, according to the city’s own data published in 2021 (PDF), 76% of road users are pedestrians despite their being allocated less than 25% of the road space. Drivers dominate the space and their presence negatively impacts the...
spacing.ca
 
I'm probably going to get reamed for saying this, but I wouldn't support removing a traffic lane. Yonge has been vibrant for years and while not perfect, works well for pedestrians (at least from Queen to Dundas). One has to remember that there's an entire block long mega mall that acts like a street immediately adjacent. There's more people walking through the Eaton Centre than there are walking down Yonge. As for the northern stretch (north of Dundas), it's always been bustling and of course a little seedy. Used to flock to Sam's as a teenager to pick up the latest albums. The argument that there's all these new skyscraper condos coming strikes me as an odd argument to close out a lane of traffic - not sure there's logic in closing streets or shuttering traffic lanes when a new mega condo gets constructed. Lastly, and I know it's only occasionally, but with only one lane of traffic, what happens to the pick up and drop off at the theatres (Pantages/Ed Mirvish & Winter Garden)? Taxies line up there after shows.

I would fully support closing off a street and creating a pedestrian zone for a touristy area - I just don't think Yonge St. is the place - maybe somewhere like Cumberland between Yonge & Bay, or Belair from Bloor to Yorkville?
 
Midtown Hank said:
I'm probably going to get reamed for saying this, but I wouldn't support removing a traffic lane. Yonge has been vibrant for years and while not perfect, works well for pedestrians (at least from Queen to Dundas). One has to remember that there's an entire block long mega mall that acts like a street immediately adjacent. There's more people walking through the Eaton Centre than there are walking down Yonge. As for the northern stretch (north of Dundas), it's always been bustling and of course a little seedy. Used to flock to Sam's as a teenager to pick up the latest albums. The argument that there's all these new skyscraper condos coming strikes me as an odd argument to close out a lane of traffic - not sure there's logic in closing streets or shuttering traffic lanes when a new mega condo gets constructed. Lastly, and I know it's only occasionally, but with only one lane of traffic, what happens to the pick up and drop off at the theatres (Pantages/Ed Mirvish & Winter Garden)? Taxies line up there after shows.

I would fully support closing off a street and creating a pedestrian zone for a touristy area - I just don't think Yonge St. is the place - maybe somewhere like Cumberland between Yonge & Bay, or Belair from Bloor to Yorkville?
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The sidewalks on Yonge, especially north of Dundas my anecdotal experience often feel very packed and certainly would benefit from being widened, and I can't see being done without taking away at least one traffic lane.

There appear to be plans for loading zones throughout, with loading zones by the theaters:

 
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bearcat said:
The sidewalks on Yonge, especially north of Dundas my anecdotal experience often feel very packed and certainly would benefit from being widened, and I can't see being done without taking away at least one traffic lane.
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The sidewalks north of Dundas are too narrow for the pedestrian loads, especially on the Western side from Dundas to Elm or so.
bearcat said:
There appear to be plans for loading zones throughout, with loading zones by the theaters:

https://www.toronto.ca/wp-content/u...nctional-Design-Public-Meeting.2026.04.06.pdf
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How wide are the current sidewalks? Keeping the current widths but adding planters to separate from traffic that isn't usually on the street isn't helpful. The sidewalks need to be wider full-stop. The issue on Yonge isn't cars affecting pedestrians but pedestrians affecting other pedestrians.
Midtown Hank said:
I'm probably going to get reamed for saying this, but I wouldn't support removing a traffic lane.
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yonge.png

You can easily remove an entire traffic lane's width here and still have enough leftover for vehicles and uber eats delivery drivers.
 
Why does Uber Eats even come into the conversation? Is this going to be a street for people or a corporation subsidy zone? Who wrote this plan, people or GM?

Even just a few blocks of 100% pedestrianization {with delivery trucks allowed till about 10AM which is standard for most pedestrianized streets in the world} is beyond a half-assed attempt. If they REALLY wanted Yonge to be the showcase and vibrant centre of the city that it has the true potential of being, it should be pedestrianized from Queen all the way to Bloor. Instead of Toronto screaming trying to do a little catch up with every other city why don't they sent the tone for other cities to copy? Toronto has tens of thousands of KM of streets for cars, how is a couple going to bring the city to a stand still?

When I was in Toronto last summer, I did the obligatory walk down Yonge from Bloor to King and not only did I feel unsafe doing it with such thin sidewalks but was shocked at how incredibly ugly the whole strip was. I can't wait for the world media to descend upon Toronto this summer and see the roasting it receive as being such a car friendly city and how pedestrians are viewed by the City as an after thought bordering on a nuisance.
 
Midtown Hank said:
Lastly, and I know it's only occasionally, but with only one lane of traffic, what happens to the pick up and drop off at the theatres (Pantages/Ed Mirvish & Winter Garden)? Taxies line up there after shows.
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Pickup/drop-off areas can be incorporated into the street design. You don't need a 4 lane street for that. Better yet, in the scenario of full pedestrianization, people get dropped off somewhere other than the front of the theatre. This is how theatres work in other cities.

Midtown Hank said:
I would fully support closing off a street and creating a pedestrian zone for a touristy area - I just don't think Yonge St. is the place - maybe somewhere like Cumberland between Yonge & Bay, or Belair from Bloor to Yorkville?
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Pedestrianizing one street in one area has no impact on the need to pedestrianize another street in another area. Other big cities have lots of pedestrian streets in multiple neighbourhoods. They're built to serve the needs of the immediate area, not tourists. And you don't have to go to Europe to find them.
 
Midtown Hank said:
I'm probably going to get reamed for saying this, but I wouldn't support removing a traffic lane. Yonge has been vibrant for years and while not perfect, works well for pedestrians (at least from Queen to Dundas). One has to remember that there's an entire block long mega mall that acts like a street immediately adjacent. There's more people walking through the Eaton Centre than there are walking down Yonge. As for the northern stretch (north of Dundas), it's always been bustling and of course a little seedy. Used to flock to Sam's as a teenager to pick up the latest albums. The argument that there's all these new skyscraper condos coming strikes me as an odd argument to close out a lane of traffic - not sure there's logic in closing streets or shuttering traffic lanes when a new mega condo gets constructed. Lastly, and I know it's only occasionally, but with only one lane of traffic, what happens to the pick up and drop off at the theatres (Pantages/Ed Mirvish & Winter Garden)? Taxies line up there after shows.

I would fully support closing off a street and creating a pedestrian zone for a touristy area - I just don't think Yonge St. is the place - maybe somewhere like Cumberland between Yonge & Bay, or Belair from Bloor to Yorkville?
Click to expand...

The crowding situation on the sidewalk on Yonge today, in this section, approaches critical, regularly. Meanwhile, Yonge isn't that heavy in car traffic at most times.

There is no sense to preserving the two travel lanes on Yonge for cars (per direction) that are proposed to be removed.; its simply not needed; while wider sidewalks very much are.

Pedestrianization, the removal of all 4 car lanes is a different and more complicated question.
 
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Y'all know my opinion on most lane reductions in this city and I'm fully behind deleting, if not entirely pedestrianizing, Yonge St.
The Street is not heavily trafficked at all and the pedestrian situation on it is verging on extreme in terms of volumes over sidewalk width. The entire stretch from Queen to Bloor is in terrible shape too and needs a full rethink.
 
innsertnamehere said:
Y'all know my opinion on most lane reductions in this city and I'm fully behind deleting, if not entirely pedestrianizing, Yonge St.
The Street is not heavily trafficked at all and the pedestrian situation on it is verging on extreme in terms of volumes over sidewalk width. The entire stretch from Queen to Bloor is in terrible shape too and needs a full rethink.
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The only valid argument I've heard against pedestrianizing Yonge is that, unfortunately, the Line 1 shuttle bus needs to exist.

I feel like they could just route it up Bay Street, similarly to how Translink has adapted to the evolving conditions of Granville Street in Vancouver. But what do I know? I'm not a transit planner.

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