King Street Transit Pilot begins this week

The City of Toronto is launching a new pilot project to speed up transit along King Street.

The project, which kicked off Sunday, will prioritize streetcar traffic along King between Bathurst and Jarvis. Private vehicles will face restrictions, though local traffic access will be maintained.

King Street is the busiest surface transit route in Toronto, moving more than 65,000 riders daily. However, streetcars along this stretch have faced slow travel times and are often seen travelling in packs. City officials believe this is due to the high volume of private vehicles also using this route. About 20,000 vehicles use King on a daily basis.

"King Street is a critical downtown spine, connecting neighbourhoods, the largest employment centre in the entire country, and diverse urban forms and uses,"said Councillor Joe Cressy. 

"As in so many other areas – community facilities, new parkland, and more – we must both catch up with growth, and plan for the future. The time for putting people and transit first along this important corridor is now, and the King Street Transit Pilot is our opportunity."

Divers, cyclists, and pedestrians are being advised to use King Street with caution as new transit signs and stops go up. Private vehicles will not be able to access King and must turn up either Bathurst or Jarvis. Exceptions are being made for local traffic, taxis, and cyclists. Police will be out for the first two weeks educating drivers and enforcing the new road restrictions.

City officials did not mention the expected traffic impact on neighboring roads such as Queen and Front.

No end date to the pilot was provided to media.

List of Traffic Changes as part of the King Pilot
• Vehicles travelling eastbound on King Street must turn left or right at Bathurst Street. Vehicles travelling westbound must turn left or right at Jarvis Street.
• Through vehicular traffic should use other parallel east-west streets: Richmond, Adelaide, Wellington, Front, Queens Quay, Lake Shore and the Gardiner Expressway, and then access King Street via north-south streets.
• TTC vehicles, City of Toronto emergency and maintenance vehicles, and cyclists are allowed to travel through the pilot area at all times of the day.
• Space for cyclists is provided in the curb lane but no dedicated bike lanes are provided.
• Between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., City-licensed taxis are allowed to travel straight through the pilot area. At other times, taxis must follow the same rules as other traffic.
• There is no on-street parking on King Street in the pilot area. On-street parking is available on some nearby streets and there are several off-street parking lots near King Street.
• While travelling on King Street, left turns at signalized intersections (turning off King Street) are not allowed.
• Current turning restrictions for accessing King Street will remain in place (where left turns onto King Street were previously permitted, they will continue to be permitted).
• Existing permitted movements and restrictions on north-south streets will continue after the launch of the King Street Transit Pilot. For example, vehicle traffic on all north-south streets in the pilot area (such as Bathurst, Spadina, John, University and Yonge) can still cross King Street.