Ossington Avenue Safety and Streetscape Improvements

Current vehicle lane widths on this section of Ossington Avenue are narrow and do not meet the minimum standards for safe passage of emergency vehicles, buses and motor vehicles. High rates of improper passing and sideswiping collisions have been observed. This section of Ossington Avenue is also one of the City's most vibrant, pedestrian-dense commercial streets, yet many sections feature narrow and obstructed sidewalks and constrained pedestrian boulevards lacking amenities to support the high volumes of pedestrian activity. This mismatch between roadway design and corridor function presents a clear opportunity to reallocate space to better support safety for all road users and enhance the public realm. In 2028, road resurfacing is planned on Ossington Avenue from Dundas Street West to Argyle Street, providing an opportunity to address the challenges along the corridor in a cost and time efficient manner. This report proposes removing peak hour parking restrictions along Ossington Avenue from Dundas Street West to Queen Street West, to allow full-time curbside parking. Curb lanes would be narrowed to accommodate a single, wider vehicle travel lane in each direction that meets minimum standards for emergency vehicle and bus operations. Dedicated left-turn lanes are proposed at Dundas Street West (northbound) and Queen Street West (southbound). Roadway improvements also include upgrades to TTC bus stops and merging areas to improve bus movement and reliability. This section of Ossington Avenue has relatively low traffic volumes and can readily support conversion from a four-lane cross-section to a two-lane cross-section with left-turn lanes, with negligible impacts to travel times along the corridor. The design proposes lengthy sections of sidewalk extensions that would widen the pedestrian boulevard by 1.5-2.3 metres along 475 metres of the street, from Dundas Street West to Rebecca Street. There are seven sidewalk extensions proposed along the west side and eight sidewalk extensions proposed along the east side of Ossington Avenue. The expanded boulevard space would be enhanced with permeable concrete pavers, six new parkette spaces that include bioretention planters and space for seating, eight new waste receptables and new bicycle racks to provide 60 additional bicycle parking spaces. The proposal also includes four Commercial Loading Zones to accommodate business loading needs. The extended sidewalks would result in a loss of 14 on-street parking spaces along Ossington Avenue from Rolyat Street to Rebecca Street. To offset this parking loss, Transportation Services and Toronto Parking Authority are exploring the possibility of a shared-use arrangement (outside of school hours) at the Toronto District School Board owned parking lot at 42 Givins Street. This could add up to 45 off-street parking spaces to the local supply that would be available evenings, weekends and during summer months, which are the peak visitor times in the area.