Don Valley Parkway closed this weekend for fall maintenance

City of Toronto Media Relations has issued the following:

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News Release:  October 22, 2014

Don Valley Parkway closed this weekend for fall maintenance

The City of Toronto's Transportation Services division will be performing maintenance activities on the Don Valley Parkway this weekend to keep the roadway in a state of good repair as winter approaches. A full closure of the roadway is needed to ensure safety for the public and for those working at the site.

The Don Valley Parkway will be closed in both directions from Highway 401 to the Gardiner Expressway from Friday, October 24 at 10 p.m. to Monday, October 27 at 5 a.m.

Specific activities that will be undertaken during this closure include:

• cleaning and repair of catch basins (required to ensure proper drainage) 

• sign maintenance for entire length of roadway 

• bridge chipping and inspection 

• culvert inspection and repair 

• maintenance of closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras 

• inspection and repair of overhead signs 

• repairs on RESCU vehicle detectors 

• roadside cleanup 

• guiderail repair 

• expressway sweeping and litter removal

City staff from Transportation Services, Toronto Water, Engineering and Construction Services and Toronto Hydro will be working 24/7 during the closure.

Motorists can use Don Mills Road, Bayview Avenue, Victoria Park Avenue and Kingston Road as alternative routes during the closure.

In order to mitigate traffic congestion as a result of the closure, the City will be taking the following measures:

• implementing timing changes to traffic signals to enhance traffic flow on nearby routes 

• providing real-time traffic information on the City's overhead signs, and 

• co-ordinating other construction projects to avoid major work taking place along parallel routes where possible.

Motorists should allow extra time to get to and from their destinations during this closure. Whenever possible, people are encouraged to consider other modes of travel as a convenient alternative. 

A more complete list of events and road work is available at http://www.toronto.ca/torontostreets/.

In addition, the City's T.O. INview map shows planned capital construction work taking place across the city. T.O. Inview can be accessed at http://www.toronto.ca/inview.

This work is part of the City's comprehensive, co-ordinated strategy to rehabilitate and upgrade Toronto's roads, transit and underground infrastructure for current and future needs.

This news release is also available on the City's website: http://bit.ly/1tLdj99

Toronto is Canada's largest city, the fourth largest in North America, and home to a diverse population of about 2.8 million people. It is a global centre for business, finance, arts and culture and is consistently ranked one of the world's most livable cities. Toronto is proud to be the Host City for the 2015 Pan American and Parapan American Games. For information on non-emergency City services and programs, Toronto residents, businesses and visitors can visit http://www.toronto.ca, call 311, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, or follow us @TorontoComms.

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Media contact: Steve Johnston, Strategic Communications, 416-392-4391, sjohnsto@toronto.ca