Road closure reminder for Pan Am Games this weekend

City of Toronto Media Relations has issued the following:

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News Release:  July 17, 2015

Road closure reminder for Pan Am Games this weekend

Pan Am Games run and race-walk competitions in Toronto this weekend will involve road closures including Lake Shore Boulevard.

In addition to the Pan Am Games, there are a number of other events taking place on Saturday, July 18, including a Blue Jays baseball game at Rogers Centre at 1 p.m., and Toronto FC and S. L. Benfica soccer games at BMO Field, Exhibition Place at 4 and 8:30 p.m. respectively.

Residents and visitors are encouraged to come out and enjoy these events. Whenever possible, people are encouraged to consider carpooling, public transit, walking or cycling to get around this weekend and throughout the Games.

Pan Am women's marathon – Saturday

Lake Shore Boulevard will be closed in both directions from Colborne Lodge Drive to Strachan Avenue from 1 a.m. to 2 p.m. Parkside Drive from Lake Shore Boulevard to High Park Boulevard will also be closed from 1 a.m. to 2 p.m. Access to Ontario Place and the Gardiner Expressway will be maintained.

One eastbound lane of Lake Shore Boulevard between Colborne Lodge Drive and Net Drive will remain open using a counterflow system (no through traffic – local access only) to provide access for businesses and residents during the closure.

There will be a closure of some roads in High Park (Colborne Lodge Drive north of Centre Road, Centre Road, Spring Road and High Park Boulevard) from midnight to 2 p.m. West Road remains open, as does Colborne Lodge Drive south of Centre Road.

There will also be cycling detours. From 1 a.m. until 2 p.m., some sections of the Martin Goodman Trail will be closed to bicycle traffic. Signage is in place along the 2.85-kilometre detour. Detour details:

- Cyclists travelling east must exit the trail at British Columbia Road/Lake Shore Boulevard and then take the detour route north on Dufferin Street, east on Liberty Street and south on Strachan Avenue to rejoin the Martin Goodman Trail at Coronation Park.

- Cyclists travelling west must exit the trail at Remembrance Drive at New Brunswick Way and then travel west on Lake Shore Boulevard, north on Ontario Drive to Princes' Boulevard, west on Princes' Boulevard  to Saskatchewan Road, proceeding west on British Columbia Road to rejoin the Martin Goodman Trail at Marilyn Bell Park.

The women's marathon race itself takes place from 7 to 11 a.m.

Pan Am 20-kilometre race walks – Sunday

Lake Shore Boulevard in both directions from British Columbia Drive to Strachan Avenue will be closed from 1 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday, July 19 for the men's and women's 20-km race walks, which take place from 7 a.m. to noon.

During the Lake Shore Boulevard closure, local access only will be available past Strachan Avenue. All drivers, including spectators driving to events, will need to show their Games event ticket for access beyond Strachan Avenue.

Cycling detours associated with this Pan Am Games competition will involve the closure of some sections of the Martin Goodman Trail to bicycle traffic from 1 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Sunday. Signage is in place along the 2.85-km detour. Details about detours for eastbound and westbound cyclists on Sunday are identical to the listings above for Saturday.

More information about transportation related to the Pan Am/Parapan Am Games is available at http://www.toronto2015.org/transportation.

Festivals and other special events inject hundreds of millions of dollars annually into the city's economy. In addition to road closures related to special events, a significant amount of road work is taking place in Toronto. People are encouraged to take public transit as a greener, faster and more affordable way of getting to their destinations. Those who need to drive in the general vicinity of special events should allow extra time to get to and from their destinations.

The City has a web-based map to help residents and visitors make their travel plans, available at http://www.toronto.ca/roadrestrictions. Information about the City's planned capital construction work, which also affects roads, is available at http://www.toronto.ca/inview.

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: Strategic Communications, 416-392-6967, media@toronto.ca