Spadina Expressway: Difference between revisions
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Renamed the [[William R. Allen]] Expressway after a former chair of Metropolitan Toronto, the expressway was later given the title of [[Allen Road|William R. Allen Road]] to indicate its truncated status. It is commonly referred to as "The Allen" by locals. The [[Yonge-University-Spadina Line|Spadina subway line]], opened in [[1978]], runs down its median from Wilson to Eglinton, where it descends underground and follows the approximate route planned for later sections of the expressway. Pro-car politicians argued that an extension from Eglinton to St. Clair/Bathurst through the Cedarvale Ravine would require little demolition of private properties and alleviate the current bottleneck at the Eglinton Avenue terminus of Allen Road {{Fact|date=February 2007}}. |
Renamed the [[William R. Allen]] Expressway after a former chair of Metropolitan Toronto, the expressway was later given the title of [[Allen Road|William R. Allen Road]] to indicate its truncated status. It is commonly referred to as "The Allen" by locals. The [[Yonge-University-Spadina Line|Spadina subway line]], opened in [[1978]], runs down its median from Wilson to Eglinton, where it descends underground and follows the approximate route planned for later sections of the expressway. Pro-car politicians argued that an extension from Eglinton to St. Clair/Bathurst through the Cedarvale Ravine would require little demolition of private properties and alleviate the current bottleneck at the Eglinton Avenue terminus of Allen Road {{Fact|date=February 2007}}. |
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The end of the Spadina was also a turning point in Metropolitan Toronto's (later City of Toronto after 1997) growth history; many businesses disliked the new urban-reform measures which were seen as anti-development policies. Because of its percieved anti-car policies, Toronto was no longer as attractive to development as it formerly was and businesses migrated towards [[Peel Regional Municipality, Ontario|Peel Region]] and [[York Regional Municipality, Ontario|York Region]] where taxes were lower and where there were less growth restrictions and [[400-Series Highway|superior freeway networks]]. |
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The end of the Spadina was also a turning point in Metropolitan Toronto's (later City of Toronto after 1997) urban development. The cancellation of the Spadina Expressway also spelled the end for the rest of the [[Municipal expressways in Toronto|proposed network]], including the Crosstown, Richview and Scarborough expressways. To date, no further expressways have been built in Toronto, leaving only two express routes to serve the downtown core: the [[Don Valley Parkway]] and the [[Gardiner Expressway]], whose own future is under continual debate. Pro-development politicians have argued that this lack of new construction is a major cause of traffic congestion in the city. Others point to the phenomenon of [[Induced demand]] as a reason to avoid new road construction {{Fact|date=February 2007}}. All recent versions of the Toronto Official Plan have focused exclusively on mass transit improvements. |
The end of the Spadina was also a turning point in Metropolitan Toronto's (later City of Toronto after 1997) urban development. The cancellation of the Spadina Expressway also spelled the end for the rest of the [[Municipal expressways in Toronto|proposed network]], including the Crosstown, Richview and Scarborough expressways. To date, no further expressways have been built in Toronto, leaving only two express routes to serve the downtown core: the [[Don Valley Parkway]] and the [[Gardiner Expressway]], whose own future is under continual debate. Pro-development politicians have argued that this lack of new construction is a major cause of traffic congestion in the city. Others point to the phenomenon of [[Induced demand]] as a reason to avoid new road construction {{Fact|date=February 2007}}. All recent versions of the Toronto Official Plan have focused exclusively on mass transit improvements. |
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Revision as of 19:55, 24 February 2007
| Route information | |
|---|---|
| Existed | partially completed/cancelled–present |
| Location | |
| Major cities | North York, Ontario, York, Ontario Toronto, Ontario |
The Spadina Expressway, now known as Allen Road, was proposed in the mid-1960s as part of a network of freeways in Metropolitan Toronto. Originally to run from north of Highway 401 into the downtown area via the Cedarvale Ravine and Spadina Road, it was only partially built before being cancelled in 1971.
Allen Road (the short completed section of the truncated Spadina Expressway), along with the Gardiner Expressway and the Don Valley Parkway, make up the municipal expressway system in Toronto. These are the expressways which are owned and operated by the City of Toronto. The remainder of the expressway system in the city, consisting of the 400-series highways (such as 400, 401, 404, 409, and 427) and the Queen Elizabeth Way, are owned and operated by the Province of Ontario.
The Spadina controversy
The debate over the Spadina Expressway, and its eventual cancellation, are regarded as a turning point in local history. It preceded the beginning of the so-called "Reform Era" in Toronto politics, which brought to City Hall the likes of David Crombie and John Sewell — leaders who were anti-car. It also highlighted the growing schism between the downtown city and the more suburban boroughs of Etobicoke, North York, and Scarborough. The debate over the expressway was one of several issues that led to increased development in areas to the north and west of Toronto.
The construction of the Spadina Expressway was initially at the insistence of the owners of the Yorkdale Shopping Centre. As construction proceeded, opposition to the expressway grew among residents of the neighbourhoods in its path, including the affluent and well-established communities of Forest Hill and The Annex. The new road, they feared, would tear apart their neighbourhoods and choke the area with new traffic and air pollution [citation needed]. It would also ruin an irreplaceable natural area and require the demolition of hundreds of homes, as well as historic buildings such as Spadina House and Knox College.
Marshall McLuhan said of the expressway: "Toronto will commit suicide if it plunges the Spadina Expressway into its heart... our planners are 19th century men with a naive faith in an obsolete technology. In an age of software Metro planners treat people like hardware — they haven't the faintest interest in the values of neighbourhoods or community. Their failure to learn from the mistakes of American cities will be ours too."
Grassroots protests by downtown residents and, eventually, a considerable lobbying effort, turned the tide against the expressway. (Notable among the opposition was urban critic Jane Jacobs, who moved to the Annex in 1969, fresh from a battle to stop the Lower Manhattan Expressway in New York City.) However, the Ontario Municipal Board backed the Spadina Expressway in a 2-1 decision.
In June 1971, an appeal led the provincial government of Bill Davis to withdraw its support, effectively killing the project. Speaking in the Ontario Legislature, Davis said: "If we are building a transportation system to serve the automobile, the Spadina Expressway would be a good place to start. But if we are building a transportation system to serve people, the Spadina Expressway is a good place to stop" (quoted in Sewell, 1993). Others maintained that Davis based his decision on political considerations rather than sound planning because of an impending provincial election to be held later that year.
After the 1971 cancellation of construction of the expressway, North York resident Esther Shiner led a counter campaign to get the expressway completed and she was successful in getting the Ontario Government to partially reverse its decision and allow the expressway to be completed to Eglinton Avenue and for Black Creek Drive to be built also to Eglinton Avenue. She demonstrated that 'people-power' could work for expressways as well as against them.
In 1985, when Davis announced his retirement from Provincial politics, one of his last acts was to grant a 1 metre wide strip of land on the south side Eglinton Ave. West to the City of Toronto to ensure that no southerly extension would ever be built.
Outcome
 | This article contains weasel words: vague phrasing that often accompanies biased or unverifiable information. |
When the project was stopped, the expressway was complete from Wilson Avenue to Lawrence Avenue, and the land had been cleared and graded for it to continue south to Eglinton Avenue. Five years later the section to Eglinton was completed; still later, a northern extension was built as an arterial road which becomes Dufferin Street north of Sheppard Avenue.
Renamed the William R. Allen Expressway after a former chair of Metropolitan Toronto, the expressway was later given the title of William R. Allen Road to indicate its truncated status. It is commonly referred to as "The Allen" by locals. The Spadina subway line, opened in 1978, runs down its median from Wilson to Eglinton, where it descends underground and follows the approximate route planned for later sections of the expressway. Pro-car politicians argued that an extension from Eglinton to St. Clair/Bathurst through the Cedarvale Ravine would require little demolition of private properties and alleviate the current bottleneck at the Eglinton Avenue terminus of Allen Road [citation needed].
The end of the Spadina was also a turning point in Metropolitan Toronto's (later City of Toronto after 1997) growth history; many businesses disliked the new urban-reform measures which were seen as anti-development policies. Because of its percieved anti-car policies, Toronto was no longer as attractive to development as it formerly was and businesses migrated towards Peel Region and York Region where taxes were lower and where there were less growth restrictions and superior freeway networks.
The end of the Spadina was also a turning point in Metropolitan Toronto's (later City of Toronto after 1997) urban development. The cancellation of the Spadina Expressway also spelled the end for the rest of the proposed network, including the Crosstown, Richview and Scarborough expressways. To date, no further expressways have been built in Toronto, leaving only two express routes to serve the downtown core: the Don Valley Parkway and the Gardiner Expressway, whose own future is under continual debate. Pro-development politicians have argued that this lack of new construction is a major cause of traffic congestion in the city. Others point to the phenomenon of Induced demand as a reason to avoid new road construction [citation needed]. All recent versions of the Toronto Official Plan have focused exclusively on mass transit improvements.
The provincial government later built a parallel highway to the west of the Spadina, a short extension of Highway 400 known as Black Creek Drive which was intended to draw some of the traffic away from the truncated Spadina. The province transferred ownership of Black Creek Drive to the City upon its completion in 1982. However, both Black Creek and Allen end at Eglinton Avenue, reaching neither Bloor Street nor the Gardiner Expressway.
See also
- Harbour Drive, a controversial freeway in Halifax that was only partially built and then cancelled for many of the same reasons.
References
- Sewell, John (1993). The Shape of the City: Toronto struggles with modern planning. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
- Nowlan, David and Nowlan, Nadine (1970). The Bad Trip: The Untold Story of the Spadina Expressway. Toronto: new press/ House of Anansi. 105 pgs.