ttc streetcar

Get ready for major headaches on Toronto streetcar routes

Toronto has TIFF fever with the festival set to launch in two days, but the excitement doesn't come without sacrifice, this time at the expense of the King St. commuter.

Starting September 7, the 504 King Street streetcar will be diverting from its route north to Queen Street both ways between Spadina Avenue and York Street, where there will be no service during the festival.

This will mark the third year that the stretch of King between York and Spadina has been turned into Festival Street, a vehicle-free, pedestrian-friendly area that hosts food trucks, vendors, games, activities and plenty of celeb-spotting opportunities.

The TTC has expressed dismay over the closure, claiming it's a huge pain for riders on one of the city's busiest routes, but if it's the choice between potentially catching a glimpse of Jake Gyllenhaal or a slower commute, you can kind of see both sides of the argument.

The detour will also affect the 514 Cherry, 504 King Street express bus and the 304 King Street night route, just until September 10.

To add to our collective commuting woes, the intersection of Queen and Coxwell has just been shut down to track reconstruction work that'll take much of September. This too will see a slew of streetcar and bus routes on divert throughout the closure.

On a partially good note, the 501 Queen Street streetcar is back in service between Connaught and Roncesvalles.


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