Reimagining The Spadina Expressway

Welcome back to Middle Ground; this is the twelfth newsletter of our 28 policies in the 28-day series ahead of the 2025 Ontario provincial election.

Today’s issue will reimagine the Spadina Expressway in a modern form.

What is the problem?
According to data from INRIX, drivers in Toronto spent 63 hours a year stuck in traffic, ranking the city as the 17th most congested city worldwide. This congestion is estimated to cost the city’s economy up to $11B per year in lost economic activity, making every resident, business and government worse off because of the lack of proper infrastructure. 

This issue is so bad that despite that, 76% of Torontonians now support allowing 24/7 construction of roads to speed up the improvement of local infrastructure. Most concerning, however, is that 53% of the GTHA’s residents claim they have considered moving away from Southern Ontario due to traffic. 

What is the Spadina Expressway?

The Spadina Expressway was an expressway planned in the 1950s that would have cut through Toronto, connecting the 401 to the University of Toronto at Spadina and Bloor. On the map above it is composed of the green and yellow lines combined.

The Spadina Expressway was highly controversial as it put the interests of those in the suburbs, who wanted easy access to downtown, at odds with those in the city who wanted quiet neighbourhoods. In the end, only part of the highway was built (the green section on the map) from Downsview Airport to Eglinton, today known as Allen Road.

Why should we build it? 

The arguments made on both sides in the 1950s had validity. Today, however, only one of those arguments remains true. Downtown Toronto remains problematic for those living outside the downtown core to access. Driving from Allen Road and Eglinton to Spadina and Lakeshore during rush hour can take nearly 1 hour despite being only 8km. 

The argument about preserving communities and wanting quiet neighbourhoods is no longer a necessary consideration. Modern technology allows us to build the Spadina Expressway underground without impacting the surrounding communities. A subway line has already been built from Eglinton West at Allen Road and Eglinton to Union Station, blocks from Spadina and Lakeshore. This means that the Spadina Expressway can be constructed as a tunnel under the existing subway line, providing benefits for suburbanites without impacting city dwellers. 

Why hasn’t this been built?
The idea of this exact tunnel was proposed by Mayoral candidate Rocco Rossi in 2010. At the time, the idea was rejected for a few reasons:

• Cost: While Rossi predicted that the tunnel would cost $1B, critics pointed to the recently completed Big Dig in Boston, which had ballooned in costs from $4B to $22B. 

• Exit/Entry Points: The tunnel would have required removing entire city blocks to allow access points throughout downtown Toronto. 

• Congestion: The Gardiner Expressway was already congested, and experts believed that the tunnel would create an additional bottleneck. 

What has changed since 2010?
Recently, we have seen the consequences of not taking action on infrastructure and transit initiatives. Plans deemed too expensive from 1950 to 2020 are now being completed at 5-20 times the cost due to their necessity. We are at a stage in Toronto’s growth where we need to be building multiple infrastructure projects simultaneously to avoid moving backwards. While these should prioritize public transit (subways, LRTs, dedicated bus lanes), they also need to include additional capacity for cars. Tunnels especially are a unique opportunity as, when paired with autonomous vehicle technology, they can provide an efficient method of transportation into the downtown core in the future. 

• Cost: The cost of this project will only continue to rise, as will the need to connect more cars from the 401 to downtown Toronto, which will inevitably be done. 

• Exit/Entry points: This tunnel aims to get people downtown, not spread them throughout downtown. Having the tunnel go directly from Eglington to Lakeshore/Gardiner Expressway without any additional stops will still allow drivers to access downtown quickly. 

• Congestion: Limiting Entry/Exit points will keep this tunnel’s usage at a minimum, removing some concerns around congestion. It will also reduce congestion on city streets, making them safer for pedestrians and public transit users. Finally, this is no longer an excuse to hold off on projects. If the Gardiner Expressway is congested, then this should not prevent other projects; instead, it should encourage investment in expanding the Gardiner Expressway, as discussed here. 

Onwards and Upwards,

Liam Gill

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