Summer construction work on the TTC will make things difficult for commuters in two busy areas of the city.

Long-term closures are expected on St. Clair West and downtown at College and Bathurst.

Here’s what to expect:

St. Clair streetcar

Construction work on streetcar tracks along St. Clair Avenue will force the St. Clair 512 streetcar route to be replaced by buses intermittently until the end of the year.

As part of a “comprehensive upgrade of the entire St. Clair 512 streetcar route,” crews will work replace tracks, install new elevators and replace portions of the streetcar platforms.

According to a news release issued Thursday by the TTC, most of the construction required is to ready the route for the TTC’s new air-conditioned, accessible streetcars, which are expected to hit the St. Clair Avenue by 2018.

From June 19 until September 4, buses will replace streetcars along the entire St. Clair Avenue route and the 90 Vaughan bus will be re-routed to Bathurst Station.

From September 4 until December, streetcars will start to operate between St. Clair West Station and Gunn’s Loop at Keele Street. The remaining portion – on St. Clair Avenue’s east end -- will continue to offer buses instead of streetcars. The 90 Vaughan bus will also continue to be re-routed to Bathurst Station.

“It’s beginning to show its age,” TTC Andy Byford said of St. Clair Station in video that explains the upcoming closures and re-routes in detail.

“We want to make this fit for purpose. We want to create a world-class environment for our customers.”

“We will have plenty of signage and plenty of customer service assistance so customers know what to do and where to go,” he said.

The closure comes six years after the streetcar right-of-way opened on the St. Clair Avenue route. The project, which cost $106 million to complete, put a strain on businesses in the area who were affected by road closures and limited street access.

Don’s Meat Shop will be forced to live through the construction yet again next month, but the owner and St. Clair Gardens BIA Chair is hopeful that this time will be much more manageable.

“We’ll have parking there. Buses will only have one lane. It may get congested, but listen, at the end of the day I think we’re hopefully alright as long as we have the parking on the street,” St. Clair Gardens BIA Chair and owner of Don’s Meat Shop Don Panos told CP24.

“They have no choice. I think they have a different mindset. They had enough bad publicity from the last one.”

The shuttle buses operating from St. Clair Station on the 512 St. Clair route will continue to offer Presto pass payment.

From June 19 until mid-July, riders can board TTC buses at:

  • 512 St. Clair streetcar platform
  • 88 South Leaside at the bus bay
  • 74 Mount Pleasant at the bus bay

From mid-July until December, rides can board TTC buses at:

  • 512 St. Clair at the bus bay
  • 88 South Leaside at Pleasant Boulevard
  • 74 Mount Pleasant at Pleasant Boulevard

College and Bathurst Closure

Starting June 20, the intersection of College and Bathurst streets will also be closed for about three weeks because of TTC streetcar track work and other upgrades.

Throughout the closure, TTC buses, streetcars, traffic and cyclists will all be diverting around the area until July 12.

Traffic travelling east on College Street will be redirected to Dufferin Street while traffic heading westbound will be diverted to either University or Spadina avenues.

Southbound traffic on Bathurst Street heading toward College Street will be detoured to Bloor Street while northbound traffic will be redirected to Dundas Street West.

Cyclists will also be affected by the closure. Those cyclists heading east will be directed to Euclid or Palmerston avenues to Ulster or Lippincott streets. Cyclists travelling west will be detoured to Borden Street, then Ulster Street, and then on Markham Street in order to return to College.

Signage is expected to be posted around the area to help direct cyclists and traffic.

In a news release issued Thursday, city officials said that sidewalks in the area will remain open to foot traffic, allowing businesses to be accessible to pedestrians and customers.

However, some businesses in the area are uncertain that the closure won't hinder their day-to-day work.

"It is 100 per cent a problem," Sayed Muzafar, who owns and operates a food cart near the intersection, told CP24. "I may have to close for a few weeks, but I have rent to pay, children to feed. I could stay open, but the noise and the dust would prevent me from having customers."

Joyce Blair is an employee at Balfour Books -- a bookstore located on the northwest corner of the intersection. Blair called the construction a "horrible nuisance" but added that closures need to happen in the city from time to time.

"There's nothing we can do about it. It has to be done," she told CP24. "Sometimes it's worse than you'd think, sometimes it's not that bad."

Construction work is expected to be extended into overnight hours in order to speed up the process and potentially shorten the closure.