Toronto implements first phase of its High Park car-free plan
The way people access and get around Toronto’s largest public park is changing.
Starting today, the City of Toronto has begun implementing the first phase of its High Park Movement Strategy (HPMS), which aims to “improve safety, accessibility and the park’s natural environment.”
Some of the most notable changes, which will go into effect on Saturday, will include making The West Road and parts of Colborne Lodge Drive, south of Grenadier Café, car-free at all times as well as moving the park’s main vehicle entrance at Parkside Drive and High Park Boulevard. This change means that visitor vehicles will no longer be allowed to enter High Park at Bloor Street West.
Drivers will also now only be allowed to drive in the 400-acre park on weekdays, not including holidays. They will, however, still be able to access High Park at all times for the Children’s Garden, at Colborne Lodge Drive, and the Spring Road parking lot.
Public parking spaces in the park are also being reduced by about 50 per cent. To compensate, designated pick-up/drop-off spaces are being added near main destinations.
Further, new dedicated bike lanes are also being added to Centre Road and Colborne Lodge Drive as well as improved pavement markings and signage to pedestrian crossing areas.
Launched in 2021, the Toronto City Council-approved HPMS is essentially a continuation of the closure of High Park to vehicles on weekends and stat holidays, which began in March 2020.
The strategy, which the city said is “informed by extensive research and analysis, including traffic and parking studies and feedback gathered through a multi-phase engagement process that reached more than 10,000 participants,” is part of a long-term plan to close the entire, 400-acre green space to vehicles.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
U.S. president-elect's son shares post on X of Donald Trump buying Canada on Amazon
U.S. president-elect Donald Trump and those in his corner continue to send out strong messages about Canada.
5 rescued after avalanche triggered north of Whistler, B.C. RCMP say
Emergency crews and heli-skiing staff helped rescue five people who were caught up in a backcountry avalanche north of Whistler, B.C., on Monday morning.
Quebec fugitive killed in Mexican resort town, RCMP say
RCMP are confirming that a fugitive, Mathieu Belanger, wanted by Quebec provincial police has died in Mexico, in what local media are calling a murder.
Bill Clinton hospitalized with a fever but in good spirits, spokesperson says
Former U.S. president Bill Clinton was admitted Monday to Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington after developing a fever.
Trump again calls to buy Greenland after eyeing Canada and the Panama Canal
First it was Canada, then the Panama Canal. Now, Donald Trump again wants Greenland. The president-elect is renewing unsuccessful calls he made during his first term for the U.S. to buy Greenland from Denmark, adding to the list of allied countries with which he's picking fights even before taking office.
King Charles ends royal warrants for Ben & Jerry's owner Unilever and Cadbury chocolatiers
King Charles III has ended royal warrants for Cadbury and Unilever, which owns brands including Marmite and Ben & Jerry’s, in a blow to the household names.
UN investigative team says Syria's new authorities 'very receptive' to probe of Assad war crimes
The U.N. organization assisting in investigating the most serious crimes in Syria said Monday the country’s new authorities were “very receptive” to its request for cooperation during a just-concluded visit to Damascus, and it is preparing to deploy.
Pioneering Métis human rights advocate Muriel Stanley Venne dies at 87
Muriel Stanley Venne, a trail-blazing Métis woman known for her Indigenous rights advocacy, has died at 87.
Man faces murder charges in death of woman who was lit on fire in New York City subway
A man is facing murder charges in New York City for allegedly setting a woman on fire inside a subway train and then watching her die after she was engulfed in flames, police said Monday.