One of Toronto’s busiest streets could soon become a lot less attractive for drivers, and city transportation officials are just fine with that.On Thursday morning, representatives from the city and TTC unveiled details of a highly anticipated pilot project to improve streetcar performance on King St., ahead of a public meeting to discuss the plan later in the evening. The proposed reconfiguration of the street would give priority to streetcar movement and restrict the operation of cars. The city says that only makes sense given that the 65,000 people who ride the 504 King streetcar every day far outnumber the 20,000 drivers who use the street. “There’s no question there will be impacts to drivers with this proposal. What we’re trying to do here is improve transit service for the 65,000 passengers on the busiest (surface) transit route in the city,” said Jacquelyn Hayward Gulati, acting director of transportation infrastructure management.She said that under current conditions King streetcar service can be “slow, unreliable and erratic.”“We want to put people and transit first on King St., and that’s what this pilot is recommending.”The pilot would cover a 2.6-kilometre stretch of King between Bathurst and Jarvis streets downtown. The project’s main features, some of which have already been hinted at by officials or reported in the media, include restrictions that would force drivers to turn right at the end of each block. Left turns would be prohibited. The aim is to eliminate through-traffic on King while still providing local access to the street for those who need it. Streetcars would still operate in mixed traffic with motor vehicles, but car movement would be limited to one lane in each direction. What is now the curb lane would be occupied by streetcar boarding areas, public space and zones for short-term loading, deliveries and taxis. Streetcar stops would be moved to the far si ...
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