“DANGER.”“Do Not Enter.”“Streetcars only beyond this point.” Explicit orders to not drive into the TTC streetcar tunnel at Queens Quay are emblazoned on at least five nearby signs, with reflective ones posted at street level and more along the sloped descent leading to the underground streetcar network. But despite the canary yellow and fire-hydrant red beacons, flashing lights and rumble-striped pavement — not to mention the fact that the road leads into a hole — another driver got stuck in the tunnel Wednesday. “How this is happening is a mystery to us,” said TTC spokesperson Stuart Green. “We’ve taken a number of measures to make it very difficult to accidentally drive into that tunnel.” A driver made it down the ramp and about three metres into the tunnel Wednesday at about 10:30 a.m., halting TTC traffic on the 509 Harbourfront and 510 Spadina routes.It marked at least the 23rd time a car has blocked the tunnel at Queens Quay, where streetcars go underground to access Union Station.Shuttle buses were called as a replacement before a tow was order by Toronto police, with service resuming at around 11:45 a.m. Some transit users took to Twitter to warn of the delay.“Ridiculous. I have had some sympathy in the past but now it is SO obvious that is not a tunnel for cars,” tweeted @JHF10.“I work around the corner and I see people either do this or avoid it at the last minute every week,” a Facebook user wrote.A Reddit poster quipped, “Free parking.”The time to clear out the tracks would have been much longer and resulted in a more complicated removal had the driver journeyed further into the tunnel, Green said. The pavement at track level is sunken beneath the raised tracks, making it easy for cars to get stuck the deeper they get into the tunnel, thus requiring special vehicles for towing. These blocks can take between one to eight hours to clear, Gr ...
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