Millwood Road provides a vital connection between Thorncliffe Park, Flemingdon Park and Leaside neighbourhoods and Downtown. In 2023, the City of Toronto is planning state-of-good-repair work on Pape Avenue, Millwood Road and Donlands Avenue due to the poor road conditions. Separately, Metrolinx is planning changes to the Millwood Road and Overlea Boulevard intersection for its Ontario Line project. These projects provide an opportunity to redesign the intersections and reconfigure the bridge between them to make improvements.
The proposed changes are focused on:
Public feedback, along with technical considerations and City policies and guidelines, will be considered in decisions to be made by staff and City Council in May 2023. Subject to approval, installation would be carried out in phases, with the first phase of construction planned for 2023 and into 2024.
At the Overlea Boulevard intersection the following is proposed:
The proposed design is focused on improving the southbound left-turning movement for people driving, improving pedestrian conditions by reducing crossing distances, filling the missing sidewalk gap on the west side, improving and making accessible the bus stops and connecting the bicycle lanes.
The TTC bus stops on the west side and east side south of Overlea Boulevard would be removed and the bus stops would be moved just north and east of the intersection to cover all existing bus routes.
Community members raised safety concerns about the implementation of the proposed crossride (bicycle crossing) on the south side of the intersection, saying that pedestrians may use it, especially, as people adjust to the initial implementation. The crossride would now be implemented as part of the Overlea Boulevard (Millwood Road to Thorncliffe Park Drive West) cycle track construction by Metrolinx at a later date. The crossrides on the north and east legs of the intersection remain unchanged from the original proposal.
A pedestrian crosswalk was also considered on the south side of the intersection, but it was ruled out as it would increase motor vehicle and bus delays.
The left-turn lane on Millwood Road, north of Overlea Boulevard, would be lengthened to increase storage and more dedicated green time would be provided so that left-turning drivers have more time to clear the intersection.
While we aim to provide fully accessible content, there is no text alternative available for some of the content on this page. If you require alternate formats or need assistance understanding our maps, drawings or any other content, please contact us at 416-338-1066 or email millwood@toronto.ca.
On the Leaside Bridge, the following is proposed:
The proposed design has been reviewed by City services that use the road (Fire, EMS, Police, Solid Waste pickup, TTC, Wheel-Trans, road maintenance and snow clearing) and they have provided feedback to ensure it provides access that meets their needs.
The unprotected bicycle lanes would be converted to a one-way cycle track on the east side and a two-way cycle track on the west side. This arrangement is proposed to reduce the number of required signalized crossings and thus reducing delay and encouraging cycling.
The number of motor vehicle lanes heading southbound on the Leaside Bridge would be reduced from three (3) lanes to two (2) lanes. Both the existing and forecasted motor vehicle volumes can be accommodated in the two (2) southbound lanes. The northbound lanes would be retained.
Based on public feedback, the City has initiated the feasibility analysis for the addition of a safety fence on the bridge.
Reducing speed limits, in conjunction with lane narrowing, has safety benefits for all road users, including drivers.
The connecting roads of Pape Avenue and Donlands Avenue both have speed limits of 40 km/h, and so this speed limit reduction would normalize the speed in the project area.
Studies have shown that there’s little evidence that proposed speed limit reductions will impact travel times. Learn more.
While we aim to provide fully accessible content, there is no text alternative available for some of the content on this page. If you require alternate formats or need assistance understanding our maps, drawings or any other content, please contact us at 416-338-1066 or email millwood@toronto.ca.
At the Pape Avenue & Donlands Avenue intersection, the following is proposed:
Key components of the design are moving the bus stop locations closer to the intersection to create more direct and safe crossings and improved transit efficiency and converting the large, unused concrete pedestrian islands to planted areas providing more shade and greening.
To improve safety for vulnerable road users, roadway space would be reallocated to sidewalks and bikeways. See the impacted locations.
| Location | Permit Parking Area | Available Parking Spaces | Permits Issued | Number of Parking Spaces Removed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minton Place, near Pape Avenue | 8G | 7 | 2 | Up to 2 |
| 541 to 553 Donlands Avenue | 9 off-peak | |||
| Chilton Avenue, near Donlands Avenue | 8F | 13 | 4 | 1 |
While we aim to provide fully accessible content, there is no text alternative available for some of the content on this page. If you require alternate formats or need assistance understanding our maps, drawings or any other content, please contact us at 416-338-1066 or email millwood@toronto.ca.
A virtual public meeting was held on February 6, 2023, from 6:30 to 8 p.m., and attended by over 160 people. The meeting included a presentation followed by a Question and Answer period.
Five community pop-up events were held:
The City of Toronto is proposing safety improvements on Millwood Road as part of the planned state-of-good-repair work as part of the City’s commitment to the Vision Zero Road Safety Plan. The Plan’s goal is to eliminate traffic-related fatalities and serious injuries by making our roads safer for everyone. Separately, Metrolinx is planning roadway work at the Millwood Road and Overlea Boulevard intersection.
In the last ten years, one (1) person was killed and three (3) people were seriously injured traveling on Millwood Road. It was identified that some of the collisions could be due to the poor sightlines along the roadway curves, the missing pedestrian crosswalk at Pape Avenue and Millwood Road, and that the traffic control signals are not accessible for people with low to no vision.
All proposed changes are focused on reducing future collisions.
The City Council-approved Cycling Network Plan is a comprehensive roadmap and work plan that outlines the City’s planned investment in our cycling network. It includes a Long-Term Cycling Network Vision, the planned Major City-Wide Cycling Network Routes, and a three-year rolling Near-Term Implementation Program.
The aim of the Cycling Network Plan, and the Millwood Road Safety Improvements project, is to connect gaps in Toronto’s current cycling network by growing existing and future cycling opportunities with safer and more comfortable cycling route options where quality can be improved.
Today, there are approximately 34,000 motor vehicle trips/day including 300 TTC buses. Millwood Road between Overlea Boulevard, Donlands Avenue and Pape Avenue carries the 25 Don Mills, 56 Leaside, 81 Thorncliffe Park, 88 South Leaside, and 100 Flemingdon Park bus routes. There are also approximately 200–400 pedestrian trips per day and 300–500 cycling trips per day.
Millwood Road on the Leaside Bridge has six motor vehicle lanes, but north and south of the bridge there are four motor vehicle lanes plus turn lanes at intersections. Pape Avenue & Donlands Avenue have posted speed limits of 40 km/h and Overlea Boulevard and Millwood Road has a posted speed limit of 50 km/h. As part of this project, a speed study was completed and it was found that people are regularly (95th percentile speeds were utilized) travelling at 59.6 km/h in the area.
There are bicycle lanes on the Leaside Bridge and sidewalks on both sides. But the bicycle lanes do not currently connect to any bikeways north or south of the bridge, nor do they meet today’s design standards for bikeways. The west side sidewalk ends near the Overlea Boulevard intersection with no pedestrian crossing.
The southbound left turn from Millwood Road to Overlea Boulevard is in high demand from people driving. They often wait for more than one green light to get through the intersection which causes long queues.
| Year | Overlea Boulevard Intersection (Work done by Metrolinx) |
Leaside Bridge (Work done by the City) |
Pape Avenue & Donlands Avenue Intersection (Work done by the City) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Under construction |
|
Construction completed |
| 2024 | First phase of construction completed | Two-way cycle track on the west side opens | |
| With Ontario Line | Final construction completed |
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