Drivers who regularly pass through the Eglinton Avenue West and Allen Road intersection are ramping up complaints about recent design changes which they say is leading to constant chaos on the road.
“Everything about this intersection gets in the way of itself,” said local resident Horonymo Allen, who lives near the intersection.
“What I hear all day, while working from home, is constant honking and yelling from drivers. It’s very stressful to hear that every day, nonstop,” he explained.
The ongoing noise is coming from frustrated drivers using the intersection— which was rebuilt in June 2023 by Metrolinx as part of the Cedarvale station on the ECLRT line. The changes included new turn lanes and a pedestrian island in the middle of the road—drastically changing traffic flow.
“Currently there are strictly two turn lanes in both directions and there is strictly one through lane in both directions,” Allen explained.
Those who are lodging complaints say a lack of signage has drivers confused.
“Because the lanes suddenly merge, drivers are often in the wrong lane because they can’t tell what’s what because of the signage, or lack thereof,” he added.
The confusion has led to traffic accidents. Just last month, a vehicle drove onto the island and caught fire. Luckily, there were no serious injuries.
“It’s only a matter of time until something worse happens,” Allen said.
Residents who live on the side streets off Eglinton Avenue have also complained about traffic flow. They say drivers are using those side streets to try and bypass the congestion caused by the intersection redesign.
The City of Toronto took control of the intersection from Metrolinx in 2024 and staff say they are well aware of the issues. In a recently held public meeting, officials discussed ways to improve the intersection and heard directly from drivers.
“The City of Toronto acknowledges capacity issues associated with the current design of the Eglinton/Allen intersection as the root cause of traffic congestion in the area,” a spokesperson told CityNews.
The City says it is working on a plan to redesign the intersection.
“Further efforts to improve motor vehicle capacity will require redesign and reconstruction of the intersection,” the spokesperson added. “The City has recently hired dedicated staff to oversee the assessment of options for the redesign of the intersection in order to improve motor vehicle capacity.”
Results of the studies are expected early next year.
“In the meantime, the City is also working closely with area councillors and residents in the surrounding neighbourhoods to explore opportunities for traffic pattern changes on local streets and to address congestion on the neighbourhood streets,” they added.
Horonymo Allen is one of many people who would like to see this project fast tracked.
“I think we’ve all waited long enough and simply deploying traffic agents, which the City has done, isn’t enough,” he explained. “Changes need to be made here immediately.”
“Drivers have enough to pay attention to already. They don’t want to arrive somewhere and be confused,” he added.
If you have an issue, story or question you’d like us to look into, contact us.
