Workers set to start 2nd phase of Gardiner construction

Construction crews working on the Gardiner Expressway are set to start the second phase of the project, the province's transportation minister announced Thursday.

That means workers are moving on to that next phase four months ahead of schedule, after an agreement that construction would be happening 24/7 through a deal between the city and the province, Prabmeet Sarkaria told reporters. 

"This milestone means two eastbound lanes on the Gardiner Expressway are now rehabilitated and have reopened," he said. 

"Workers will begin the demolition and reconstruction of the two central lanes as early as tomorrow, before completing the final, third phase of work on the remaining two westbound lanes."

Construction started in March to refurbish the 60-year-old highway and portions of its elevated structure that run through the downtown core.

The scope of the current stage of the project includes demolishing and rebuilding a 700-metre stretch of elevated roadway from Dufferin Street to Strachan Avenue. It is among the most complicated construction projects currently underway in the province, officials have said.

The work was initially forecast to be finished by April 2027, but it is now expected to finish in April of 2026.