Weekend need-to-know: Bike for Brain Health to close Gardiner and DVP

The Bike for Brain Health event will see 10,000 cyclists hit the streets on Sunday, while Canadian Music Week is set to feature some of the best talent Canada has to offer.

As always, there will be some road and TTC closures to be mindful of as the weekend arrives, including a full closure of the Gardiner Expressway and Don Valley Parkway for the Bike for Brain Health. Here’s some of the events happening this weekend:

Weekend events

Bike for Brain Health

The DVP and Gardiner Expressway will be shutting down on Sunday for charity bike event. Over 10,000 cyclists will take to the streets in support of the goal to defeat dementia. There are four route lengths, 10km, 25km, 50km and 75km.

All the funds raised will go directly to the Baycrest Foundation, which is researching dementia, Alzheimer’s disease and aging brain health.

If you would like to still register, details can be found on their website.

Harbourfront 50th Anniversary Block Party

Harbourfront is celebrating its 50th anniversary with a block party on Saturday. There will be a live performance by Elliott brood, a Canadian alternative country band, as well as family-friendly activities and a chance to sing on stage with the Good Enough Live Karaoke band.

The block party at Harbourfront Centre will kick off at 12 p.m. with a market that will feature food vendors and local crafts by their artists-in-residence.

Full details can be found on their website.

Canadian Music Week

The 42nd annual Canadian Music Week kicks off this Saturday that will feature Canadian artists like Walk Of The Earth, Dallas Smith, Finger Eleven and Charlotte Day Wilson.

It will feature a multifaceted information-intensive conferences, a trade exposition, awards shows and the country’s largest new music festival that will showcase more than 250 artists at over 25 venues.

The CMW Conference will be happening at the Westin Harbour Castle. Schedule details and tickets are available on the Canadian Music Week website.

TTC/GO closures

Line 1 partial closure

There will be no subway service both ways between St. Clair and Sheppard-Yonge stations for planned track work on Saturday and Sunday. Shuttle buses will operate. Service will resume on Monday at 6 a.m.

GO Kitchener Line

Starting on Friday, May 31, at 11:22p.m., train service on the Kitchener Line will be temporarily suspended until 9 a.m. on Saturday, June 1, for critical track work.

GO buses will replace the 11:22 p.m. train from Bramalea GO to Union, along with the 10:04 p.m. and 11:34 p.m. Union to Bramalea/Mount Pleasant GO trips. Buses will stop at Mount Pleasant, Brampton Innovation District, Bramalea and Malton GO stations before running express to/from Union Station.

Regular Kitchener rail service will resume on Saturday, June 1, after 10 a.m.

UP Express closure

On Friday, May 31, at 10:30 p.m., UP Express service will be temporarily suspended until 9 a.m. on Saturday, June 1, for critical track work that will bring faster, more frequent service across the network.

During this time, replacement GO buses will travel direct between Toronto Pearson Airport and Union Station with departures every 30 minutes. Customers travelling to and from Weston and Bloor GO stations are encouraged to use local transit options.

Road closures

Ongoing Gardiner closures

As part of the long-term construction plan on the Gardiner Expressway, one westbound lane and one eastbound lane are closed between Dufferin Street and Strachan Avenue. The eastbound on-ramp from Lake Shore Boulevard at Jameson Avenue is also closed. 

Temporary road closures

Bike for Brain Health

The Bike for Brain Health will close the following roads from 12 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday.

• Don Valley Parkway from Gardiner Expressway to York Mills Road
• Gardiner Expressway from South Kingsway to Don Valley Parkway
• additional roads surrounding Exhibition Place

Other ongoing city closures

• O’Connor Drive is down to a single lane each way between Bermondsey and Sandra for road reconstruction and sewer and watermain installation until the summer of 2024.
• Until mid-June, between 6:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. on weekdays, Lake Shore Boulevard will be reduced to two westbound lanes between New Brunswick Way and British Columbia Road for the replacement of a fence. 
• The Yonge and Bloor intersection will be reduced to a single lane all ways for condo construction and sewer installation until 2025.
• University Avenue will be reduced to a single lane in both directions between College Street and Queen Street West to complete several infrastructure projects for the next several months.
• Queen Street is fully closed to traffic between Bay and Victoria Streets to accommodate work on a new station for the Ontario Line subway. The closure is scheduled to last for at least four-and-a-half years until 2027.
• Northbound Yonge Street is reduced to one lane between Wellington and King Streets for TTC construction. The project is scheduled to continue into 2024.
• Two northbound lanes of Yonge Street from King Street to Wellington Street are closed for TTC construction until Sept. 30, 2024.
• Finch Avenue West is reduced to a single lane in both directions from Dufferin to Wilmington for sewer installation until October 2024.
• Eglinton Avenue West is down to a single lane east of Islington and west of Scarlett Road for tunneling work related to the multi-year Eglinton Crosstown West Extension project.
• Lane restrictions on Bayview Avenue between Roehampton Avenue and Armistice Drive while the city completes road resurfacing, curb and sidewalk replacement, and traffic signal and pedestrian upgrades. One northbound lane is currently closed on Bayview Avenue between Kilgour Road and Roehampton Avenue.
• Cherry Street remains closed south of Polson Pier due to maintenance on the Ship Channel Lift Bridge (Strauss Trunnion Bascule Bridge). Road users are able to access the Port of Toronto and Cherry Beach via Unwin Avenue.