Abstract Manager

The Frederick Gardiner Expressway (Gardiner) is a key artery in the City of Toronto and has served as a critical transportation infrastructure for the last 60 years, connecting people, jobs, and services between Toronto’s downtown core and surrounding suburbs of the GTA. The Gardiner currently carries an average daily traffic of 140,000 vehicles. To ensure the Gardiner remains a vital component of Toronto’s transportation infrastructure, it needs to have ongoing maintenance and rehabilitation. Built in segments between 1959 and 1961, the Gardiner has had many major and minor rehabilitation projects undertaken over the years.

The rehabilitation of the Gardiner is being undertaken in sections with the current section being rehabilitated is Section 2 which is elevated and extends from Dufferin St. in the east to Strachan Ave. in the west.  The rehabilitation will be undertaken in 3 separate phases. This section of the Gardiner is a 6-lane facility with 3 lanes in each direction separated by a tall-wall concrete median barrier. This rehabilitation project was originally scheduled to continue for three years with a break to accommodate the World Cup of Soccer events in 2026.

Throughout all Phases of rehabilitation, there is a requirement for an independent road safety audit team to conduct a Road Safety Audit (RSA) that follows TAC’s Canadian Road Safety Audit Guide, and the Canadian and Ontario roadside safety design guidelines and standards. The RSA team required an RSA Team Lead, Design Engineers, and a Human Factors Specialist. The RSA team is required to conduct both in-office RSAs on proposed Staging Plans and in-field RSAs of work-in-progress. Subsequent to preparing RSA finding reports and review meetings with the Contractor’s Design team, a Certificate of Completion of these independent RSAs must be issued.

At present, the Contractor has exceeded schedule targets and has now completed Phase 1, the 2 southerly lanes, and has now moved on to the rehabilitation of the 2 centre lanes. This presentation is intended to not only provide a unique perspective on the rehabilitation of an elevated expressway, but to also highlight the RSA process undertaken, the findings of our RSA team, and the collaborative working experience between the RSA team and the Contractor’s Design Team.