North York Mirror

Closing off part of the Allen Road for an entire year could decide if the Eglinton-Scarborough Crosstown LRT opens on schedule, said a spokesperson for Metrolinx on Monday, July 23.

Mark Ostler confirmed the agency’s joint proposal with the TTC to close off northbound access to Allen Road from Eglinton Avenue West for all of 2014 would put the Crosstown on schedule for its targeted completion by 2020.

A presentation by Metrolinx during a June 27 public construction update held in North York indicates a closure could “reduce construction by approximately one year.”

But Ostler said the agency’s timeline for completing the Crosstown remains unchanged.

“The Allen Road closure and resulting one-year construction time savings would allow us to meet our projected 2020 completion date,” he wrote in an email.

Northbound access to the Allen from Lawrence Avenue West would remain open.

The plan is subject to city council approval before it can be implemented.

City staff is expected to present its assessment of the Allen Road closure proposal to the city’s public works committee this fall.