W. K. Lis
Superstar
The name of the street was to have been Queen Street West, but they settled on The Queensway instead. And yes, it is facing east ON Queen Street West.
|
|
|
Spadina Streetcar Track Repairs (TTC, U/C)
- Thread starter hawc
- Start date
The name of the street was to have been Queen Street West, but they settled on The Queensway instead. And yes, it is facing east ON Queen Street West.
Markster
Senior Member
The photo was of "Queen St West". It did not specify the direction the photo was facing. You are definitely correct in your assessment.
[edit] oops, shows me for taking so long to reply.
the lemur
Senior Member
Thanks. I think in terms of the name, W.K. was addressing Coruscanti's question about Queen W being renamed The Queensway. In reality, that's not what happened.
The photo probably shows the construction of the Queensway around the time that the Gardiner was being built. Previously, Queen W ran to King/Roncesvalles as it does now, connecting to 'Lake Shore Rd' (as it was), which ended up being south of the Gardiner. Lake Shore ran to the Humber, where it connected to what seems to have been called Queen St (no 'West') again.
At the same time (about 100 years ago), it appears that another Queen St existed west of Windermere to the Humber, north of Lake Shore, possibly where Windermere Pl is now, and was projected eastward across High Park to meet with Keele (Parkside) and Indian Rd. That obviously didn't come to be.
http://data2.archives.ca/e/e431/e010762219-v8.jpg
As for the Queensway name, it may have been connected to that of the South Kingsway (which is the southern stretch of Jane).
CDL.TO
Moderator
Before they built the Queensway, Queen Street West existed west of Roncesvalles (only as far as Claude Ave or Indian Rd or so). It was a minor street compared to today, but did provide access to St. Joseph's Hospital and the southern access to Roncesvalles Yard.
The Queensway project involved rebuilding this segment, extending it, and renaming as we see today.
the lemur
Senior Member
Ah, good to know.
Hipster Duck
Senior Member
Question: was the 1997 Spadina trackage and the Grand Union at Queen St. built to the standards of the previous track renewal program (from the late 80s)? I think it was widely acknowledged that that program of track renewal was an absolute disaster for reliability and quality, hence the need to replace Spadina barely 15 years after it opened.
smallspy
Senior Member
The trackage used on Spadina was built to much better standards than that in the 1970s and 1980s, but not quite as well as that today. There is no encapsulation of the rail, and intersections were built entirely on creosoted wooden ties, rather than the mix used today.
The replacement of the intersections now stems more from use than from poor construction.
Dan
Toronto, Ont.
Hipster Duck
Senior Member
Thanks for the info. The arrival of new, lighter streetcars can't come soon enough.
Jonny5
Senior Member
I was down on Queen West this evening. There was a lineup to get in the Black Bull. There was line up to get in The Rivoli. There was a line up to get in whatever that place is called where Ultra used to be.
I thought business had collapsed?? Someone from CityTV was even doing a segment on how packed the patios were. I'm sure they will still run with the "carmageddon" narrative for ratings though.
One thing that was amusing was the massive lineup of cars on McCaul trying to turn left on Queen, all while St. Patrick and Beverly were totally empty. People really aren't adapting to this closure well.
I thought business had collapsed?? Someone from CityTV was even doing a segment on how packed the patios were. I'm sure they will still run with the "carmageddon" narrative for ratings though.
One thing that was amusing was the massive lineup of cars on McCaul trying to turn left on Queen, all while St. Patrick and Beverly were totally empty. People really aren't adapting to this closure well.
Mustapha
Senior Member
The track on York between King and Queen was used for a movie shoot two months ago. A streetcar filled with actors moved forwards and backwards all day long as part of the shoot. The working title for the film is 'An Enemy', starring Jake Gyllenhaal.
the lemur
Senior Member
Hmm, I wonder if that means it's supposed to be set in Toronto. Usually when Toronto is meant to pass as another city, filming involves keeping streetcars and tracks out of the shot.
the lemur
Senior Member
I had a look at Queen & Spadina today to see how things were progressing. The grand union itself seems to be finished (they were steamrolling the asphalt around it) and the basic concrete form of the new, longer streetcar island on Queen east of Spadina is there. However, the track bed just north and south of the intersection still needs to be poured, and I guess that and the other islands and track bed account for the November completion date.
One thing I noticed further north on Spadina was that the new curbs of the streetcar islands had big trapezoidal notches cut out of them. Something to do with how the new LRVs will line up with the stop? Or the ramps?
One thing I noticed further north on Spadina was that the new curbs of the streetcar islands had big trapezoidal notches cut out of them. Something to do with how the new LRVs will line up with the stop? Or the ramps?
Last edited:
DavidJamesTO
Active Member
Not always. A pair of PCCs were featured prominently in Hairspray, which also filmed a dance number on the streetcar tracks on Dundas West.
nfitz
Superstar
The book it's based on is set in Portugal isn't it? Though it's Hollywood, so they probably don't care about the book ...
the lemur
Senior Member
That's true. They shot part of that around Spadina Crescent as well. I guess part of Toronto's versatility as a filming location is that it can also stand in for cities that either have streetcars or, if the film is set in the past, cities that had streetcars at that time. Makes a change from being dressed up as Manhattan with yellow taxis, USPS mailboxes, disguised subway entrances, etc.