The Spadina Expressway was a proposed freeway in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Originally to run from north of Highway 401 into the downtown of Toronto via the Cedarvale and Nordheimer Ravines and Spadina Road, it was only partially built before being cancelled in 1971 due to public opposition. It was proposed in the mid-1960s as part of a network of freeways for Metropolitan Toronto. The completed section is known today as Allen Road.

The plan

The first proposal for a highway to the north-west of downtown was for a highway named "North West Drive", or "Spadina Road Extension". The proposal was made in 1949 by the Toronto and Suburban Planning Board, as part of a plan for numerous expressways in the Toronto area. The route was laid out by two members of the board, future Metro chairman Fred Gardiner and James P. Maher, chairman of the Toronto Planning Board. The proposal died when York Township rejected the idea.

While the Crosstown, Scarborough and Spadina Expressways were all part of the transportation plans of the 1950s, all were put off for further study. The routes of the Gardiner and Don Valley expressways were less controversial and allowed to proceed. The other expressways planned to cut through developed areas.

In 1959, the Spadina Expressway became part of the official transportation plan of Metropolitan Toronto. The original plan intended to connect a "Highway 403 bypass" in the vicinity of today's Highway 407 in the city of Vaughan south through North York Township, just east of Downsview airport, then south between Dufferin Avenue and Bathurst Street as far south of Eglinton. The highway would have gone into a ravine as far south as St. Clair Avenue through York Township. It would then enter Toronto proper, going directly south through the Annex neighbourhood, connecting to an east-west "Crosstown Expressway" south of Dupont Street, and ended at the intersection of Bloor Street and Spadina Avenue. Spadina Avenue would be reconstructed with express lanes in the middle all the way south to the waterfront.

At the time, there was no north-south expressway in the area west of downtown Toronto, as Highway 27 (later Highway 427) was in the west while the Don Valley Parkway was east of downtown. Also at the time, a parallel development to extend the provincial highway 400 was proposed to the west, to connect to the Gardiner Expressway in the area of Fort York.

The project planned a rapid-transit line in conjunction with the expressway. It would operate above ground north of Eglinton Avenue, and travel underground south to connect at Spadina station of the Bloor-Danforth line. The above-ground section was situated between the lanes of the highway.

The expressway was considered critical for the development of the planned $42 million CAD Yorkdale Shopping Centre, south-west of the Spadina-401 interchange. At one point, the Yorkdale development was under the threat of cancellation without the approval to proceed with the Spadina. Only after Metro Council formally approved the whole Spadina project in 1962, did the land owners T. Eaton Co. Limited and developers Webb and Knapp (Canada) Limited announce construction.The interchange of the 401 with today's William R. Allen Road has connections with the private roadways of Yorkdale.

Estimates of the cost were first determined in 1961, of $65,000,000 CAD, with construction to proceed from 1967 until 1970. At that time, Metro and Toronto were in discussions about the route south of Dupont Street, as to whether it would be an elevated highway or at ground level in that section.

On December 12, 1961, Metro Council first approved the Spadina Expressway project, committing $5 million CAD in a 13-8 vote. This covered the cost of the first section from Highway 401 to Lawrence Avenue. At the same time Council put off approving the whole route and voted 19-2 to delete the Crosstown Expressway from the transportation plan.

The Stop Spadina campaign

The debate over the Spadina Expressway, and its eventual cancellation, are regarded as a turning point in local history. It preceded the beginning of the "Reform Era" in Toronto politics, which brought to City Hall the likes of David Crombie, John Sewell, Allan Sparrow and Colin Vaughan.

Opposition to the project started before construction began. In 1960, members of the Cedarvale Ratepayers Association disrupted meetings of the Metro Toronto Roads Committee discussing the project. York Township, which became the Borough of York, opposed the construction of the highway through their municipality, and through the York Township-owned Cedarvale Ravine, characterized as "the only park area west of Bathurst Street and north of St. Clair Street available to serve 100,000 citzens", and members of the Association proposed a study of the need for the expressway, and to suggest studying the route of Dufferin Street instead. The Roads Committee turned down their requests. York Township threatened to go to the Supreme Court of Canada to block Metro from taking their park. Metro Chairman Fred Gardiner opined "I can't see how anyone would allow one of 13 municipalities to block an expressway."

As the route of the proposed Crosstown Expressway was being drawn up at the same time, neighbouring residents of Rosedale opposed the construction of the Crosstown Expressway intended to connect to the Spadina, through their neighbourhood. Routing of the Crosstown was proposed along Dupont Street in the area, although the City of Toronto proposed a routing north of the railway lines, closer to Davenport. The Crosstown would continue east through the Rosedale neighbourhood to connect to the Don Valley Parkway.

In 1961, Metro Roads Committee held meetings to hear submissions on the routing of the expressway. Forest Hill Village objected to the proposed route of the expressway though the village, as the village would suffer "serious economic loss" according to Reeve Laurie Simonsky. The road and the interchange at Eglinton Avenue would require the demolition of 276 building and bisect the village. Forest Hill proposed a tunnel from the Cedarvale Ravine north, under Forest Hill. Gardiner, former reeve of Forest Hill, admitted that the project would be harmful to the village, "but there is urgent need for an expressway to serve the northwest Metro area" and that the route through the village was the only one that would allow the expressway to enter the Cedervale Ravine.

In June 1961, the section of the Spadina Expressway south of the Crosstown Expressway was cancelled. The Spadina would now terminate at an interchange with the Crosstown, and Spadina Road north of Bloor Street would be widened. This ended a dispute between the City of Toronto and Metro Toronto. Metro wanted to build an expressway through to the Gardiner, while the city wanted to build an expressway further west, in the vicinity of Christie Street, which would connect the Crosstown to the Gardiner. The plan to build down Spadina Avenue would have demolished Knox College, in the centre of Spadina, just north of College Street.

Opponents to the expressway started organizing. Ratepayers Associations banded together to object to the municipal expressway plan, forming the Coordinating Committee of Toronto Ratepayers Associations and the Metro Ratepayers Transportation Committee. The ratepayers objected to the $400 million CAD municipal expressway plan as expensive and "unleashing a torrent of private passenger vehicles into the city centre." University of Toronto professor James Acland of the Rathnelly Residents Association spoke of the futility of combining rapid transit and expressways on one route. "They won't persuade anyone to park his car and take rapid transit when there is a wonderful expressway inviting him to drive downtown." S. A. Hudson, president of the Lawrence Heights Ratepayer Association cited figures showing the roadway would carry 10,000 vehicles into the core at rush hour, requiring for parking alone. The group placed ads in newspapers prior to the December 12, 1961 vote of Metro Council on the Spadina and Crosstown expressways, urging the rejection of the plan. The pressure was partially effective as Council voted 19-2 to delete the Crosstown, but approved the first stage of the Spadina by 13-8, while putting off approval of the downtown route.

The vote put the whole project in doubt. At the time the province paid for half of the cost of roadways, but it did not contribute to rapid transit. The province before approving any road funds for the project, wanted Council approval for the whole project, while the vote covered only the Lawrence to Highway 400 section, including the interchange. The province's transportation minister, William Goodfellow, wrote to Metro to state that since Metro had not voted to approve the whole project, that the province would not consider connecting Spadina with Highway 401.

The vote to have Metro's Road Committee study the route south of Lawrence, led to the Roads Committee to hold public hearings. North York Council voted unanimously to fight for approval of the whole project. Councillor Irving Paisley blamed that downtown business interests were behind opposition to the project. "The whole scheme is being jeopardized by several organizations with political strings, local grievances or selfish aims." Hearings heard deputations from more than ratepayer associations. Strong support was heard from North York associations and opposition was mostly from York, Forest Hill and city proper associations. Opponents also proposed a $10 auto tax and $25 truck tax to pay for the cost of Metro expressways instead of paying the costs from property taxes and wanted Metro to finish the Gardiner and Don Valley expressways before starting any others. York Reeve William Saunders became a staunch opponent of the project, publicly announcing that York would fight the project in court. York's Cedarvale Park was in the path of the project and by law, the lands could not be taken by Metro without York's consent. The Roads Committee asked the Metro Legal Committee to look into proposing provincial legislation to get the lands.

On February 19, 1962, Metro Roads Committed approved the whole project by a 5–1 vote, the only dissenter being future Toronto Mayor William Dennison. The meeting was picketed by opponents with signs proclaiming "Spadina Expressway No!", "Taxes at Critical Level" and "We are Watching How You Vote." The committee also recommended removing the Crosstown from the plan. Metro Chairman William R. Allen, whom the road would ultimately be named after, spoke in favour of the project based on the rapid transit portion of the project, which included commuter parking lots at northern stations. "If this does not get the motorist out his vehicle and back to rapid transit, Metro Council cannot be blamed."

On March 6, 1962 the full Metro Council voted 14–8 to approve the whole project, with the Lawrence to 401 section to start construction in 1964. The approval would allow Metro to purchase lands for the project, but approval to actually construct the highway would not take place until the 1967 budget. By this time, opposition had developed on several points:

• the high cost of the project, and the tax burden,
• putting the highway through a section of Cedarvale Park,
• building the Spadina will make the Crosstown inevitable, leading to further demolitions in the city,
• property owners whose properties would be affected,
• the addition of more cars to the downtown.

Source: Globe and Mail editorial, March 9, 1962

By 1963, costs had risen to over $73 million CAD for the plan. Metro, which was also constructing the Gardiner Expresway, Don Valley Parkway and Bloor-Danforth subway lines had fallen under the scrutiny of the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) over its spending. The OMB had to approve the 1963 budget before Metro could. The Spadina was stricken from the 1963 budget, and the OMB held hearings into the project. In submissions to the OMB, the townships of Forest Hill and York again objected. CCTTRA, and the CCTRA noted its objections:

• produce air pollution,
• be useless without a crosstown expressway,
• destroy parkland and homes,
• provide a private shopping plaza with a magnificent entrance and easy access to Highway 401 at public expense, and
• increase an already heavy tax burden.

Allan Ackman, of the Wellesley-Bloor Street ratepayers asked "what compensation is there for all the people will be exposed to the deadly poisonous clouds of fumes the the cars on it?" The Cedarvale ratepayers had obtained the advice of Lewis Mumford on matters of town planning and stated that the expressway was of no use without the cancelled Crosstown. Publisher Allan Perly objected to Yorkdale being such a beneficiary. The Deer Park ratepayers objected on the increases of taxation. The OMB upheld the Spadina project. The OMB stated in its decision that the "sectional interest must give way to the public need of the larger area." On the issue of the ravine parklands, the OMB stated "The board should and does expect that any park land that may be lost to York Township as a result of this undertaking will be replaced, insofar as may be possible in the circumstances, by suitable alternative lands for that purpose."

Construction started in 1963 with clearing of lands. In 1964, Metro released another transportation plan, which extended the Spadina south of Bloor, again requiring the demolition of homes south of Davenport. Toronto City Council adopted an Official Plan opposing the Crosstown Expressway and the Christie Expressway completely. Ontario's Minister of Municipal Affairs overruled the city, and modified the city's Plan to allow for the construction of both expressways. The City and Metro were now in disagreement.

As construction proceeded, opposition to the expressway grew among City of Toronto residents. In 1968, the "Stop Spadina, Save Our City Co-ordinating Committee" was formed. Notable among the opposition was urban theorist Jane Jacobs, who moved to the Annex in 1969, fresh from a battle to stop the Lower Manhattan Expressway in New York City. Marshall McLuhan, too, was opposed to the expressway and said: "Toronto will commit suicide if it plunges the Spadina Expressway into its heart... our planners are 19th century men with a naive faith in an obsolete technology. In an age of software Metro planners treat people like hardware — they haven't the faintest interest in the values of neighbourhoods or community. Their failure to learn from the mistakes of American cities will be ours too."

Cancellation

By 1969, opposition was very strong, and all but $10 million of the approved $76 million was spent, only completing the roadway to Lawrence Avenue, and the road bed to Eglinton Avenue. Metro learned that the project would require a further $80 million for completion and halted construction and decided to review the project. The total cost of the project (including the rapid transit line) was now $237 million. Metro Council voted to apply to the OMB for permission to borrow the funds and requested that the OMB held hearings.

OMB Hearings began on January 4, 1971. Opposition groups banded together under the banner of "The Spadina Review Corporation" and hired one of Canada's top trial lawyers, J. J. Robinette, to plead their case. Metro presented its case based on technical studies showing the road was needed to manage expected traffic. Council was represented by its solicitor and its witnesses included Metro and City Commissioners and American transportation planner Alan Voorhees. Opposition groups based their case on the factors of noise, pollution, destruction of homes and the expected increase of traffic the roadway would cause. Their witnesses included neighbourhood residents, as well as urban planners, economists and architects. No elected officials, nor the Metro chairman, appeared to defend or oppose the project. The Board held 16 days of hearings and gave its approval by a vote of 2-1, OMB chairman J. A. Kennedy dissenting, on February 17, 1971.



The Corporation then proceeded to appeal directly to the provincial government cabinet. On June 3, 1971, the provincial government of Bill Davis withdrew its support, effectively killing the project. The province would support the new Spadina subway line extension only. Speaking in the Ontario Legislature, Davis said:

“If we are building a transportation system to serve the automobile, the Spadina Expressway would be a good place to start. But if we are building a transportation system to serve people, the Spadina Expressway is a good place to stop”

Toronto Mayor William Dennison was shocked at the result. "It's shocking that a group who never at any time suggested workable alternative routes has successfully opposed something as important in the growth of Metro as was the Don Valley". Metro Toronto chairman Albert Campbell was incensed at the provincial government. He was quoted with prophetic words: "It may mean that we will never build another expressway."

Completion as arterial road

Allen Road, the only completed portion of the Spadina Expressway.

At the time of cancellation in 1971, the expressway was paved to Lawrence Avenue while the portion running further south to Eglinton Avenue had only been graded, giving it the nickname "Davis ditch". Traffic from and to the southerly end of the road at Lawrence, spilled onto neighbourhood streets, as the activists predicted, especially Marlee Avenue. North York councillor Esther Shiner led a counter campaign to get the expressway completed to Eglinton Avenue. Shiner also supported the building of the Highway 400 extension, a highway intended to connect to the Gardiner Expressway west of Strachan Avenue. While the highway has not been built through Toronto, the efforts of her and her group led to the building of Black Creek Drive an arterial road on the 400 right-of-way as far south to Weston Road. The Spadina was paved to Eglinton Avenue in 1976 and Black Creek Drive opened in 1982. The Spadina Expressway was renamed as the W.R. Allen Expressway in late 1969 and then as the W.R. Allen Road, its current name, in 1980. A northern extension was built north of Wilson Avenue, which becomes Dufferin Street north of Sheppard Avenue.

In 1985, when Davis announced his retirement from Provincial politics, one of his last acts was to grant a 1 metre wide strip of land on the south side Eglinton Ave. West to the City of Toronto to ensure that no southerly extension would ever be built. Had Metro not agreed to this, then the province would seize the land and have Metro pay half the cost of the Highway 400 extension. The land barrier was rendered moot when Metro was abolished in 1997, with the existing City of Toronto being amalgamated into a "megacity" which was also known as the City of Toronto.

Subway line

The Spadina subway line, opened in 1978, runs down its median from Wilson to Eglinton, where it descends underground and follows the approximate route planned for later sections of the expressway, albeit underground. In 1996, the line was extended north to Downsview station at Sheppard Avenue and Allen Road. There are now plans to extend the subway line north to the city of Vaughan.

See also

• Allen Road
• Richview Expressway
• Scarborough Expressway
• Don Valley Parkway
• Gardiner Expressway

References

External links

• The Expressways of Toronto (Built and Unbuilt)
• Toronto singer-songwriter Dan Bryk's song Spadina Expressway (CBC Radio link)