The Lake Shore Boulevard East - Don River Bridge and Public Realm (“LSBE”) project combines some elements of the Port Lands Flood Protection (“PLFP”) with some elements of the City of Toronto’s Gardiner Expressway and Lake Shore Boulevard Reconfiguration (Gardiner East) projects. This includes changes to the Lake Shore Bridge, Gardiner Expressway and Lake Shore Boulevard, which include:

• Extending the Lake Shore Bridge and adjacent Rail Bridge by two spans;
• Relocating utilities from the existing Rail Bridge;
• Replacing two existing spans of Lake Shore Bridge and rehabilitating the existing pier and abutments;
• Removing the elevated structure of the Gardiner Expressway from Bent #330 (east of Cherry Street) to the eastern end of the Gardiner Expressway;
• Realigning Lake Shore Boulevard from Don Roadway to Carlaw Avenue;
• New pedestrian and cycling facilities and landscaping on the Lake Shore Bridge and Lake Shore Boulevard from Don Roadway to Carlaw Avenue; and
• Shifting the existing rail tracks east of Don Roadway to the center median of Lake Shore Boulevard and connecting them to the existing tracks at Carlaw Avenue.

The PLFP and Gardiner East projects will help make the eastern waterfront more livable. Both require changes to the Lake Shore Bridge over the Don River. Lengthening the Lake Shore Bridge is a critical element of PLFP’s design for flood protection. The Gardiner East design requires that the Lake Shore Bridge be widened to accommodate the expected increase in traffic resulting from the planned removal of the overhead Gardiner/Logan ramps. The wider bridge will also make space for new cycling and pedestrian paths and more landscaping, including a linear park.