Ontario Construction News staff writer
Construction on the Gardiner Expressway rehabilitation will stop on weekends, after complaints about noise.
Mayor John Tory announced in a statement on Friday that overnight construction will stop through the weekend until the city, the St. Lawrence Neighbourhood Association and construction company Aecon Group Inc. can find solutions to the noise problem.
“It is abundantly clear that issues remain and further action is required,” Tory said, adding he spoke with Aecon Chairman John Beck to discuss residents’ frustrations. He says work taking place past 11 p.m. had become a serious issue.
“I want to thank the community for continuing to raise their concerns about this issue so that we can properly address them,” Tory said.
Residents in the St. Lawrence Neighbourhood say they have been using earplugs to cope with construction from 9:30 p.m. to 5 a.m. most nights since mid-October.
In a news release from the association, Ben Bull said he has noise machines, eye masks and ear plugs scattered around the house.
The construction is replacing sections of the expressway between Jarvis and Cherry streets, is part of a city effort to renew the ageing highway.
The original construction notice published by the city said overnight work was “unavoidable.”
The project is scheduled to be completed in early 2021.