Toronto Market Bridge

The Toronto Market Bridge is an attempt to reimagine one of Toronto’s great pieces of infrastructure – the Prince Edward Viaduct, also known as the Bloor Viaduct. The COVID-19 pandemic offered a rare opportunity to imagine a more refined balance between transportation needs, the public realm, and flexible community space that would create a more salubrious urban environment for the citizens of Toronto.

The project is also part of a larger initiative to create a new ‘Brick-Bridge’ urban park precinct, an added jewel to the Lower Don Trail system, featuring enhanced trails, active and passive park activities, framed by a new direct connection to the Evergreen Brickworks to the north, and a new connection from the viaduct deck surface to the trail system below, allowing ease of access by Torontonians from Bloor and Danforth to the new park and Brickworks beyond.

The road section of the viaduct is now reconfigured to a profile that contains three lanes of traffic, one of which will be parking at off peak traffic times, two bike lanes and a pedestrian precinct that is close to half the width of the viaduct, from the existing five lanes of traffic, flanked by bike lanes and a sidewalk. The proposed road section is similar to the majority road sections that presently exist for Bloor street to the west and Danforth Avenue to the east.

The length of the new pedestrian promenade will be a mix of squares and promenades of varying size, supporting a range of activities and uses including bicycle racks. The paved squares punctuated with street trees, furniture, and urban planters provide a range of textures and scents.

Interspersed amongst the squares and public space are market pavilions containing a mix of different sized merchandising offerings. The single-story vaulted ceiling pavilions are designed to maximize the range of interior special configurations, ranging from open arcade-like stalls, accessible booth merchandizing, over the counter service and single tenant uses. Public washrooms and related common services are clustered towards either end of the viaduct.

The streets and public realm that are located between the east and west ends of the viaduct connecting to the Castle Frank and Broadview TTC stations are reconfigured to provided more generous sidewalks, enhanced existing green space and separate pedestrian routes, easing the flow of traffic to the north bound Don Valley Parkway.