G20 Travel Guide - TFC vs. Galaxy, 06-26-10

[prizby]

From what has been released today and what I was informed at work, here are things to consider and to be prepared for, for the upcoming game between Toronto FC and the Los Angeles Galaxy on Saturday, June 26, 2010, kick-off at 7:30PM.

What is being restricted?

The main perimeter will mostly a square:

To the south: Lakeshore Blvd.
To the north: King St.
To the east: Yonge St.
To the west: Spadina Ave.

A map of the outer (and inner) perimeter can be found here.

What should I be doing in terms of transportation?

You can expect the downtown to be traffic gridlock and thus should leave extra time for travel in any case.

Your best bet is to stick to public transportation if at all possible.

Public Transportation

TTC Travelers

The TTC have said they will try to be business as usual as much as they can throughout the summit. As it stands now the subway will be running normally including on the Yonge/University line, right through Union Station.

If you are one of those that takes the 509 Exhibition street care to BMO Field, the streetcar will be running during the summit, with one little change: it will not be stopping at the Queens Quay stop (due to the Westin Harbour Castle being one of the three official host hotels). Other than that it is business as usual. Please note that you can not exit Union Station onto Front Street.

Your better option is to take the Bloor/Danforth line to Bathurst and hop on the 511 Bathurst streetcar. This route is unaffected by the security perimeter downtown.

If you are trying to make your way to Shoeless Joe's (King & Dufferin area). You are best off taking the 511 Bathurst streetcar to King and jumping on the 504 King streetcar or taking it or the 509 Exhibition streetcar to BMO Field and walking across. I would highly advice to stay away from King just to be on the safe side though

Alternatively you can take the 29 Dufferin streetcar from the Dufferin station down to King & Dufferin. I guess you can technically take this all the way to the Exhibition Grounds which will get you in walking distance to BMO Field.

Those that in the past have taken the King Streetcar to Shoeless Joe's from the Yonge/University subway, be warned, there will likely be some hefty delays of such between Yonge & Spadina.

As suggested by nfitz, the 63 Ossington bus that starts at Eglington West on the University line and continues through the Ossington line on the Bloor line is also a good possible route. It travels less busy roads and makes a shift on Queen to Shaw St. which takes you right into Liberty Village

GO Train

Those coming from west of the city, you shouldn't have a problem taking the GO Train, you would get off at the Exhibition stop like you normally should be.

Those coming from the east, this is a totally different story. As of right now, there is no official announcement or stance communicated by the SMO (Summit Management Office) or the RCMP as to what the policy will be with trains going through/stopping/passing through Union Station whether it will be allowed or not. As of right now, nothing has been said or finalized, so the assumption would be that it should be like any other normal time ***EXPECT THIS TO CHANGE*** I will clarify this when more information is available.

Driving

To those that are driving. Note that the Lakeshore is the edge of the security perimeter, those that normally travel on the Lakeshore between Yonge & Spadina or in general (travelling westbound) should expect a slower than normal travel. The same can be said if you try to skip the Lakeshore and travel along the Queens Quay.

Note that the exit Yonge, York & Bay from the Gardiner Expressway is closed between June 25 & 27. I was not told whether the Spadina exit would be closed. It seems logicial that it might, but it is not official. Those travelling on the Gardiner Expressway might find comfort in exiting at Dunn/Jamison (note the Jamison Bridge is closed) as the Spadina exit will be spilling onto the Lakeshore, expect the Gardiner to also be slower than normal (westbound traffic). I doubt the eastbound into the city will be that bad.

As a note of caution, expect longer than normal travel times if you are driving anywhere in the downtown core. Also note that you cannot park on Spadina, King, or Yonge along the security perimeter.


I think that just about covers everything in terms of travel. My one recommendation, when and if possible, take public transit. If you are driving in from London, Windsor/Detroit, Buffalo/Niagara, or anywhere else from the westside, park your car at a GO Station in Milton or something and do yourself a favour and take the GO Train into the game.


If there are any changes to travel plans, any changes into the restrictions, I will update this post. I hope this helps those who might be thinking about staying at home. There are ways down to the game and you should make your prescense felt!!!

Protests

Queen's Park is the only designated protest area that I know of off the top of my head (ie. place where protesters can go and protest peacefully). If anything changes or protest rumours begin as to where they might be interfere with traffic, this will be updated.


***NOTE***: This is not a thread to debate the merits or anything about the G20 summit, but only to help eachother fellow fans find a safe, simple, and somewhat quick route to the game during the summit. Thanks! If anyone has any other suggestions or knows of anything more, please add!!


Edit #1: It just occured to me that deliveries inside the security zone will not be allowed past June 21. Any deliveries that do come into the area will first have to go through the Direct Energy Centre out at the Exhibition Grounds. This is where everything will be carefully searched before being escorted into the secure zone. I am currently unsure if this will affect parking under the Direct Energy Centre.

Edit #2: Unfortunately I misplaced the communication I received on Friday, so I don't remember it all, but the TTC will be a definite go on fringe borders such as Yonge, King, and Spadina. As well as there is a plan in place for GO commuters and TTC commuters at Union Station although specific details to this have not been relased. For anyone who travels by VIA Rail, VIA will not be stopping at Union Station, rather they will be running a shuttle bus in between the last stops east (Guildwood I believe) and west (I am not sure what the stop is). I had a nice chat on Thursday at lunch with two RCMP officers. It is prudent that you carry some sort of identification card as if you are going to even be traveling through/walking inside the designated security zone or on the border. I would highly recommend some sort of government issued photo ID that includes a picture, address and date of birth, so if you haven't got a photo health card or drivers liscense, I know it may sound silly, but to carry your passport would give you less of a hassle (especially if it is a Canadian passport). There are a few more things that I am missing upon, but I'll be sure to check on them sometime next week.

[Chevy]

Great thread. A+ for being all over this.

[AL-MO]

Great thread. A+ for being all over this.

+1 Great info Prizby.

Where'd you copy this from?

[nfitz]

I was pondering the Ossington bus, which goes to Atlantic and Liberty. 16 minutes from subway to Liberty. The Dufferin bus is scheduled to take 21 minutes, and does the short piece on Queen that may be more subject to congestion. And the Bathurst car is more prone to disturbances.

Normally I take GO from Danforth ... but if you were a terrorist with a weapon, and you wanted to get it to the convention centre ... how would you do it? Given the paranoia, I can't believe they are going to let GO trains run ... at least between Union and Exhibition.

[Chevy]

^^ I was thinking the same thing. I'm hoping that the Go Trains will run but they would have to do so under some serious, Chuck Norris-like security.

Might be a cool ride for the kiddies!

[Suds]

Right now the Integrated Security Unit web site for the G20 is saying no changes for Go Transit ... however, as prizby said ... keep an eye on this leading up to the game

[Brooker]

^^ I was thinking the same thing. I'm hoping that the Go Trains will run but they would have to do so under some serious, Chuck Norris-like security.

uh oh. no gotrain drinking?

[prizby]

I was unaware of the Ossington, its not a route I am particularly familiar with. I will be adding it as a suggested route (does this bus come often, i can't figure it out on the TTC website, maybe every 10-12 minutes?)

My feeling towards trains in general is that it will be business as usual with the SMO/RCMP having the right to stop trains at any time they may choose so, which may or may not happen often. I am sure there will be more clarification as the date comes closer.

[prizby]

Normally I take GO from Danforth ... but if you were a terrorist with a weapon, and you wanted to get it to the convention centre ... how would you do it? Given the paranoia, I can't believe they are going to let GO trains run ... at least between Union and Exhibition.

There is a 10 ft high fence/wall going to be erected around the convention centre (starting June 7) with heavy security in this security sector (see the yellow in the link i provided in my original post).

[Red CB Toronto]

I could a dip in the crowd that attends this game, I know the tickets have been sold, but with the downtown core in lock down and then throw in the fact the world cup is on I just do not see some making the effort to make it.

[jazzy]

A+ also....as an add on....presently the eastbound Jameson exit is closed from the gardiner xpress to the Lakeshore/ CNE as such.....Wonder if this will stay closed or reopened before G20.....?.

[Whoop]

I can see "a less than 10,000 people" in the stands for this match.

The good thing is that it's a night game but there is going to be this much hassle, a lot of people will just say screw it.

[Kevvv]

A+ also....as an add on....presently the eastbound Jameson exit is closed from the gardiner xpress to the Lakeshore/ CNE as such.....Wonder if this will stay closed or reopened before G20.....?.

Closed until July...2011


http://www.toronto.ca/involved/proje...ion_notice.pdf

[nfitz]

I was unaware of the Ossington, its not a route I am particularly familiar with. I will be adding it as a suggested route (does this bus come often, i can't figure it out on the TTC website, maybe every 10-12 minutes?)

The bus used to stop at King/Shaw but was extended to Ossington/Liberty in November 2008 (going down to Strachan and running along Liberty). It had never crossed my mind to use it for BMO until I wandered up Liberty after a game, and noticed a few (surprisingly few!) people standing at the Liberty/Atlantic stop waiting for a bus.

On a Saturday afternoon the bus is every 6.5 minutes, dropping to every 10 minutes around 7 pm (game starts at 7:30). The bus map is:



I hear there's a nice supporters' bar at Atlantic/Liberty!

[rocker]

maybe Obama will come out to the game and root on his Galaxy.

[Gixmo]

Closed until July...2011


http://www.toronto.ca/involved/proje...ion_notice.pdf

Ya the bridge is gone, total piss off to find out on the long wknd

[Brooker]

maybe Obama will come out to the game and root on his Galaxy.

thought he was a fire fan?

[rocker]

thought he was a fire fan?

I dunno.. just figured he'd root on an American team in town

[Dman81]

FYI (from torontolife)

School’s out
The University of Toronto decides to ban students and staff from its downtown campus from June 24 to 27 now that the much-discussed “protest zone” has been moved to Queen’s Park.

ID cards
Residents who live in and around the security zone are being encouraged to register for identification cards that will allow them to get through checkpoints faster.

Cameras everywhere
The Toronto Police Service has already started putting up 77 new security cameras around downtown. The footage will be destroyed after the conclusion of the summit.

No patios
Downtown patios will be shut down for two weeks before the summit begins, while other restaurants and business could be subject to further restrictions if they are located in the inner security zone.

Nay to the Jays
Toronto FC games will proceed as scheduled, but the Blue Jays’ much-anticipated series against the Phillies—and Roy Halliday—will take place in Philadelphia, rather than at the Rogers Centre as originally planned.

Road closed
Drivers can expect delays and closures on the Gardiner Expressway and Lake Shore Boulevard.

The slower way
TTC riders can expect delays—well, more than usual.

Bike strike
The G20 will be no walk (ride?) in the park for cyclists: summit officials will be removing 1,000 bike parking rings from the downtown core.

Tourist trap
The CN Tower will be closed from June 25 to 27.

Pedestrian Sundays
For the first time in its seven-year history, the Pedestrian Sundays program in Kensington Market has been denied a permit, possibly due to concerns that the market could become a rallying point.

Exiled from Bay Street
In a rare move, the captains of finance will be asking their bankers to work from home.

Daycare dilemmas
Parents who keep their children at downtown daycares have been told to keep them somewhere else.

Home security
Residents of 33 University Avenue, the only condo behind the G20 security fence, will have to enter and exit their building through police checkpoints.

Blocked Path
According to a memo from a downtown property management group, the Path will be closed from Bay Street to the Royal York.

Traffic snarls
Eighty-three motorcades of 10 to 50 cars, including decoy motorcades, will be passing through downtown, tying up traffic all the while.

Casual dress
The RCMP is recommending that Bay Streeters ditch the suits and wear civilian clothes to avoid standing out.

[TFC Bhoy]

No patios
Downtown patios will be shut down for two weeks before the summit begins, while other restaurants and business could be subject to further restrictions if they are located in the inner security zone.

THAT SUCKS!!!! with the amazing weather we have had recently a no patio rule downtown just really sucks.

[Red CB Toronto]

Does anyone know if you have to register for secuirty clearance if you live in the outer secuirty zone, there were reports that you have to, my brother lives at John and Wellington, which is within the blue perimiter.

[Bloor West FC]

From what I have been hearing at work (Go Transit), everybody will be getting to and from Union. The only difference is that the all exit's will be closed except the exit to and from Young Street will be open.

Although there are meeting ongoing everyday its is true that things might change.

[TFC Via Buffalo]

I dunno.. just figured he'd root on an American team in town

I'll talk to him about that and get him on the right page.

[nfitz]

From what I have been hearing at work (Go Transit), everybody will be getting to and from Union. The only difference is that the all exit's will be closed except the exit to and from Young Street will be open.

This is the kind of thing that can change very quickly on a Saturday or Sunday during the summit. Given that most of the world leaders will be meeting only a few feet from the railway track, if one was a terrorist, I think I know how they would deliver their payload.

I'd rather not be sitting on a GO train for a couple of hours during a terror alert while they sweep everything.

[Auzzy]

Sssshhhh about the Ossington bus, that's my personal bus right from my house!

Seriously, the #63 route is great, but a few things to consider. Scheduled frequency is good, but if the route gets jammed up somewhere, you might be waiting a while for the next bus. Plus, the new route through Liberty Village makes it even more convenient to BMO, but the bus can get gummed up before & after games with all the TFC fans parking & walking in Liberty Village. Usually we take #63 to the games, but take a different route home. (If many fans don't show up to the LA Galaxy games, maybe Liberty Village will be less of a zoo that day.)

Of course, the Dufferin bus & Bathurst steetcar, are also relatively convenient ways to get to the games while avoiding downtown & the GO train.

[Red CB Toronto]

I am really surprised they did not follow the cue of the Blue Jays and move this game to another date, just in the name of convinence for the people coming to the game.

With the media centre on the EX grounds at the Direct Energy Centre it is going to be quite congested around BMO.

Even though the Rogers Centre is outside of the secuirty grid, Paul Beeston and company decided that it was in the best interest to move it.

[nfitz]

I am really surprised they did not follow the cue of the Blue Jays and move this game to another date, just in the name of convinence for the people coming to the game.

The Blue Jays didn't move the game to another date. They moved the game to another location ... to Philadelphia.

I'm very happy TFC didn't move our game to Kansas City!

The Blue Jay decision is horrible! I really don't think TFC fans would think much of this.

[Afra]

So long as (if you are coming from the east) you go across on the bloor subway and then straight south on bathurst or dufferin, it should be fine.

Also, bring baby wipes and j and j baby shampoo. Apparently these two items are fantastic for washing off pepper spray. This is just in case there are some protesters trying to block access to BMO for whatever reason - we all know how that would end up.

[Bloor West FC]

I doubt protesters will block BMO but you never know, I also heard that the Natives are going to block some railroad tracks. Which ones I have no clue.

[Whoop]

I still don't understand why the FO can move a game for a Real Madrid friendly but for a game that is going to inconvenience a lot of people they can't move this match....

Hell, I live in Toronto and it looks like I won't be able to drive to this match and TTC? HAHAHA

I think I'll be walking to this match.