Gardiner Expressway Rehabilitation

Project Description

Built in segments from 1955 until 1964, the Frederick G. Gardiner Expressway has been a crucial transportation corridor, connecting downtown Toronto with the Greater Toronto Area. Spanning approximately 18 km along Lake Ontario, the expressway runs from the Don Valley Parkway in the east to the Highway 427/Queen Elizabeth Way junction in the west, serving an average of over 140,000 vehicles daily. The City of Toronto has established an approved budget for rehabilitating the elevated portion of the Gardiner Expressway from Dufferin Street to Strachan Avenue (from West Abutment to Bent 35 for a total of 35 spans). The rehabilitation involves structural modification, pier cap reconstruction, substructure rehabilitation, and superstructure replacement including over 700 precast prestressed concrete box girders.

LEA has been retained by the contractor, Grascan Construction, as the Third-Party Quality Assurance Firm (TPQAF) during the construction of the rehabilitation project and will act independently from the contractor. Construction commenced in April 2024, and daily inspection has been completed by our Contract Administration Practice Area to monitor the contractor’s performance and ensure that their quality control process meets the requirements of the City of Toronto and conforms with the Project Agreement. The Transportation Infrastructure Design Practice Area is serving dual role of General Structural Specialist (GSS) and Prestressed/Precast Concrete Specialist (PCS). LEA’s GSS is supplementing the regular inspection services by providing qualified professional structural engineering staff to conduct and oversee the review of critical structural components at key milestones during construction. LEA’s PCS is supplementing the regular inspection services by providing qualified professional structural engineering staff to conduct and oversee the review of all precast prestressed concrete box girders at key milestones during fabrication and construction.

The construction is nearing the halfway mark of the first of the three stages. A recent announcement of the Ontario Government’s investment will help accelerate the construction’s completion to April 2026.