Building
new link to DVP is preferred option for Gardiner
Unless removal is cheaper
TORONTO, MAY 6th,
2015 - In a
random sampling of public opinion taken by the Forum Poll among 822 Toronto
voters, the plurality, more than one third, want the Gardiner Expressway east
of Jarvis Street removed and a new link built to the Don Valley Parkway (36%),
while fewer than this, just more than a quarter, opt for removal and
replacement by a street level boulevard (28%). The least popular of the three
options presented is to continue repairing it (21%). Few suggest something else
be done (5%) and one tenth don’t have a preference (9%). These levels of
preference are the same whether the respondent is a frequent or an infrequent
user of the Gardiner.
Removal for a boulevard is also preferred if it is cheaper
After
being advised of the comparative cost of each option, voters are equally likely
to prefer tearing it down and replacing it with a street level boulevard and
building a new link to the DVP (34% each), while one quarter want to continue
repairing it (the most expensive option - 24%). Boulevarding is especially
popular in the downtown (47%) but not so much in Scarborough (22%) or Etobicoke
(28%).
"While many Toronto voters are
happy with the convenience offered by the Gardiner Expressway, the cost of
repairing it constantly has finally impinged on the public consciousness, and
they now favour disposing of it in the cheapest possible way," said Forum
Research President, Dr. Lorne Bozinoff.
Lorne Bozinoff, Ph.D. is the president and founder of Forum
Research. He can be reached at lbozinoff@forumresearch.com or at (416)
960-9603.
