RapidTO Express Lane Work Lagging on Bathurst and Dufferin

NEWS TRANSPORT
April 21, 2026 by Nolan Xuereb 682

RapidTO Express Lane work delays on Bathurst and Dufferin

After a several-month winter break, work to install dedicated bus and streetcar lanes on Dufferin and Bathurst streets in Toronto’s West End has yet to resume. As part of the city-wide RapidTO initiative, these lanes were accelerated by the city council ahead of the start of the FIFA World Cup in June this year, as both the Bathurst tram and Dufferin bus serve as key links to the exhibition grounds.

A 511 Street travels north on Bathurst Street toward Ulster Street, April 17, 2026, image courtesy of Nolan Xuereb

The introduction of dedicated transit lanes on Dufferin and Bathurst roads has been a long time coming, although the project has been described as “quick”. Initial plans were released in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the city wanted to take advantage of unusually low traffic rates to create dedicated lanes for the TTC’s busiest surface routes. Promises of a quick and inexpensive rollout that would require only a few days of road closures and the purchase of paint fueled the initiative.

A map of the planned installation of dedicated bus and streetcar lanes across the City of Toronto, the vast majority of which have no clear timeline for their deployment, image courtesy of the City of Toronto

Nearly half a decade later, the entire concept appeared to have fallen off the city’s radar, as no new “priority” streets received transit lanes following the successful pilot installation of bus lanes along Eglinton Avenue East, Kingston Road and Morningside Avenue in late 2020. The city council did not officially adopt the entire RapidTO network until 2024, but there was no work after this nominal approval by the city government.

In early 2025, with the FIFA World Cup – and tens of thousands of fans – due in just over a year, the city council expressed renewed interest in phasing out the West End’s notoriously late public transport system. City staff were directed to prioritize the sections of Dufferin and Bathurst streets between Eglinton Avenue West and King Street West and Lake Shore Blvd West, respectively.

A number of express and commuter buses sit in traffic on Dufferin Street before bus lanes are installed in 2025, image courtesy of the City of Toronto

When public consultation began in spring 2025, there was a wave of complaints along the proposed corridors, particularly along Bathurst Street in the Annex. Dissatisfaction centered on the loss of on-street parking and the alleged increase in congestion, with the city council caving in to pressure within months. The planned transit lanes along Bathurst and Dufferin, already cut from their original northern endpoints at Steeles Avenue West to just south of Eglinton Avenue West, were further reduced and implemented only south of Bloor Street West. The northern section between Bloor Street West and Eglinton Avenue West was reserved for “further consideration,” with no updates on that portion of the project released in the nine months since the renaming.

Despite these setbacks, the first phase of installation began late last year – south of Dundas Street West at Dufferin and Bathurst streets. On Dufferin Street, parking permits were revoked from both curb lanes and red priority lanes were installed for public transit, meaning that busy Route 29/929 buses no longer had to weave in and out of traffic to reach passengers at bus stops. In Bathurst, where the project corridor is now limited to the sole area of ​​the 511 streetcar, both center lanes received a similar paint treatment, with small cutouts at certain intersections to make left turns easier.

A Route 29 Dufferin bus travels south on Dufferin Street to Queen Street West in a dedicated bus lane, Fall 2025, image courtesy of the City of Toronto

After the first round of changes was completed, the second phase of installation was scheduled to resume in the spring after weather conditions that prevented effective painting of the red lanes had passed. But just a few weeks after the arrival of transit lanes south of Dundas Street West on Dufferin and Bathurst, clear problems emerged. The red paint constantly peeled off and settled into adjacent yards and planter boxes, making the purpose of the road markings unclear to those unfamiliar with RapidTO. Shown below is a section of Bathurst Street south of Adelaide Street West last week where huge strips of marking have disappeared in less than six months.

Looking north on Bathurst Street, south of Adelaide Street West, where the red paint indicating transit lanes installed late last year is soon peeling, April 17, 2026, image courtesy Nolan Xuereb

Recent updates on the city’s project page for each corridor note this issue and promise to “update” faded sections this spring. Despite the city’s description of the condition of the paint, large areas appear to require a complete reinstallation, which must now be prevented by sandblasting the remaining paint.

While work to correct last fall’s failed work has not yet begun, an update from the city announced that resumption of the new lane installation between Dundas Street West and Bloor Street West is expected to begin April 6 along Dufferin Street and the week of April 13 on Bathurst Street.

Looking north from the intersection of Dufferin Street and Dundas Street West at a haphazardly placed sign informing residents of soon-to-arrive bus lanes, April 17, 2026, image courtesy of Nolan Xuereb

To verify that pavement painting had resumed in accordance with the city’s posted schedule, especially as the World Cup approaches, UrbanToronto drove up and down Bathurst and Dufferin streets last Friday, April 17. We got off to a bad start after starting from Bathurst station and heading south along the 511 Bathurst tram corridor. There were no signs of lane painting or even temporary parking restrictions, and streetcar service continued largely as it did in the last century.

Looking north up Bathurst Street to Lennox Street as a 511 streetcar travels in a general lane, April 17, 2026, image courtesy of Nolan Xuereb

Moving south to Harbord Village, where Bathurst is lined with an eclectic mix of old terraced houses and small apartments, conditions were largely the same.

Looking south from the intersection of Bathurst and Belfast streets, April 17, 2026, image courtesy of Nolan Xuereb

As we approached Toronto Western Hospital and its soaring new surgical tower, there was little change on this bright spring day – a day that, to a passing observer, might even seem perfect for painting lanes. It is worth noting that a small exception to public transit priority lanes will be granted between Nassau and Dundas Streets to facilitate easy access for emergency vehicles and to allow for the continued existence of a taxi rank in front of Toronto Western.

Looking south at the intersection of Bathurst and Nassau streets as Toronto Western’s new Hospital Surgical Tower rises in the background, April 17, 2026, image courtesy Nolan Xuereb

Turning to Dufferin Street, where work was due to resume nearly two weeks prior to this visit, a similar lack of project delivery was evident. Just south of the Dufferin train station, opposite the traditional Dufferin Mall and the soon-to-be-occupied master-planned development “Bloor Crossing,” the typical four-lane configuration of Dufferin Street had not changed.

Looking north at the intersection of Dufferin and Croatia Streets, with the Fitzrovia and Hazelview planned community “Bloor Crossing,” April 17, 2026, image courtesy of Nolan Xuereb

As we approached Dundas Street West, which serves as the boundary between the two phases of implementation, no work was visible north of the intersection of Dufferin Street and Dundas Street West.

Looking south at the intersection of Dundas Street West and Dufferin Street in Little Portugal as a Route 29 Dufferin bus pulls into a stop, April 17, 2026, image courtesy Nolan Xuereb

Given that this project – the accelerated spin-off of a spin-off – has passed almost a full year since its launch last spring, it’s hard to say that the respective streets appear ready to handle the flood of fans expected in just a few months. Perhaps more importantly, they don’t seem ready to improve the commutes of the tens of thousands of daily bus and streetcar riders. It remains to be seen whether the town hall can successfully implement this new transport infrastructure and decisively enforce it.

Looking north toward the intersection of Queen Street West and Bathurst Street, April 17, 2026, image courtesy of Nolan Xuereb

UrbanToronto will continue to monitor progress on this matter, but in the meantime, please feel free to leave a comment in the space provided on this page.

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