Construction

Here, at vivaNext, we wear two kinds of hats – thinking caps and hard hats.

That’s because we’re responsible for the planning, design and construction of this next phase of viva.

We’ve had our thinking caps on for some time, but we’ve also been wearing our hard hats. In March 2011, we opened the very first rapidway segment and new rapid transit station at Warden Avenue and Enterprise Boulevard in Markham. Work has begun on other rapidways in York Region as well, ranging from land surveying, to utility relocation to actual construction. Construction bulletins are available here:

• Davis Drive in Newmarket
• Highway 7 East in Markham/Richmond Hill
• Highway 7 West in Vaughan
• Yonge Street in Richmond Hill
• Yonge Street in Newmarket

Throughout construction, every reasonable effort is being made to minimize the disruption and duration of major work at each property, while maintaining access at all times. We are also committed to maintaining through traffic on the roads so drivers will be impacted as little as possible in the construction zone. Existing traffic lanes will be shifted to each side first so traffic can continue to flow while the rapidways are constructed down the middle of the roadway.

Construction is also underway for the Spadina Subway extension, and construction updates are available on the Toronto-York Spadina Subway Extension website.

An extension is planned for Yonge Subway, from Finch Station to Highway 7. Funding has not yet been secured for this project which would provide the critical missing link to a regional transit system. Click here to read the “Yonge Subway Business Case – The Missing Link” and other related project information.

Subways are built using two main construction techniques: tunnel boring and cut-and-cover.

• Tunnel boring is used for deeper applications, such as between stations. Because the tunnels are literally bored out below the surface, there is no disruption at the ground level except at the entry and exit points of the machinery.
• Cut-and-cover, on the other hand, is generally used for shallower applications such as station locations. In this case, there is some disruption at the ground level and temporary decking is installed, as necessary, to accommodate vehicular and pedestrian traffic.

Advance notice of all work will be given and any temporary changes will be clearly signed. You can also sign up for updates about the specific projects that matter to you, which are e-mailed straight to your inbox. Your Community Liaison will also be available to assist with any questions or concerns you may have.