World Cup traffic strategy worked, city says
Toronto kept traffic flowing despite hundreds of thousands of visitors by shifting riders to transit and cycling.
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Toronto's approach to managing World Cup congestion succeeded in keeping traffic moving despite the influx of visitors, the city's chief congestion officer said Friday.
Andrew Posluns reported that vehicular traffic declined by 25 percent near Toronto Stadium during the tournament-opening match last week, a sign residents heeded requests to leave cars at home. Pedestrian traffic near the stadium increased by 130 percent, and cyclists increased by 65 percent.
"Overall, we're very pleased with how the network has performed," Posluns said. "Traffic has been manageable, and we've seen lots of numbers of people using transit, cycling and walking."
He attributed the success to advance messaging and residents planning ahead. "The fact that we've been able to keep traffic moving at a relatively similar speed and experience to what we had previously is a testament to people planning ahead and switching modes in order to make sure they get to where they need to go."