Route Description
Roncesvalles Avenue was a four-lane arterial roadway, although parking is allowed at all times on both sides of the street. Recent construction converted the street to two driving lanes, with the former right lanes re-purposed as permanent parking spaces, right turn lanes or streetcar platforms where necessary. Along the east side of the street from Queen Street to Dundas, the buildings are storefronts with upper apartments. Most of the buildings date from 1910 and later. Along the west side, the land usage is more diverse. At the intersection of Queen Street and Roncesvalles, there is a hotel. Behind the intersection is the large Roncesvalles TTC streetcar garage and shop. Further north is the Copernicus Lodge, a retirement home. Residential usage predominates along the west side, with some commercial storefronts around the intersection with Howard Park Avenue.
Businesses along Roncesvalles Avenue are organized into the "Roncesvalles Village Business Improvement Area". The residential neighbourhood, formerly part of the former villages of Brockton and Parkdale, is today simply classified as Roncesvalles. Much of the businesses there serve the city's Polish population.
The street is normally served by the frequent 504 King streetcar, its rails embedded in the street. However, major construction commenced in July 2009 to replace water mains which run below the tracks, the tracks themselves and the road and sidewalks. The project will transform the street for virtually its entire length. Construction was completed as of December 2010 to the point where streetcar service had resumed. The width of Roncesvalles increases at its south end, partly to allow turning streetcars access to the TTC yard.
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