Dundas Street - Route Description

Route Description

The route of Dundas through the city of Toronto is irregular. The street's various sections were originally constructed as several smaller named streets, running parallel but unconnected. Proceeding southwest and approximately parallel to the Lake Ontario shore in central Toronto, Dundas Street East originates near the Beaches neighbourhood at Kingston Road, itself a historic route to eastern Lake Ontario and the town of Kingston.

Crossing the lower reaches of the Don River west of Broadview Avenue, Dundas serves as one of the few arterial roads connecting the central city to the city's original eastern suburbs. At Yonge Street, Dundas intersects the city's unofficial heart at Yonge-Dundas Square, within sight of downtown landmarks such as the Eaton Centre and Ryerson University. Called Dundas Street West from this point westward, the route passes Canada's financial heart to the south on Bay Street. At McCaul Street, the road fronts the Art Gallery of Ontario in proximity to some of the city's institutions of higher learning, including OCAD University, Michener Institute, and the University of Toronto. At Spadina Avenue, Dundas serves as the east–west axis of the city's largest Chinatown. West of Ossington Avenue, it meanders northwards towards Bloor Street near the intersection of Roncesvalles Avenue, heading north toward the Junction district at Keele Street. Proceeding due west from Keele through the Junction, Dundas parallels the CP Rail line through the mixed industrial-residential district. At Scarlett Road the route veers southwest toward a high crossing over the Humber River valley, through the former village of Lambton Mills. Beyond the river, Dundas serves as the northern boundary of the upscale Kingsway residential district. Passing the historic St. George's Church-on-the-Hill, Dundas again heads southwest toward the former village of Islington. This route traverses the west end of the city, avoiding obstacles that were expensive to negotiate in the 18th century, such as Grenadier Pond in what is now High Park and the highest point of the Humber Valley (Bloor Street to the south requires a high bridge to cross the river at that point).

West of the second intersection with Bloor Street in Islington, Dundas forms the route of the former Highway 5. Upon crossing the Toronto-Peel boundary at Etobicoke Creek, the street follows a true southwestern heading, again paralleling the lakeshore. The road passes through Mississauga, Oakville, and Burlington, entering rural Brant County near St. George, and ending in Paris, with the junction of the former Highway 2 that proceeds west through Woodstock en route to the city of London.

In London, the street ends just east of the forks of the Thames River before it crosses the Kensington Bridge to west London. Originally, this section was called "Dundas Street West" with the eastern portion being "Dundas Street East". However, since construction in the mid-1980s, the entire western portion has been called "Riverside Drive". Some Londoners still refer to "Dundas Street East" though no part of the street retains that name.