Ontario Transportation Ready for Pan Ams -- On the Scene

(ATR) Toronto and Ontario transportation are ramping up their efforts for the official open of the Pan Am Games.

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(ATR) Toronto and Ontario transportation are ramping up their efforts for the official open of the Pan Am Games.

Forty-five thousand people will attend the sold out opening ceremony of the Pan Am Games Friday night at the Rogers Center in the heart of downtown Toronto. In order to prepare for this influx of people, the Ministry of Transportation Ontario (MTO) has implemented special HOV lanes and other rules for the duration of the games.

The temporary HOV lanes were put into effect on July 1 in order to allow residents time to adjust to the new system which dictates only vehicles containing three or more passengers or special Pan Am transportation vehicles may use the new lanes.

MTO tells Around the Rings that although it is early into the transportation plan, the HOV lanes are performing well.

"The lanes have been operational for only a short while and as more people adjust, we expect traffic conditions to improve. We do want to encourage motorists traveling the DVP, Gardiner and QEW, particularly those driving downtown, to consider alternatives such as transit, carpooling or re-routing."

Although MTO says the lanes were doing well, one Toronto resident was caught Wednesday morning trying to beat the system. Police spotted a driver carrying two mannequins in his vehicle to use the HOV lane; both dressed and buckled up. The police stopped the man saying it was clear his passengers were not lifelike and issued him a citation.

The MTO also reports that those using public transportation are reaching their destinations sooner. A streetcar driver of the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) confirms this to ATR, saying "the service is running faster than the app predicts."

Along with the TTC app, MTO released a 2015 Games Trip Planner app to further aid residents looking to beat the traffic. MTO is also providing a daily fact sheet every night providing travel advice and road closures for the next day which can be found here.

MTO ensures that any lane closures will be carried out on off-peak hours and contracts only permit lane closures from midnight to 5 a.m. throughout the duration of the Pan Am Games.

The ministry says a full report on the effectiveness of the HOV lanes will be completed after the games have finished.

Written by Kevin Nutley

20 Years at #1: Your best source of news about the Olympics is AroundTheRings.com, for subscribers only.

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