Weekend need-to-know: WWE body slams Toronto

Wrestling fans are in for a treat this weekend with the Friday Night Smackdown and Elimination Chamber coming to Scotiabank Arena and Rogers Centre. Keep in mind, there will be a closure on TTC Line 1 this weekend.

WWE Friday Night SmackDown and Elimination Chamber

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and John Cena will be in town this weekend for WWE’s Friday Night Smackdown and Elimination Chamber.

The Smackdown is happening on Feb. 28 at Scotiabank Arena and will feature Cody Rhodes, Trish Stratus, Tiffany Stratton and Kevin Owens.

Meanwhile, the Elimination Chamber will feature The Rock who is coming to see if Rhodes will agree to be “his champion.” It’s happening Saturday at Rogers Centre at 7 p.m.

This marks WWE’s first event in Rogers Centre since WrestleMania 18.

2025 Toronto Spring Camping and RV Show

Planning on RVing or camping this summer? The Toronto Spring Camping and RV Show is for you. There will be expert panels, a 15,000-square-foot marketplace, and over 300 RVs for sale.

It take place at The International Centre until Sunday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., except for Sunday when things shut down at 5 p.m.

Tickets are available on their website or at the door.

Wavelength Winter Festival

Wavelength Music is celebrating 25 years of musical independence with its Winter Festival this weekend. Their lineup features Wavelength stapes and emerging underground talent from genres ranging from indie and punk to hip-hop and experimental.

The festival kicks off Thursday night with an event themed around hip-hop artist/activist pHoenix Pagliacci’s latest album Dichotomy at St. Anne’s Parish Hall and will continue through Saturday at the hall.

Tickets are available here.

TTC/GO closures

Subway service on Line 1 between Bloor-Yonge and Osgoode stations will be replaced with shuttle buses on Saturday, March 1 and Sunday, March 2, 2025, due to planned track work. 

Use surface routes between Wellesley and Queen stations to connect to Line 1 along University Avenue. Regular subway service will resume on Monday, March 3 at 6 a.m.

Road closures

Gardiner Expressway closure

As part of the long-term construction plan on the Gardiner Expressway, one westbound lane and one eastbound lane are closed between Dufferin Street and Strachan Avenue. The eastbound on-ramp from Lake Shore Boulevard at Jameson Avenue is also closed. 

Temporary closures

• Spadina Avenue streetcars have been replaced by buses between Spadina Station and Queens Quay, and until the end of the year, there will be no 510 service between Spadina Station and Union Station. Commuters wishing to travel onwards to Union from Queens Quay will need to transfer to a 509 streetcar.
• The Yonge and Bloor intersection will be reduced to a single lane until 2025 for condo construction and sewer installation.
• University Avenue will be reduced to a single lane in both directions between College Street and Queen Street West to complete several infrastructure projects for the next several months.
• Yonge Street is reduced to a single lane both ways between Wellington and King for underground work at the TTC’s King Station to add new elevators and make it an accessible station. Construction is expected to continue into 2026.
• Queen Street is fully closed to traffic between Bay and Victoria Streets to accommodate work on a new station for the Ontario Line subway. The closure is scheduled to last until 2027, at least four-and-a-half years.
• Eglinton Avenue West is reduced to a single lane east of Islington and west of Scarlett Road due to tunnelling work related to the multi-year Eglinton Crosstown West Extension project.
• Lane restrictions on Bayview Avenue between Roehampton Avenue and Armistice Drive while the city completes road resurfacing, curb and sidewalk replacement, and traffic signal and pedestrian upgrades. One northbound lane is currently closed on Bayview Avenue between Kilgour Road and Roehampton Avenue.
• Cherry Street remains closed south of Polson Pier due to maintenance on the Ship Channel Lift Bridge (Strauss Trunnion Bascule Bridge). Road users are able to access the Port of Toronto and Cherry Beach via Unwin Avenue. 
• From Sunday, January 12 until the spring, one northbound lane on the Don Valley Parkway (DVP) from the Eastern Avenue on-ramp to Queen Street East will be closed to accommodate work for the Eastern/Adelaide Bridges Rehabilitation Project. One eastbound and one westbound lane on Eastern Avenue will be closed between Sumach Street and Broadview Avenue. One eastbound lane on Adelaide Street will be closed between Sumach Street and Eastern Avenue. 
• Lake Shore Boulevard is down to a single lane through Strachan, from Fort York Blvd to Ontario Place Blvd. Toronto Hydro is installing new electrical systems for the Ontario Place reconstruction and expansion. The lane restrictions will be in place until April 1st, 2025.
• Queens Park Crescent is reduced to a single lane south of Bloor as part of the TTC’s Easier Access Program at Museum Station. The project is expected to be complete by the end of 2025.

For full traffic updates, click here.