Floats, bands, clowns and road closures

Police advise drivers to avoid downtown as St. Nick makes his way through the city

Santa Claus is coming to town this weekend for the 119th annual Santa Claus Parade in Toronto — bringing with him Christmas cheer, plenty of road closures, and some rain.

The parade will take place on Sunday starting at 12:30 p.m. and will see the streets of Toronto filled with floats, bands, the Celebrity Clowns, and of course Mr. and Mrs. Claus.

The event attracts hundreds of thousands of people who anxiously line the streets each year, waiting to catch a glimpse of old Saint Nick.

Paradegoers are advised to dress warmly and bring umbrellas. Sunday’s forecast shows a high of 3 C, with rain showers likely throughout the afternoon, according to Environment Canada.

Parade route

The parade will begin at Christie Pits Park at 750 Bloor St. W. and end at St. Lawrence Market at Front Street East and Jarvis Street.

Before the parade begins, the fivekilometre Holly Jolly Fun Run will start at 600 Bloor St. W., between Palmerston Boulevard and Markham Street, at 11:45 a.m., and end at Maple Leaf Square.

Although the parade is about 2 ½ hours long, roads are expected to be closed as early as 7 a.m. on Sunday.

Police will tow parked vehicles from the route Sunday morning

Police will begin towing vehicles parked along the route starting at 6 a.m., according to a press release.

Towed vehicles will be parked on a nearby street with no fines for the drivers or owners, police added.

“Drivers may flag down an officer to find out the location of their vehicle or call 416-808-1400 if they were parked west of Spadina Avenue, 416-808-5100 if they were parked east of Yonge Street, and 416-808-5200 if they were parked in between,” police said.

Here are the scheduled road closures along the route

■ Bloor Street West, from Ossington Avenue to Christie Street, at 7 a.m.

■ Bloor Street West, from Christie Street to Spadina Road, at 10 a.m.

■ Spadina Road, from Bloor Street West to Harbord Street, at 10:30 a.m.

■ Harbord Street, from Spadina Road to Queen’s Park Crescent, at 10:30 a.m.

■ Queen’s Park Crescent, from Harbord Street to College Street, at 11 a.m.

■ University Avenue, from College Street to Dundas Street, at 11 a.m.

■ University Avenue, from Dundas Street to Front Street, at 11:15 a.m.

■ Wellington Street, from University Avenue to Jarvis Street, at 11:30 a.m.

■ Front Street, from Bay Street to Jarvis Street, at 11:45 a.m.

■ Front Street, from Jarvis Street to Sherbourne Street, at 11 a.m.

Police recommend spectators to use public transit to get to the parade.

The TTC is providing extra service on Line 1 and Line 2 subways to help people get to and from Sunday’s festivities.

However, the TTC is also warning that some of its bus and streetcar routes will be diverted during the parade and the fun run.

Changes to TTC bus and streetcar routes:

■ 13 Avenue Road, effective from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

■ 19 Bay, effective from 12:30 p.m. to 6 p.m.

■ 72 Pape, effective from 11:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

■ 75 Sherbourne, effective from 11:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

■ 94A Wellesley, effective from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

■ 121 Esplanade-River, effective from 11:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

■ 126 Christie, effective from 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

■ 501B Queen, effective from 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

■ 501D Queen, effective from 11:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

■ 300 Bloor-Danforth, effective 7 a.m. to 8 a.m.

■ Service on the 503 Kingston Road, 504 King, 505 Dundas, 506 Carlton and 511 Bathurst streetcars will continue as usual, crossing the route through gaps in the parade, the TTC said.

Police said roads are expected to reopen at 6 p.m. Sunday.