Eastbound lanes of the Gardiner Expressway have now reopened after a fatal collision near Parkside Drive early this morning.

Speaking to reporters Monday morning, Const. Clint Stibbe said a woman was driving eastbound on the Gardiner Expressway shortly before 3 a.m. when it appears she lost control of the vehicle and struck a dividing wall east of Parkside Drive. The vehicle—a 2003 BMW—then struck a guardrail before hitting a cement structure, Stibbe added.

"Debris from the vehicle was strewn down the road. This would include the engine, the transmission, the gas tank. Even the trunk was found to be actually on the Lake Shore," Stibbe said.

"The amount of damage this vehicle sustained was tremendous." 

The female driver of the vehicle, who is believed to be 25 years old, was pronounced dead at the scene, police confirmed.

Police said they are currently in the process of notifying next-of-kin.

"This without a doubt had speed as a factor in this collision," Stibbe said. "We are also going to be looking to determine if there was any alcohol involved."

Stibbe said the vehicle was "virtually unrecognizable."

“We are seeking any witnesses that were in the area... just before 3 a.m. this morning to contact us as soon as possible,” he added.

All eastbound lanes of the highway were initially expected to remain closed between Parklawn Road and Jameson Avenue until at least 10 a.m. but lanes reopened shortly after 8:40 a.m. One right lane remains blocked near Parkside Drive.

Two collision reconstruction teams were called in to investigate the crash.

Westbound lanes of Lake Shore Boulevard were also closed this morning but those lanes have since reopened.

Stibbe said the reason for the lenghty closure is due to the fact that investigators require daylight to better assess the damage to the road.

“With the collision investigation, we do have to track any sort of damage to the roadway and in some cases, daylight is the only thing that actually exposes to the reconstruction investigators,” he said.

The closure made for a very difficult commute for many drivers this morning.

"We try and minimize impact to the traffic," Stibbe said.

"But as you can expect, anytime you take three lanes of the expressway away from the commuting public, it becomes problematic for the all the other arteries. Lake Shore especially was backed up along with all the other east-west main arteries coming into the city."