After the successful move of "Dennis," one of Metrolinx's tunnel-boring machines that's helping to complete the Eglinton-Crosstown project, crews are preparing to move another by early Sunday morning.

A Metrolinx spokesperson tweeted on Saturday that "Lea" will be hoisted out of the shaft at approximately 7 p.m. It is expected to be moved along Eglinton between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m. Sunday.

A section of Allen Road has been temporarily closed to accommodate the movement of the mighty 400-tonne machines.

The City of Toronto is also performing spring maintenance on the normally busy roadway. The full closure of the Allen, between Eglinton Ave. and Sheppard Avenue West, is expected to last until 5 a.m. Monday.

Early Saturday morning, a crowd of approximately 200 people watched as a massive dolly shifted Dennis slowly moved down Eglinton Avenue West, from just west of Allen Road, to a shaft just east of the street.

Crowds gather to watch

The process was agonizingly slow for the curious onlookers, but many of them stayed to catch a glimpse of the impressive machine.

"I thought I had to come and see this because this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see something big like this," one woman told CTV Toronto.

Metrolinx spokesperson Anne Marie Aikins said it took the crew a couple of hours for Dennis to be lifted from 30 metres below ground and hoisted onto a dolly.

"Then they had to very gradually, carefully send it across Allen Road," she said.

Moving the machines took months of planning and between $2 million to $3 million.

Estimated crowd of 200 people gathered to see transit milestone @CrosstownTO pic.twitter.com/pO3xufQIEO — Metrolinx (@Metrolinx) April 18, 2015

Few more TBM pics and that's a wrap @CrosstownTO. pic.twitter.com/plWEeBoGny — Metrolinx (@Metrolinx) April 18, 2015

The City of Toronto is advising motorists to use Dufferin and Bathurst Streets as alternative routes during the closure.

With a report from CTV Toronto's Colin D'Mello.