With the road in front of Stephanie Cho's east-end bakery fully blocked off by pylons and backhoes — and with chunks of concrete piled in front of her small storefront — Cho says some customers don't even know her shop is open.

But it is, and Cho estimates her business has dropped by 50 per cent from the same time last year, thanks to the ongoing road work right in front of Sleepy Baker, just north of Queen Street East on Coxwell Avenue.

The city has been doing watermain work in the area since July, and starting on Labour Day, the whole intersection will be closed in all directions for the entire month of September to finish off those improvements, coupled with streetcar track replacement, road work and sidewalk repairs.

While the city stresses the necessity of the work, business owners like Cho are bracing for the ongoing financial hit of blocked-off streets and a "drastic drop" in the number of people coming in.

"Sometimes we have to worry about how we're going to pay the rent, if the business goes on getting hit like this," she said.

East-end bakery owner Stephanie Cho estimates her business has dropped by 50 per cent from the same time last year, thanks to the ongoing road work right in front of her store. (Chris Langenzarde/CBC News)

Intersection closed from Sept. 4 to Sept. 29

Starting at 5 a.m. on Sept. 4 until the night of Sept. 29, the intersection will be fully closed, with all eastbound traffic on Queen Street detoured at Greenwood Avenue and all westbound traffic detoured at Kingston Road.

Meanwhile, southbound traffic on Coxwell Avenue will be detoured at Dundas Street East and northbound traffic will be detoured at Eastern Avenue.

Only local traffic will be allowed beyond these general restrictions, where permitted, according to the city, and drivers should expect delays and more traffic on nearby roads.

TTC route changes during road work 501/301 Queen route Buses will operate on Queen Street between Neville Park Loop and the Queen/River Streets area (diverting both ways around the closed intersection via Eastern Avenue and Woodward Avenue).

Streetcars will operate on Queen Street between Connaught Avenue and Roncesvalles Avenue.

Queen service in the west end of the route will continue to operate with buses between Roncesvalles and Long Branch Loop due to other track work. 502 Downtowner and 503 Kingston routes Buses will replace streetcars and will divert around the closed intersection both ways via Eastern Avenue and Woodward Avenue. Bus routes The 22A, 22B and 322 Coxwell routes that operate from Coxwell Station will be diverted a short distance via Dundas Street.

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Sandrie Bernard, who works at Beryl's Pepper Pot — a Jamaican restaurant on Queen Street East — said parking is already hard to come by in the area, but the construction just makes things worse.

"Some of my customers say that if our food wasn't that good, they wouldn't come, because it's too much of a headache for them to park their car," Bernard said.

"It definitely slows down the walk-by traffic for a lot of us who need the walk-by traffic," said Japheth Bhana, who owns Studio 505 hair salon on Coxwell Avenue.

Speaking to CBC Toronto on Friday, Bhana said his salon had no water because of the construction, and an employee at a nearby sushi restaurant said they were closed that day for the same reason.

'It definitely slows down the walk-by traffic for a lot of us who need the walk-by traffic,' said Japheth Bhana, who owns Studio 505 hair salon on Coxwell Avenue. (Chris Langenzarde/CBC News)

Work happening 24 hours a day, 7 days a week

Hassles aside, the city says the work is crucial.

"No one ever wants to hear we're going to be doing construction on your street, and there's never a good time for that work," said John Kelly, director of design and construction with the city's engineering and construction services department.

"But it's necessary work to make sure the infrastructure is in a state of good repair."

The area's sewer system, road and streetcar tracks have all reached the end of their useful lives and need to be replaced, he explained.

He acknowledged the concerns of business owners, and said the city tries to "minimize disruption" during all infrastructure projects.

"In this case, we're undertaking work on a 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week basis," he said.

Construction work is happening on a stretch of blocked-off road in front of stores on Coxwell Avenue near Queen Street East. (Chris Langenzarde/CBC News)

The road and track work also means anyone travelling downtown on Queen Street from the east end will have to take a bus as far as River Street, which also includes a diversion around the intersection, said TTC spokesperson Stuart Green.

"By having the bus come in, it means people can get to and from the businesses on Queen Street East," he said.

Still, business owners in the area are concerned about the financial impact of the month-long construction project.

"I know they have to do it, to make it better for the streetcars and the traffic — but on the other hand, we suffer," Bernard said.