There are quite a few areas like that in Toronto, well, anywhere the highway crosses a main arterial road. I would try to avoid spots like that, even if it mean going out of the my way. If I had no choice I might even take the sidewalk, if one existed.

My commute used to take me past a very busy area like this, but last year they put in a bypass just about half a km from it, and that was a godsend. I no longer have to deal with merging traffic and on and off ramps.