Quote:
Originally Posted by Kitchissippi
Closing a street to regular traffic does not mean supply trucks cannot enter. Practically all European open-air markets are in pedestrian only zones and function just fine. Also, the goal should not be necessarily making the streets pedestrian-only, but making them pedestrian-priority.
What is ridiculous in the ByWard Market is that we seem to value surface parking more than pedestrian space. The area dedicated to car parking far outweighs the pedestrian space. Trying to find a decent place to sit outside after you've bought a Beavertail or ice cream can be difficult.
What the streets around the Market building need to become is more like a shared space or a "woonerf", where by taking away the divisions between road and sidewalk allow the use of the street to become more flexible depending on season or time of day.
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I pretty much agree with everything you've said here. In Ottawa we're good at putting plazas and benches where people aren't. In the market, you need to know where the courtyards are to sit down and eat your ice cream. As long as Ottawans are car centric, the city will have to maintain a delicate balance between parking and pedestrians in the market, but it should definitely start to shift towards pedestrians, and closing those two streets on weekends is a good start.
As much as I like the term woonerf, which is a new one to me, it sounds like they depend on curves as traffic calming measures. A great idea, but difficult to implement in the very grid oriented market. I particularly like the following quote in your reference:
"The use of curves eliminates lengthy sightlines for drivers. "Don't let [the driver] search for the end of his torment," a Dutch woonerf expert suggests only half-jokingly."