[St. John's] Transport development (Highways, Airport, and Public Transit)

[Horsell]

Does pedestrian traffic fall under this thread? It does now.

With the City now set to spend some coin to study snow clearing, perhaps this would be a good place to put forward some thoughts and ideas.

I will go on record as saying that I do NOT attempt to walk anywhere once the snow flies, being a car centric person, however I will try to keep an open mind.

To me, there are some basic facts that come into play when discussing snow clearing in St. John’s:

First and foremost is that our winters are very unpredictable. Yes, it will snow and at times it will snow a lot. Sometimes we can go weeks without snow, when we get to “enjoy” RDF.

We have hills…lots of steep hills. We have streets that are glorified cart paths…and in fact once were said cart paths.

Money/budgets are finite, or at least have an “acceptable” limit.

Of course there any many other facts and/or opinions to be considered in this broad discussion.

And now for a few of my personal opinions and pet peeves regarding the winter effort.

Topic # 1 – Staffing: Much has been said in recent weeks about the fact that so many operators were laid off before winter was over. Ironically, not much was said when they were hired BEFORE winter began, back in November. Staffing is tough. In order to attract people to the job you have to provide a reasonable period of employment. What should those guarantees be? How much flexibility should be there? I think the City unions are certainly calling the shots on this one. Hands up who is in favor of a certain degree of private contracting out of operations?

Topic # 2 – Snow removal: For full disclosure I will admit to being a suburbanite. I have a big two car driveway to park my cars and a lawn to throw the snow on. When I see what downtown residents have to put up with in terms of digging their cars out with nowhere to put the snow, I feel for them. How can we ease their pain by removing snow as soon as possible? Perhaps it is time to revisit the concept of melting the snow on site, as opposed to trucking. The cost model may have changed in recent years.

Topic # 3 – Sidewalks: Trying to clear some portion of sidewalks properly may be better than trying to clear 134 Km of sidewalks poorly. What gets cleared, when it gets cleared and how it gets cleared needs a serious look. In my travels this winter I have seen sidewalks “cleared” that don’t need to be (with people walking on the opposite side of the street) and NO sidewalks cleared on busy 4 lane roads such as Thorburn Rd. I don’t think it is every pedestrian’s right to expect every foot of sidewalk they may use to be plowed but I do believe a better job can be done to keep them out of harm’s way.

I could probably go on for hours on this topic but perhaps I’ll channel my efforts into a submission to the “consultants”. I have ideas as to how I think things could be fixed without blowing the budget. Ironically, I don’t think I’ve heard one suggestion yet from our elected officials. Where is the “Leadership” on this issue?

[cam477]

The snow clearing topic is an interesting one. Obviously no one wants significantly higher taxes. On the other hand, almost everyone is unsatisfied with the current level of service. Furthermore, depending on where you live and your mode of transportation, different people are going to argue for more resources allocated in ways that best suit them. I think the independent review and public consultation process is going to be really interesting. It may also be a little frustrating .

Here’s my 2 cents:

I think we could do with less resources being allocated towards street widening in the suburbs. I know that sentiment will anger suburbanites. But frankly, very few people commute on foot in Airport Heights, Cowan Heights, Kenmount Terrace, Southlands, etc anyway. A front end loader could be used to clear bus stops so people don’t have to stand on the road. But I don’t think we need the big snow blowers widening roads in these neighborhoods. They have on-street parking bans anyway. Plus, the more narrow streets serve to calm traffic.

I think snow clearing on the sidewalks along main roads (Topsail, Kenmount, Torbay, Thorburn, Portugal Cove, Logy Bay, Prince Philip/Columbus/Macdonald needs to improve dramatically. This is the most critical improvement that’s needed, IMO. These are the streets that a pedestrian is going to be killed on if they don’t improve sidewalk snow clearing because these roads have high speed traffic.

Next they need to take a look at the streets that contain pedestrian traffic naturally and focus on them for a far superior level of service than what is currently provided. 5-10 days (or logner) after the snowfall is not acceptable. Streets like Elizabeth, Merrymeeting, Empire, Military, Freshwater and all major streets in the downtown need to have clear sidewalks. This is not a luxury that entitled pedestrians are demanding. I think this is a basic service no different than motorists demanding that roads be passable. Merrymeeting comes to mind as a particularly ignored street when it comes to sidewalk snow clearing. The area is close to three high schools and a junior high and in addition the neighborhood contains a lot of seniors, university students, new immigrants and lower income people that don’t have cars. I don’t’ know how many times this winter I’ve had to slow almost to a stop to narrowly squeeze past groups of young people or seniors hobbling along in the middle of the icy street. This is clearly a pedestrian neighborhood that needs snow clearing.

I’m not sure how we address the massive delay from when the snow stops to when these sidewalks get cleared. But we have to find a way. You can’t have a significant number of your city’s citizens trapped indoors or risking their lives walking for half the year.

I probably sound like a bit of a righteous urbanite based on the above. But I’m really not. I just think NLers have reduced our standards so low that the notion of human beings that don’t own personal vehicles demanding safe transit along clear sidewalks has become thought of as “entitled”. I know no one on here has said that. But that’s an attitude I’ve encountered.

For full disclosure – I live downtown, but I grew up in the ‘burbs. I also own two cars and from late Nov – late March (maybe late April this year) I commute exclusively using personal automobile. However, in the rest of the year I do walk and cycle a lot.

[Horsell]

Wow, I think I agree 100% with every point you made.

To pick up on the unnecessary street widening, I have seen snow blowers on cul de sacs, totally unnecessary.

Back in early February I also witnessed snow removal operations involving nine trucks waiting in line in a small neighborhood of duplexes just up from the Avalon Mall. I have no idea how far they were going to dump their loads, I hope it wasn’t the harbour.

With respect to sidewalk clearing in some high traffic areas, I think they almost need to follow the plows as closely as possible and certainly not a day or two later. Once again, it points to the proper scheduling and deployment of resources, both manpower and equipment.

[mrjanejacobs]

Major arterials definitely need to be prioritized - for safety reasons, but also for circulation.

To use a biological analogy like blood vessels: the biggest ones, if clogged, can be catastrophic. Because back-ups can cause a snowball of problems hierarchically.

Likewise, I think that ONCE an efficient bus route network (one that relies exclusively on major arterials) is designed, it's important that routes for snow-clearing synchronize with bus routes. It would prioritize buses, but it would also be better for personal automobiles.

Also, heresay: I know someone who worked for the CSJ. According to him, management doesn't know what they're doing. He tells stories of how he is instructed to pick up the snowplow at point A, and move it, at times, kilometres away before he drops the plow to begin the snow-clearing route. That makes very little sense.

[Marty_Mcfly]

^I'm not surprised to hear that. During the major snowstorm we had earlier this week I felt like snow clearing priorities were a little flawed. Our tiny cul de sac was plowed twice and kept passable while major roads like Kenmount were left alone.

[rthomasd]

No mention of Team Gushue Highway Extension in the new Prov Budget.

2013 construction was supposed to be 3 underpasses and these are still not complete, only one of which has any real amount of work done.

I came across a reference that the total cost is now $ 57 M ( from $ 50 M ) with completion in 2016.

Although the Prov Govt hasn't yet made an announcement, I discovered a tender for $4.5 M on the Daily Construction News website for three under/overpasses at Topsail Rd and Blackmarsh Rd, for June-Nov 2014. If the 2013 projects are anything to go by, these won't get finished in 2014. We should see a tender call announcement soon.

[J_Murphy]

Originally Posted by rthomasd

No mention of Team Gushue Highway Extension in the new Prov Budget.

2013 construction was supposed to be 3 underpasses and these are still not complete, only one of which has any real amount of work done.

I came across a reference that the total cost is now $ 57 M ( from $ 50 M ) with completion in 2016.

Although the Prov Govt hasn't yet made an announcement, I discovered a tender for $4.5 M on the Daily Construction News website for three under/overpasses at Topsail Rd and Blackmarsh Rd, for June-Nov 2014. If the 2013 projects are anything to go by, these won't get finished in 2014. We should see a tender call announcement soon.

I have little faith that this will be done anytime soon. Let's not forget that there has been NO work completed on the section from Brookfield to Pitt's Memorial

[Horsell]

Two of the three over/under passes started last year should be complete within a month or two this year and if the Blackmarsh Rd. interchanges can be started AND completed this year then hopefully they can lay some blacktop in 2015. The fact that we haven't been able to uncover any reference to final grading and paving contracts leave me to believe that they won't connect any of the sections until they can at least make it as far as Topsail Road. Pretty sad really. Our only hope is the election year, 2015.

[rthomasd]

Originally Posted by Horsell

Two of the three over/under passes started last year should be complete within a month or two this year and if the Blackmarsh Rd. interchanges can be started AND completed this year then hopefully they can lay some blacktop in 2015. The fact that we haven't been able to uncover any reference to final grading and paving contracts leave me to believe that they won't connect any of the sections until they can at least make it as far as Topsail Road. Pretty sad really. Our only hope is the election year, 2015.

I think you're being wildly optimistic. I visited the underpass areas just a week or so ago and there's no work in progress. The collector road underpass has sides and a centre post while the Old Pennywell underpass has only the centre post and no sides. There's at least 4 months work on each of these remaining, by my estimate.

Someone is using the section from Blackmarsh to Topsail Rd as a lay-down area for a pipeline project and both sides of the roadbed have a large number of pipes stacked up. Is this work delaying the TG work? They haven't installed a bypass roadbed for the Blackmarsh underpass yet either.

There's still a lot of roadbed work to be done in the Brookfield Rd area, I've heard there's a dispute with the Feds about the route near the Experimental farm, and there's an overpass or two or three going in there.

If there were a dramatic increase in activity on the project I could see it partially open in 2016, but as it looks now I doubt it.

[AnUrbanLife]

A good article about Halifax's new transit plan:

http://spacing.ca/atlantic/2014/04/08/transit-first-how-much-service-where/

This should be something we're looking at closely, using the ideas which work and fixing the problems for our own transit. I am looking forward to seeing the results of this project.

[jeddy1989]

Councillor wants New Downtown Transportation Strategy

The Ward 2 councillor for St. John's says he'll be initiating discussions at city hall today for the creation of a new downtown transportation strategy. Jonathan Galgay says he's heard a lot from residents who would like to see changes in how vehicles move about. He says he's getting complaints of damage and safety concerns from big transport trucks going through residential areas.


Galgay says shuttled bus services in and out of the downtown area is also an idea that needs to be looked at, as well as the possibility of increasing the number of one-way streets, which would require engagement with residents and businesses, but he thinks the downtown could benefit from swift movement on the issue. Galgay says one-way streets would make snowclearing easier as well. He says it's only painting lines on the road, not a massive infrastructure upgrade.


Galgay will give more details of the full strategy this afternoon at city hall.

http://www.vocm.com/newsarticle.asp?mn=2&id=45271&latest=1

[KAO79]

As impressed as I was about snow clearing on the main roads, and the salt/brine solution used to keep them ice free, I'm appalled by the lack of snow removal from sidewalks! It was ABSOLUTELY IMPOSSIBLE for me to walk anywhere this winter that wasn't on the road, constantly pissing motorists off. Walking as close as I could to the ice and snow covering the sidewalks, I was still 1/4 of the way into the oncoming traffic lane. Try doing this on Stavanger Drive, Kenmount, or Thorburn Rd.... not safe, not safe at all!!

Walking on the snow and ice covered sidewalks is impossible - believe me I've tried, and I'm a damn good walker with great balance! Lol. I'm sure the city can clear one side of the street, make room for bus stops (I stand in the closest cleared driveway so I'm off the street) and keep people happier than they have been!

Oh and the snow removal at the Avalon Mall, is the best I've ever seen! Those guys did a phenomenal job and I wish there were enough of them to go around and do the whole city!

[Marty_Mcfly]

Originally Posted by KAO79

As impressed as I was about snow clearing on the main roads, and the salt/brine solution used to keep them ice free, I'm appalled by the lack of snow removal from sidewalks! It was ABSOLUTELY IMPOSSIBLE for me to walk anywhere this winter that wasn't on the road, constantly pissing motorists off. Walking as close as I could to the ice and snow covering the sidewalks, I was still 1/4 of the way into the oncoming traffic lane. Try doing this on Stavanger Drive, Kenmount, or Thorburn Rd.... not safe, not safe at all!!

Walking on the snow and ice covered sidewalks is impossible - believe me I've tried, and I'm a damn good walker with great balance! Lol. I'm sure the city can clear one side of the street, make room for bus stops (I stand in the closest cleared driveway so I'm off the street) and keep people happier than they have been!

Oh and the snow removal at the Avalon Mall, is the best I've ever seen! Those guys did a phenomenal job and I wish there were enough of them to go around and do the whole city!

It's like this every year. The city doesn't care enough about pedestrians to entertain clearing sidewalks. They've announced that they'll "look into it" recently. Strategically announced near the end of the winter. We'll have long forgotten this during the summer months, it'll get passed over, and we'll be walking in the street again next winter.

[NewfBC]

Here in Vancouver:

Your responsibilities

Whether you are a property owner or tenant, you are responsible for clearing snow and ice from the full width of sidewalks that surround your residence or business by 10:00am on the morning following a snowfall, seven days a week.

If you fail to remove snow and ice, you can be fined.

Snow and ice on the sidewalk can be a barrier for many people, particularly seniors and people with disabilities. A single portion of a sidewalk that is not cleared can negate the clearing efforts of the rest of the residents on the whole block.

[Townie709]

Originally Posted by NewfBC

Here in Vancouver:

Your responsibilities

Whether you are a property owner or tenant, you are responsible for clearing snow and ice from the full width of sidewalks that surround your residence or business by 10:00am on the morning following a snowfall, seven days a week.

If you fail to remove snow and ice, you can be fined.

Snow and ice on the sidewalk can be a barrier for many people, particularly seniors and people with disabilities. A single portion of a sidewalk that is not cleared can negate the clearing efforts of the rest of the residents on the whole block.

In Vancouver I'm sure that would be great, but the fact is such an implementation would be a MUCH larger burden on property owners in St. John's when comparing Vancouver's average annual snowfall of 40cm to St. John's 350cm. I'm not saying it wouldn't work here; I think it would be worth looking at but having snow cleared the morning after a storm isn't often very realistic here!

I agree that part of the responsibility should belong to the property owners/ tenants, but there needs to be compromise. The amounts of snow we get are too much to be tackled by the city alone, or property owners alone. But get fact remains, if people really want quality sidewalk clearing there may be work involved on their part

[jeddy1989]

Two-Way is the Right Way: Traffic Solutions in Downtown St. John's

Over the years, many people in St. John's have proposed converting our downtown business district streets (Water and Duckworth) into one-way lanes. While the idea might sound great at first, it would actually do more harm than good.

Two Way Sign

I'd like to start with a confession: I used to wave the flag of one-way downtown streets. With parked cars on both sides, rush hour drop-offs and pick-ups, and pedestrians crossing the street willy-nilly, you've got yourself a real obstacle course!

The solution to this "problem" seems so obvious. Restrict the two streets to one way each and all of a sudden traffic will flow effortlessly and more quickly. Angle the parking on one side and you've probably increased the number of available spaces. Sure, maybe you can even widen the sidewalks to boot!

The thing is, that obstacle course I talked about is actually a good thing. Such commotion among those narrow lanes forces drivers to move slowly and stay alert to their surroundings. Shoot, there's even an award-winning tourism ad that uses the ease-of-pedestrian crossing to appeal to visitors.

St. John’s has looked into the one-way streets in the past. Most recently, in 2009, the City hired a consultant to do a comprehensive Parking Study for the downtown. In section 7.1 on maximizing on-street parking supply, the report soundly rejects the one-way 'couplet' idea.

The report states: "The main issue in Downtown St. John's that makes one-way street[s] unfeasible is their impact on road capacity and operations." It goes on to note that we’d be reducing the number of lanes in each direction from two to one (one direction on each street), and this would actually lead to more congestion.

Fact is, cities throughout North America are currently converting business area streets from one-way back to two-way. See Hamilton, Oregon City, Rochester, and Denver, just to name a few. If you really want to dig into why they're doing this, check out this in-depth study called "Are We Strangling Ourselves on One-Way Networks?" [PDF]

Now, could this shift to two-way streets be an urban planning fad? Perhaps. But consider this: car use has been dropping since 2004. Maybe cars are the fad. And more importantly, should accommodating auto traffic with increased speeds and parking spaces be our top priority?

The Atlantic Cities website has an article called "The Case Against One-Way Streets" and they list some of the primary reasons other cities are actually converting back to two-way streets:

Livability: vehicles stop less on one-way streets, which is hard for bikers and pedestrians.
Navigation: one-way street networks are confusing for drivers, which leads to more vehicle-miles traveled; they also make it tough for bus riders to locate stops for a return trip.
Safety: speeds tend to be higher on one-way streets, and some studies suggest drivers pay less attention on them because there's no conflicting traffic flow.
Economics: local businesses believe that two-way streets increase visibility.
City Hall is spending millions to calm traffic throughout the city, but downtown already has that problem solved, free of charge. So to spend money on converting the streets to one-way (and then educating residents and visitors on how to use them) may very well be a waste of taxpayer dollars.

Here's the bottom line. If we're looking to solve traffic, parking, or "vibrancy" issues downtown, we'd better know what we're trying to achieve. Because it's possible we're already using the best option available.

http://davelanestjohns.ca/blog/posts/201...-traffic-solutions-in-downtown-st-johns/

[JCE]

Not sure in what section but there was chat about this before, I think last summer.

From the the recent council meeting agenda. Looks like the city is interested in getting something moving with the Avalon mall intersection realignment.

"Councillor Hickman requested that staff contact the owners of the Avalon Mall to
determine the status of road realignment at the Kenmount Road entrance, specifically
whether or not the building for the former car lot is to be removed."

[Horsell]

I noticed that in the agenda too and it is something years overdue. Understandably there have been concerns in the past about making it easier for vehicles to travel through a residential neighbourhood to exit unto Kenmount Rd. however there may be other ways to curb that while at the same time making that intersection safer.

[J_Murphy]

Gotta love traffic reports in Newfoundland. Studded tires must be off by midnight tomorrow (although it is currently lightly snowing). Also, beware of moose in the City and Polar Bears near Greenspond.

[Arrakis]

St. John's Airport Authority has announced a $243 million of Infrastructure Improvements Planned for Airport.

http://www.stjohnsairport.com/press/pressrel_detail.cfm?id=58