Harbord-Hoskin Bike Lane Upgrades 2 nd Public Drop-in Event Thursday March 27, 2014 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Kensington Gardens, Multi-Purpose Room 45 Brunswick Avenue
Background: Harbord-Hoskin Bike Lane Upgrades July 2011 and June 2012 City Council has directed City staff to proceed with a design and public consultation process for developing separated bike lanes on Harbord Street and Hoskin Avenue, as part of a planned downtown separated bike lane network. 2014 2014 2013 2012 2013-14 EA Study 2014 Pilot 2014 2
Harbord-Hoskin Area Ossington Avenue Shaw Street Bickford Park Art Eggleton Park Clinton Street Harbord Collegiate Institute Palmerston Boulevard Bathurst Street Central Technical School Borden Street Spadina Avenue Business Improvement Area St. George Street University of Toronto Area Queen s Park Crescent 3
Traffic and Cycling: Harbord-Hoskin Context Minor arterial road with one traffic lane and bike lanes (sharrows Borden St. to Spadina Ave.) in each direction Second busiest cycling route in the City after College Street Two-way cycling volumes: 3,500 3,900 per day Harbord at Euclid St looking east Two-way traffic volume: 15,000-21,000 vehicles per day Cyclists represent 40% of total traffic (during the peak period) Sharrows on Harbord near Robert St looking west 4
Services: Harbord-Hoskin Context TTC bus service (94 Wellesley) along the entire corridor On-street garbage collection from Huron St. to Ossington Ave. 28 Wheel-Trans stops per month (Note:1,100 for similar length on Sherbourne St.) Hoskin-Harbord at St. George looking west 39 Toronto Fire responses in 2012 (Note: 100 for similar length on Sherbourne St.) 85 EMS responses on Harbord-Hoskin in 2012 Hoskin Bus Stop at Tower Rd looking east 5
On-street Parking: Harbord-Hoskin Context 191 on-street parking spaces On one side for most blocks On both sides from Spadina Ave. to Borden St. and from Queen s Park Cres. to St. George St. Parking utilization is highest in the Harbord Street BIA area between Spadina Ave. and Borden St. Not many parking spaces available on nearby streets, surface and underground parking areas. University of Toronto area parking spaces are well used. However, alternate parking supply exist at nearby surface lots or underground parking of U of T buildings. Parking demand is moderate west of Bathurst. It is important to maintain on-street parking on one side of street to accommodate business, residential and visitor needs. 6
Project History: Major Decision Points Feasibility of Separated Bike Lanes Uni-directional Cycle Tracks Generally preferred for two-way streets like Harbord St. Requires more road width as separation required on both sides of street Requires removal of all parking from Harbord St., which is not acceptable to business owners and residents Not carried forward for consideration due to required complete loss of on-street parking Bi-directional Cycle Tracks Less preferred on two-way streets due to increased conflicts at intersections However, could maintain parking on one side of street, which meets the peak parking demand Presented as preliminary preferred option in first public meeting on June 27, 2013 Traffic study was carried out to measure effects of bidirectional operations at intersections Sherbourne Uni-Directional Cycle Tracks, Toronto Rachel Street East Bi-directional Cycle Tracks, Montreal, Quebec 7
Summary of Public Consultation to Date Major Events: November 2012 Public consultation started with two public meetings in Ward 19 and Ward 20 with area resident associations, cycling communities and others May/June 2013 meetings with Harbord Street BIA and various property owners June 2013 First public drop-in event Key Comments: Almost half of the respondents supported separated bike lanes on Harbord-Hoskin, with significant numbers of respondents concerned or opposed to bi-directional separated bike lanes. Many cyclists recognize Harbord-Hoskin is generally a safe cycling corridor. However, lack of bike lane continuity in the BIA area and lack of passing area are major concerns of the cyclists. Strong support for maintaining on-street parking on one side of the road, particularly in commercial/retail and residential sections. 8
Summary of Traffic Study Objective: Determine feasibility of bi-directional cycle tracks operations at intersections. Problem: Major intersections along Harbord-Hoskin (e.g. Spadina Ave.) have two-way traffic at both roads. At these intersections, numerous conflict points exist between the cyclists and the other road users. Findings: Elimination of conflicting movements during cyclists crossing is required to ensure cyclists safety. This means the addition of a separate signal phase just for cyclists. Dedicated cyclists crossing time adds delay to all road users (end-to-end peak period travel delayed by over 21 minutes for cyclists and over 7 minutes for transit/motor vehicles) and results in non-compliance. A mix of dedicated and shared cyclists-motorist crossing Conflict points for cyclists at intersections with bidirectional cycle tracks and two-way major cross-roads: Drivers A, B and C are focused on conventional right-side cyclist D, and may not see cyclist E travelling in the opposite direction. phases would compromise cyclists safety and still results in minor to moderate delay to all road users. Conclusion: It would not be possible to safely accommodate bi-directional cycle tracks, without unacceptable delays to all road users. 9
New Recommendation: Uni-directional buffered bike lanes Uni-directional bike lanes on both sides of the street with painted buffers between bike lanes, traffic lanes and parking lanes, where space permits. Replace the sharrows with bike lanes from Spadina Ave. to Borden St. (BIA segment), and at the Bathurst St. intersection. Minor improvements to existing bike lanes between Borden St. and Ossington Ave. with potential intersection improvements (for example, bike boxes). Maintain on-street parking on one side of the street some reduction in parking. 10
Examples Buffered bike lanes Buffered bike lanes are used in many North American cities: Montreal, QC Vancouver, BC Edmonton, AB Austin, TX New York, NY Portland, OR Brooklyn, NY Chicago, IL San Francisco, CA Seattle, WA 14th Street, Santa Monica, CA Artistic rendering of buffered bike lanes Grand street, New York City, NY 11
Draft Cross-Sections: Existing and Proposed Queen s Park Cres. to St. George St. (14.0m width) Existing 2.0m 1.7m 3.3m 3.3m 1.7m 2.0m Proposed North Sidewalk Buf fer Buffer Bike Lane Travel Lane Travel Lane Parking Bike Lane South Sidewalk 1.6m 0.6m 3.3m 3.3m 2.4m 1.0m 1.8m Key Map 12
Draft Cross-Sections: Existing and Proposed St. George St. to Huron St. (12.8m width) Existing 1.8m 3.4m 3.4m 2.0m 2.2m Proposed North Sidewalk Buffer Bike Lane Travel Lane Bike Lane Buffer Travel Lane South Sidewalk Key Map 2.0m 1.0m 3.4m 3.4m 1.0m 2.0m 13
Draft Cross-Sections: Existing and Proposed Huron St. to Spadina Ave. & Borden St. to Ossington Ave (12.8m width) Existing (Parking is either north or south side, shown south side only) 1.7m 3.3m 3.3m 1.8m 2.3m Option 1 Proposed North Sidewalk Bike Lane B u f f e r Travel Lane Travel Lane B u f f e r Bike Lane Parking South Sidewalk (Existing Parking would be maintained) 1.8m 0.2m 3.2m 0.2m 3.2m 1.9m 2.3m Option 2 North Sidewalk Bike Lane Buf fer Travel Lane Travel Lane Bu ffe r Bike Lane Parking South Sidewalk Key Map 1.5m 0.5m 3.2m 3.2m 0.5m 1.5m 2.4m 14
Draft Cross-Sections: Existing and Proposed Spadina Ave. to Borden St. (12.8m width) Existing 2.0m 4.4m 4.4m 2.0m Proposed (Parking on either side shown North Sidewalk Bike Lane Buf fer Travel Lane Travel Lane Bu ffe r Bike Lane Parking South Sidewalk south side only) 1.5m 3.2m 3.2m 1.5m 0.5m 0.5m 2.4m Key Map 15
Changes to On-street Parking Proposed Existing Total Existing Total Spaces Spaces Demand Block (North or South) Notes Side of # of Side of # of Peak Street Spaces Street Spaces Queen s Park Cres. to St. George St. North & South 49 41 South 28 U of T Rotman Building has underground visitor parking St. George St. to Huron St. South 5 3-0 Parking spaces removed to accommodate cyclists and transit vehicles operation better at the mid-block bend Huron St. to Spadina Ave. South 8 7 South 8 Existing parking would be maintained North & Based on the request from Harbord Street BIA, parking Spadina Ave. to Robert St. 9 12 North 6* South would be located on north or south sides in different North & blocks. Robert St. to Major St. 8 8 South 6* South North & * Not including 13 new spaces added on cross Major St. to Brunswick Ave. South 6 6 North 4* streets: -1 at Major Street Brunswick Ave. to Borden St. North & 15 13 South 9* - 5 at Brunswick Street South - 7 at Borden Street Borden St. to Bathurst St. South 15 9 South 14 Bathurst St. to Montrose Ave. North 45 37 North 43 Generally, parking would be maintained at the existing locations. Montrose Ave. to Shaw St. South 11 10 South 10 Shaw St. to Ossington Ave. North 13 11 North 13 Total 184** 157 141** ** Note: total existing and proposed spaces shown above are updated from the numbers shown at the March 27 public event, to reflect the recently removed seven spaces on Harbord St., from east and west of Clinton St. as part 16 of signalization of Harbord/Clinton intersection, which were not known prior to the public meeting.
Summary of Cycling Improvements by Sections Queen s Park Cres. to St. George St. Remove parking from one side to provide wider buffered bike lanes St. George St. to Huron St. Remove all parking to provide wider buffered bike lanes Huron St. to Spadina Ave. Minor adjustments to existing painted bike lanes Spadina Ave. to Borden St. New buffered bike lanes Borden St. to Ossington Ave. Intersection improvements at Bathurst St. and Ossington Ave. Minor adjustments to existing painted bike lanes Bike Boxes at Shaw St. and potentially at other locations 17
Next Steps - Time Line March to April 2014 Consultation with property owners/businesses/residents along route and March 27 public drop-in event April to May 2014 Finalize functional design and prepare detailed design May 14, 2014 Report to Public Works and Infrastructure Committee Summer/Fall 2014 Construction Updates will be posted on the project web page www.toronto.ca/cycling/harbord_and_hoskin/ 18
We Want Your Input! Share Your Questions, Ideas & Concerns We invite you to speak directly with City staff to discuss your questions and concerns. Please fill out a comment form or participate in the idea rating so that we may have a written record of your input. Use sticky notes to identify specific issues which you wish to bring to our attention on base plans or information panels. If you want City of Toronto Cycling news updates: subscribe to our Cyclometer newsletter follow TO_Cycling on twitter join the City of Toronto Cycling facebook group After this meeting, project information will be posted to toronto.ca/cycling/harbord_and_hoskin 19
Thank You! Please provide comments by April 11, 2014 Mailing Address: Transportation Services Cycling Infrastructure & Programs 100 Queen St W, City Hall, 22 nd Floor East Tower Toronto, ON M5H 2N2 E-mail: bikeplan@toronto.ca 24 hr. voicemail: 416-338-1066 Fax: 416-392-4808 TTY: 416-392-2974 www.toronto.ca/cycling/harbord_and_hoskin 20
Laws and Etiquette while Cycling Sidewalks are for pedestrians, only children riding bicycles with a wheel size of 61cm or less may lawfully cycle on a sidewalk. Always dismount when riding through a pedestrian crosswalk. Fine: $85 Cyclists up to age 18 are required by law to wear a helmet. Fine $60 All bicycles must have a working bell or horn. Fine $85 Where are you going? Tell other road users by signalling Whatever your age, wearing a helmet which fits your head properly is a easy way to protect yourself in the event of a collision. At night, dusk, and dawn cyclists are required to have at least one white or amber light on the front of their bicycle and a red light or reflector to the rear. Fine: $20 Cyclists are vehicles according to Ontario s Highway Traffic Act. Learn more about the rights and obligations of cyclists according to the act toronto.ca/cycling/laws 21