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3. REQUEST FOR ZEBRA CROSSINGS TO BE PAINTED ON THE
ROAD AT THE SENECA AND OSSINGTON INTERSECTION DEMANDE EN VUE DE PEINDRE UN
PASSAGE PIÉTONS SUR LA CHAUSSÉE À L’INTERSECTION DE LA RUE SENECA ET DE
L’AVENUE OSSINGTON |
Committee recommendation
That Council approve that
zebra crossings be painted on the road at the Seneca and Ossington intersection
to make the importance of this pedestrian crossing point more self-evident and
to improve the safety for the children.
Que le Conseil approuve que des passages
piétons soient peint sur la chaussée à l’intersection de la rue Seneca et de
l’avenue Ossington afin de démonter l’importance desdits passages et
d’améliorer la sécurité des enfants.
Documentation
1.
Councillor Clive Doucet’s report dated 6 September 2007 (ACS2007-CCS-TRC-0015)
2.
Extract of the
Draft Minutes 11, Transportation Committee, 19 September 2007
Report
to / Rapport au:
Transportation Committee /
Comité des transports
and Council / et au Conseil
6 September 2007
/ le 6 septembre 2007
Submitted
by / Soumis par: Councillor / Conseiller Clive Doucet
Contact/Personne-ressource: Councillor /
Conseiller Clive Doucet
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capital (17) |
Ref. N°: ACS2007-CCS-TRC-0015 |
SUBJECT: REQUEST FOR ZEBRA
CROSSINGS TO BE PAINTED ON THE ROAD AT THE SENECA AND OSSINGTON INTERSECTION
OBJET: DEMANDE EN VUE DE
PEINDRE UN PASSAGE PIÉTONS SUR LA CHAUSSÉE À L’INTERSECTION DE LA RUE SENECA ET
DE L’AVENUE OSSINGTON
REPORT
RECOMMENDATION
That Transportation
Committee recommend Council approve that zebra crossings be painted on the road
at the Seneca and Ossington intersection to make the importance of this
pedestrian crossing point more self-evident and to improve the safety for the
children.
Que le
Comité des transports recommande au Conseil d’approuver que des passages
piétons soient peint sur la chaussée à l’intersection de la rue Seneca et de
l’avenue Ossington afin de démonter l’importance desdits passages et
d’améliorer la sécurité des enfants.
At the Transportation Committee meeting held on September 5, 2007, Councillor Doucet brought forward the following Notice of Motion, for consideration at the next meeting:
WHEREAS the Rotary Club invested over
hundreds of thousands of dollars to improve the play structures at Brewer Park
and to ensure accessibility;
AND WHEREAS the improvements have
significantly increased usage of the park by children;
AND WHEREAS a principle access point to the park from the neighbourhood
for pedestrians is the intersection of Seneca and Ossington;
AND WHEREAS neighbouring residents have
repeatedly complained about cars running the stop signs at Seneca and Ossington
and hence there is a high risk for children crossing at this point to get to
the park;
AND WHEREAS requests to get measures to
improve the safety of this crossing have failed to result in any changes;
BE
IT RESOLVED that zebra crossings be painted on the road at the Seneca and
Ossington intersection to make the importance of this pedestrian crossing point
more self-evident and to improve the safety for the children.
CONSULTATION
At the request of
Councillor Doucet, staff reviewed the traffic controls and pavement markings at
the intersection of Ossington Avenue and Seneca Street earlier this year. A response dated 7 June 2007 indicated that
the location did not warrant the installation of “Zebra Crosswalk” markings. As a result of questions raised a further
response was provided on 20 June 2007 providing additional specific detail on
the analysis.
The Department does
not recommend the installation of “Zebra Crosswalk” markings at the
intersection of Ossington Avenue and Seneca Street as the review of the latest traffic counts in the area indicated only 8% of
the required warrant on the busiest approach is met.
Ossington Avenue and Seneca Street are
two local roadways intersecting at right angles. Ossington Avenue operates one-way west bound while Seneca Street
is a north-south two-way street at this location. The intersection is presently controlled by stop signs on all
three approaches. Stop bars and
pedestrian crosswalk markings are in place in accordance with the provisions of
the Ontario Traffic Manual. The
intersection is operating well as identified by its safety record as there have been
no collisions reported at this intersection in the last five years. Observations have indicated that given the
controls at the location conflicts are minimal. Traffic volumes at the intersection are low with an average of 95
vehicles total per hour over 8 hours approaching the intersection. An average of 24 pedestrians per hour over
the same 8 hours crossed the various approaches of the intersection.
The general practice
of the Department is to undertake the installation of "Zebra
Crosswalk" pavement markings in the right turning cut-off lanes at
intersections within the urban areas of the City. The pavement markings are generally accompanied by “Yield to
Pedestrian” signs. These signs and
pavement markings are installed at locations where there is significant volume
of both pedestrians and right turning vehicles. This is a continuation of a practice originally established by
the former Regional Municipality of Ottawa-Carleton in 1994 as a result of
field observations at locations with high vehicle and pedestrian volumes and
conflicts. A conflict is defined as an
occurrence when a motorist has to brake or a pedestrian has to change path in
order to avoid a collision. The
intention of installing these signs and pavement markings is to provide
additional warning to motorists that they are approaching a location where
there are a significant number of pedestrian crossing movements and there is a
need for increased driver attention.
In recent years the warrants for implementation of the “Zebra Crosswalk” markings have also been applied with respect to placing such markings across through lanes, particularly at signalized intersections on arterial roads. The Zebra Markings installation criteria are based on an exposure (risk) factor. A review of the latest traffic counts indicates the warrant criteria for the installation of "Zebra Crosswalk" pavement markings is not satisfied at this intersection, as the traffic and pedestrian volumes are very low meeting only 8% of the required warrant on the busiest approach.
There are an estimated 7,600 crosswalks marked in the City of Ottawa at this time of which approximately 1920 are at all-way stop locations. The crosswalks in place in conjunction with many signalized intersections (over 4,100 crosswalks) and at the all-way stop locations in place generally do not meet the warrants for installation of "Zebra Crosswalk" pavement markings. Implementing such markings at a location with low traffic and pedestrian volumes would set a precedent which would cause their effectiveness to become lost at locations where the exposure and need for enhancement of driver awareness is really needed.
As this location does not meet warrants and the installation would set precedent the Department does not recommend the installation of “Zebra Crosswalk” markings at the intersection of Ossington Avenue and Seneca Street.
FINANCIAL
IMPLICATIONS
Installation of “Zebra Crosswalk” markings on the three crosswalks at the intersection of Ossington Avenue and Seneca Street as requested would cost $900.00 annually. The installation of unwarranted “Zebra Crosswalks” such as this one would also result in increased budget pressures, as they require ongoing annual replacement. If approved by Council the cost would be charged to the Traffic & Parking Pavement Markings Operating Budget.
Public
Works and Services Staff to take appropriate action as directed by the Council.