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Transportation Committee Comité
des transports Minutes 38 / Procès-verbal 38 Wednesday, 6 January 2010, 9:30 a.m. le mercredi 6 janvier 2010, 9 h 30 Andrew S. Haydon Hall, 110
Laurier Avenue West Salle Andrew S. Haydon, 110, avenue Laurier ouest |
Present / Présents : Councillors / Conseillers M.
McRae (Chair / Présidente), C. Leadman (Vice-Chair / Vice-présidente), G.
Bédard, S. Desroches, C. Doucet, J. Legendre, M. Wilkinson
Regrets / Excuses: R. Bloess,
D. Thompson
DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
DÉCLARATIONS D’INTÉRÊT
No declarations of interest were filed.
CONFIRMATION OF MINUTES /
Ratification dU PROCÈS-VERBaL
Minutes 37 of Wednesday, 2 December 2009 were
confirmed.
Moment
of Silence
Committee members and all present observed a moment of silence for
Police Constable Eric
Czapnik who was killed while on duty on 29 December 2009.
COMMUNICATIONS
COMMUNICATIONS
Responses to Inquiries: / Réponses aux demandes de renseignements:
TRC 06-09 Implementation of pilot east-west segregated cycling lane /
Mise en oeuvre du projet pilote de voie cyclable séparée est-ouest
TRC 07-09 Cycling Safety near the Pretoria Bridge /
Sécurité des cyclistes à proximité du pont Pretoria
RECEIVED
INFRASTRUCTURE SERVICES & COMMUNITY SUSTAINABILITY
SERVICES D’INFRASTRUCTURE ET
VIABILITÉ DES COLLECTIVITÉS
PLANNING AND GROWTH MANAGEMENT
URBANISME
ET GESTION DE LA CROISSANCE
1. HUNT CLUB COMMUNITY PATHWAY CONNECTION TO SOUTHEAST TRANSITWAY
ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT STUDY RECOMMENDATIONS
RECOMMANDATIONS
DE L'ÉTUDE D'ÉVALUATION ENVIRONNEMENTALE concernant un sentier piétonnier entre
le secteur Hunt Club et le Transitway Sud-Est
ACS2010-ICS-PGM-0011 Gloucester-Southgate (10); River/Rivière (16)
The Committee
received an e-mail dated 5 January 2010 from the Hunt Club Community
Organization in support of the staff recommendations. A copy of their submission is held on file.
That the
Transportation Committee recommend Council approve:
1. The Environmental Assessment study's
recommended plan for the pathway connection between the Hunt Club community (at
Cahill Drive West) and the Southeast Transitway (at the South Keys Transitway
station) as detailed in this report; and
2. The
finalization of the Environmental Study Report for the Hunt Club Community
Pathway Connection to the Southeast Transitway project and posting of the
Notice of Study Completion.
CARRIED
COUNCILLORS’ ITEMS
ARTICLES DES CONSEILLERS
Councillor
/ Conseiller BÉDARD
2. MONTRÉAL
ROAD CLOSURES
FERMETURE À LA
HAUTEUR DU CHEMIN Montréal
ACS2010-CCS-TRC-0001 Rideau-Vanier (12)
Councillor Legendre made note of the
legal advice contained in the report and put forward the following amendment:
Moved by J. Legendre
That the following bullet be removed
from the content of the report, as it is premature and pre-supposes conclusions
of the study:
·
File application for road closure with the City of Ottawa
CARRIED
That the Transportation Committee recommend that
Council direct staff in the Infrastructure
Services and Community Sustainability Portfolio, Planning and Growth Management Department and the City
Operations Portfolio, Public Works and Services Department to partner with the
Quartier Vanier BIA and its consultants to provide support and assistance as
needed to complete a study for the closure of certain streets on Montréal Road
as previously identified in the City of Ottawa Official Plan.
CARRIED, as amended
MOTIONS OF WHICH
NOTICE HAS BEEN PREVIOUSLY GIVEN
MOTIONS AYANT FAIT L’OBJET D’UN AVIS PRÉCÉDENT
Councillor / Conseiller DOUCET
3. NEED FOR SEGREGATED BIKE
LANES - MOTION
NÉCESSITÉ DE CRÉER DES VOIES CYCLABLES SÉPARÉES - MOTION
ACS2009-CCS-TRC-0013 City Wide /
a l’échelle de la ville
At the outset,
Councillor Doucet indicated he was proposing to delete Recommendation 3, in
lieu of the Downtown Ottawa Urban Design Strategy. Councillor Leadman advised that she was going
to propose an amendment and suggested that it replace the original
recommendation as follows:
3. That staff be directed to
review the presentations recently made by Inge Molenaar (Cycling in The
Netherlands and the Hague) and Roger Geller (The Portland Story Benefiting from
Bicycling) and report back to Committee on the transportation and financial
advantages of investing in bicycle infrastructure that these cities have
experienced.
Councillor Doucet
accepted this replacement recommendation.
In speaking to the report, the councillor recalled the many accidents
that occurred in 2009 where cyclists were seriously injured or killed and
emphasized that something must be done to address this issue. He referred to the success of painted or
segregated bike lanes in other cities and stated that he wanted to see more
done in Ottawa to make cycling safer.
Alayne McGregor was opposed to
Recommendations 2 and 3 because she did not believe segregated bike lanes are
safe for cyclists. Using a visual
display, she related her experiences using these lanes in Montréal. She explained that when there is a lot of
bicycle traffic, cars cannot easily make turns onto side-streets and there are
often near misses between cyclists and motorists and sometimes even
pedestrians, who think they can just walk out into the bike lane at any
time. She maintained therefore that
while many may think these facilities are safe, what they do is put cyclists into
positions where they are not expected and are not seen. A copy of her letter dated 6 January was
distributed and is held on file.
When asked to comment
on the concerns raised by the delegation, Mona Abouhenidy, Program Manager,
Transportation Strategic Planning, advised that if the report recommendations
are approved, staff would study the safety issues first and then identify a
variety of measures to address those concerns.
She confirmed the study would have a wide scope.
Charles
Akben-Marchand stated that having segregated bike lanes does nothing to improve safety
because people need to know how to use them.
He believed education was necessary to promote a culture of cycling and
to reduce confusion and frustration. He
commented on how media campaigns help cyclists and motorists understand each
other and he posited that cycling safety can be improved and taught in many
ways by:
·
Providing cycling courses for the general public
·
Expanding courses into
schools via Citizens for Safe Cycling's Elementary School
Bicycle Safety Program; booths at public events (like
Ottawa Public Health's helmet blitzes, but with broader focus), et cetera
·
Teaming up with other government agencies and the private sector for
broader impact.
Mr. Akben-Marchand stated
that segregated
cycling facilities are not the solution to cycling safety and maintained
that by educating all road users, the City will best promote cycling
safety. A copy of his presentation was
later distributed to members of the Committee and a copy is held on file.
Dianne Cox, Cycling Vision Ottawa spoke in support of the
recommendations in the report. She
indicated that Cycling Vision Ottawa observes
the high proportion of cycling accidents at intersections, and cities that
invest in cycling infrastructure are constantly exploring engineering treatments
to improve safety at these locations.
Such improvements range from distinctive, highly-visible painted
markings, to bicycle traffic lights.
Intersection treatments for cyclists are often designed to continue the
effect of segregation carried over from adjacent bike lanes and are therefore
important for improved overall cycling safety.
She further noted that if clear markings are not provided where cyclists should be
and where the motorists can see them, there will not be a noticeable increase in
cycling. Most agree that the more
cyclists on the road, the safer it is for them because of the psychological
changes that occur in drivers, i.e., they are more alert to them. A copy of their written submission dated 5
January 2010 was previously distributed and a copy is held on file.
Councillor Wilkinson
inquired what the cost of the study would be and staff explained that their
intention is to report back with a terms of reference and to identify the cost
of the study. Ms. Abouhenidy added that
funding is currently not available in the existing budget to implement any
measures or to conduct the study, and so, if Council determines to move ahead
on this, staff would have to prioritize their existing workplan. The councillor further asked if all types
of cycling lanes would be looked at as part of the study and was advised by
staff that all measures will be examined, not just segregated bike lanes. The councillor asked if the study could also
examine the maintenance requirements to keep safe cycling routes available in
the winter and Ms. Abouhenidy confirmed that this could be added to the scope
of the study if that is the wish of the Committee and Council.
With respect to the
issue of addressing issues at particular locations, Councillor Desroches thought
staff would have already looked into the intersections and problem areas as
part of the Cycling Plan development.
Ms. Abouhenidy advised that the Cycling Plan focused on developing a
city-wide network of infrastructure to correspond to all cycling levels, and
did not go down to the intersections level.
The councillor suggested that in the absence of that, such locations
should be treated as are those involving motor vehicles and he understood this
is what this study will address with a view to determining whether changes can
be undertaken.
In his closing remarks, Councillor Doucet was amazed
about the resistance among some cyclists to segregated bike lanes. He noted that Roger Geller, the Bicycle
Coordinator for the City of Oregon stated that 50% of people surveyed said they
would cycle if they could do so in a safe environment. The councillor recognized that bicycle
facilities can never be 100% safe, but emphasized that segregated bike lanes
are the premier choice by all cities that consider cycling a serious form of
transportation. He believed that the
study being recommended will bring more resources and focus to what needs to be
done.
The Chair thanked Councillor Doucet for bringing this
forward and requested a recorded vote on the matter.
That the Transportation Committee direct staff to
undertake the following:
1. Identify
locations of potential pedestrian/cyclist/vehicle conflict using available
information such as accident records and report back to Transportation
Committee with a plan on how to minimize collisions at these locations in time
for consideration as part of the 2011 Budget.
3. That staff be directed to review the
presentations recently made by Inge Molenaar (Cycling in The Netherlands and
the Hague) and Roger Geller (The Portland Story Benefiting from Bicycling) and
report back to Committee on the transportation and financial advantages of
investing in bicycle infrastructure that these cities have experienced.
CARRIED,
as amended
YEAS
(7) : M. Wilkinson, S.
Desroches, G. Bédard, J. Legendre, C. Doucet, C. Leadman, M. McRae
NAYS
(0)
COUNCILLOR
/ CONSEILLER BÉDARD
4. 90 GEORGE STREET – PROPOSED VALET
PARKING - MOTION
90, RUE GEORGE - SERVICE VOITURIER PROPOSÉ - MOTION
ACS2010-CCS-TRC-0002 Rideau-Vanier (12)
Councillor Bédard indicated
he had a technical amendment which had been agreed to by staff and the property
owner, but which had not been reflected in the report.
Moved by G.
Bédard
That the following condition
from the “Contents of License of Occupation Agreement” (Document 1):
“Should the City and/or Public Utilities operating within the Public
Right of Way decide to renew or repair infrastructure below the surface of the
Lands, the Owner must remove the improvements and repair or renew the surface
of the lands at its expense upon the time specified within written notice from
the City.”
be replaced with:
"Should
the City or utility companies decide to renew or repair infrastructure below
the surface of the lands, the City or utility company is responsible for
compacting while the owners are responsible for removing and replacing the
pavers within time periods specified in written notice from the City.
CARRIED
That the Transportation Committee
recommend that Council approve:
1. That the Director of Real
Estate Partnership and Development Office be authorized to enter into a License of
Occupation agreement on behalf of the City with the Owner in accordance with
the terms and conditions as set out in Document 1, which terms and conditions
will provide a 10 year term for the License of Occupation agreement with a
nominal yearly fee of $1.00 for the 10 year term, which will be subject to
renegotiation for further renewals based on applicable City land lease policy
in place thereafter.
2. That the Deputy City Manager,
Infrastructure Services and Community Sustainability provide for the issuance
of the required road cut permit to allow the Owner to undertake the proposed
improvements subject to all technical matters related to the works being to the
satisfaction of the Deputy City Manager and subject to any securities as set
out in Document 1 being posted.
CARRIED,
as amended
ADJOURNMENT
LEVÉE
DE LA SÉANCE
The Committee
adjourned at 10:55 a.m.
Original Signed By Original
Signed By
R. Nelson M.
McRae
_____________________________ _____________________________
Committee
Coordinator Chair