Week in review: September 11, 2017
Consultations, feedback, and events
- HOLD THE LINE: a cycling and folk music festival celebrating Waterloo Region’s Countryside Line, Sept 16
- DOORS OPEN: Visit the ION operations and maintenance facility, Sept 16
- PEDESTRIANS: Feedback on ION from the Social Development Centre Waterloo Region
- CLIMATE ACTION: Transportation Sector Committee applications due Oct 15
- ION FIX-IT LIST: What details need correcting?
- PETITION: Make Benton street safe for families and pedestrians
- CAMBRIDGE: Transportation Master Plan
- TRANSIT:
- Transit affordability study – call for participants
- 2018 Grand River Transit service changes, Sept 13, 18, 21, 27, Oct 3, 16, 18 (online)
- BARRIERS: Highway 7/8 multi-use trail crossing
- REGION:
- Trade-offs in transportation
- Moving Forward progress report and consultation Sept 12, 13, 19
School zone
The Kitchener Post reports on local school board and municipal efforts to increase walking to school, as the province announces $4 million in funding for walking school bus and bike to school programs.
Guelph is changing speed limits in school zones to 30 km/h. Kitchener’s school zones are only 40 km/h, which carries nearly twice the risk of severe injury in a pedestrian collision as 30 km/h impacts. Based on the response to past advocacy efforts of local community groups, the Region doesn’t appear interested in changing speeds at all along Regional roads near schools.
- ‘Zero tolerance’ for driving violations in school zones [The Record]
- Parent-led advocacy is changing Toronto’s streets [Toronto Centre for Active Transportation]
- Very superstitious: how fact-free parenting policies rob our kids of independence [5 Kids 1 Condo]
Moving forward
Consultations resume next week on the update to the Region’s Transportation Master Plan. As part of its work, the Region plans to study three scenarios: committed and planned projects (continuing the status quo), increased transit and active transportation, and potential futures with “new mobility” (autonomous cars, ride-hailing, etc).
Transit
Public consultations for proposed 2018 transit route changes begin next week. (Survey is also available online.) We note from the materials that there is still no connection shown between the 202 University iXpress and ION, or between the 202 and the rationalized route 7.
- Basics: the high cost of peak-only transit [Human Transit]
- Speed vs coverage: how do metro systems decide how to space their stops [CityMetric]
- How network structure can boost and shape the demand for bus transit [Transportation Research]
- Slides from Metrolinx presentation to Regional Council [Metrolinx]
- Fare policy vs ticketing [Human Transit]
- GTHA fare integration [Metrolinx]
- A lean, green, well-branded transport machine - Toronto’s GO Transit [TransportDesigned]
Walking
The Social Development Centre Waterloo Region is seeking public feedback on pedestrian access around ION. Kitchener appears poised to approve traffic calming for Doon Mills Drive that includes a raised crossing and narrowed intersections.
- Blame the road design, not the phone [Strong Towns]
- Propaganda [Transportation Alternatives]
- Traffic signals: catalyst of car-driven cities [Sidewalk Labs]
- Honolulu’s pedestrian-blaming law sets off a round of copycats [Streetsblog]
- A better world for wheels on Google Maps [Google Blog]
Cycling
Continuing from the conversation about behaviour, infrastructure, and cycling safety over the last few weeks, Robin Mazumder shares his thoughts: “Finger wagging at people who cycle to follow road rules in a city with no separated bike lanes is like telling someone to stay in their swim lane when they’re drowning in the pool.” He invites ideas on how to best move forward with transforming local cycling infrastructure. TriTAG has something brewing in that regard, so stay tuned!
- I am not a cyclist [Modacity]
- Cycling from Kitchener Waterloo to Guelph [RideCycleSpin]
- Transportation safety establishment finally starting to understand bicycling [Streetsblog]
- Sharp rise in NY cyclists linked to roll-out of bike lanes [Transportation Xtra]
- Can a bike-friendly city be disability-friendly too? [Strong Towns]
- What went wrong with this goofy bike lane [Streetsblog]
Land use
- ‘Animating Waterloo Region’ project asks community to help map vibrant public spaces [CBC]
- Highrise plans make good sense [The Record]
- Trying to stop prime farmland from being ‘entombed forever’ [The Star]
- Oh, no! Is the urban revival really over? [City Observatory]
- On college campuses of the future, parking may be a relic [NY Times]
- Meme weeding: land value capture [Pedestrian Observations]
Road ahead
- New highway 7 delayed again (womp womp) [The Record]
- The high cost of owning and driving a car [The Record]
- Reimagining our roads [Curbed]
- The future of driverless cars is a bus [The Outline]