ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT

Date: November 20, 2001
Author/Local: N.Hood/

604-873-7742

RTS No. 1773

CC File No. 5757

T&T: December 11, 2001

TO:	Standing Committee on Transportation and Traffic
FROM:	General Manager of Engineering Services
SUBJECT:	Vernon Drive at Pender Street - Traffic Diverter

RECOMMENDATION

A. THAT the temporary traffic diverter on Vernon Drive at Pender Street be made permanent, at a cost of $40,000. Funding to be provided from Streets Basic Capital Unappropriated Account Group SCA5A-UNAP -Local Area Traffic Plans and Other Improvements.

B. THAT subject to 2003 budget review, the Traffic Operations Maintenance Budget be increased by $200, without offset and the Street Operations Maintenance Budget be increased by $1600, without offset.

PURPOSE
This report seeks approval and funding for a permanent traffic diverter at the intersection of Vernon Drive and Pender Street.

BACKGROUND

A temporary traffic diverter was installed on Vernon Drive at Pender Street in August 2000, at the request of the Strathcona Neighbourhood Integrated Service Team (NIST), to address residents' concerns about street prostitution and non-local traffic shortcutting on Vernon Drive.

DISCUSSION

Vernon Drive, between Venables Street and Hastings Street, is a 12 metre wide collector street providing access to both residential and industrial properties. There are twenty properties abutting Vernon Drive; ten of these are zoned industrial, nine are zoned residential and one is a school. A zoning map of the neighbourhood is included as Attachment "A".

Traffic volumes taken at the north and south end of Vernon Drive, before and after the installation of the temporary diverter, are shown in the table below.

Vernon Drive: Before and After Volumes

Location	Before Volumes (1998)	Before % Trucks	After Volumes (2001)	After % Trucks
S/of Hastings	4070	4.2%	2673	0.8%
S/of Adanac	3789	3.7%	3443	0.5%

The before and after counts indicate the diverter has been effective in reducing both general traffic volumes and heavy truck volumes. This is seen as beneficial by a large majority of the residents in the area, but is not seen as advantageous by many of the businesses in the area who regard Vernon Drive as an important access road for customers, employees and suppliers.

The presence of the diverter, along with other staff initiatives, has contributed to the reduction of street prostitution in the area . The other initiatives include the closing of a problem building at the corner of Vernon Drive and Hastings Street, and the establishment of a Community Police Office on Pender Street, just east of Vernon Drive.

Area residents have also raised concerns about traffic adjacent Seymour Elementary School, particularly that traffic has diverted to Glen Drive from Vernon Drive because of the diverter. Although no before counts are available adjacent the school, counts were done after the diverter was installed to compare conditions on each of the streets.

After Volumes Adjacent Seymour School

Location	Traffic Volume	% Trucks
Glen S/of Keefer	1162	0.5%
Vernon S/of Frances	1460	0.3%

Although Glen Drive may have seen a small increase in traffic since the installation of the temporary diverter on Vernon Drive, conditions on the two streets are similar and no additional traffic calming measures are proposed. Each of these streets has also been reviewed under the speed hump program, but neither street ranks high enough to recommend installation of speed humps at this time.

CONSULTATION

On July 12, 2001, letters and surveys were delivered to residents and businesses in the area bounded by Clark Drive, Glen Drive, Hastings Street and Venables Street, asking them for their opinion on whether the temporary diverter at Vernon Drive and Pender Street should be made permanent (Attachment "B"). A total of one hundred ninety-two surveys were hand-delivered and thirty-five were mailed to absentee property owners. Results of the survey are summarized in the table below. Comments and letters received with the surveys are in Attachment "C".

SURVEY QUESTION:

The temporary traffic diverter at Vernon Dr. and Pender St. should be made permanent.

Delivered	Responses	In Favour	Opposed	Neutral
227	56 (25%)	37 (66%)	14 (25%)	5 (9%)

The overall survey results show a two-thirds majority in favour of the diverter. If the results are analysed based on property use, the residents are more than 80% in favour of the diverter, while the business community is evenly split with ten in favour, ten opposed and four neutral.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

The estimated capital cost of installing a permanent diverter is $40,000. Funding for this project is available from Streets Basic Capital Unappropriated Account Group SCA5A-UNAP- Local Area Traffic Plans and Other Improvements. In addition to the capital costs for this project, there will be maintenance costs associated with the signing and landscaping of the diverter. It is recommended that the Traffic Operations Maintenance Budget be increased by $200 and the Streets Operations Maintenance Budget be increased by $1600, without offset, commencing in 2003.

CONCLUSION

The temporary traffic diverter on Vernon Drive, at Pender Street, has contributed to the reduction of the street prostitution in the neighbourhood and proven effective in reducing both general traffic volumes and truck volumes on Vernon Drive. The proposal to make the diverter permanent has met with strong support from area residents and is also supported by half the area businesses.

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NOTE FROM CLERK - Attachments A, B and C are not available in electronic form - on file in the Office of the City Clerk.

(c) 1998 City of Vancouver