REPORT TO COUNCIL

STANDING COMMITTEE OF COUNCIL
ON TRANSPORTATION AND TRAFFIC

JUNE 25, 2002

A Regular Meeting of the Standing Committee of Council on Transportation and Traffic was held on Tuesday, June 25, 2002, at 9:36 a.m., in Committee Room No. 1, Third Floor, City Hall.

PRESENT:	Councillor Jennifer Clarke, Chair Councillor Fred Bass Councillor Daniel Lee Councillor Tim Louis Councillor Sandy McCormick Councillor George Puil *Councillor Sam Sullivan (Sick Leave)
ABSENT:	Mayor Philip Owen (Civic Business) Councillor Lynne Kennedy (Civic Business) Councillor Don Lee (Civic Business) Councillor Gordon Price, Vice-Chair
CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE:	Judy Rogers, City Manager
CITY CLERK'S OFFICE:	Lori Isfeld, Meeting Coordinator

* Denotes presence for a portion of the meeting.

ADOPTION OF MINUTES

The minutes of the Standing Committee on Transportation and Traffic meeting of May 28, 2002, were adopted.

INFORMATION

Announcement - Spare Change Metres

Ian Adam, Assistant City Engineer - Transportation, reported on the success of spare change metres as an alternative to panhandling. Proceeds in the amount of approximately $5,400 had been donated to Union Gospel Mission to aid in helping street kids. Mr. Adam displayed a plaque Union Gospel Mission had presented to the City of Vancouver to show their appreciation.

RECOMMENDATION

1. Napier Street and Semlin Drive Chicane - Follow Up (File 5757)

The Committee had before it an Administrative Report dated June 4, 2002, in which the General Manager of Engineering Services presented the results of the survey regarding the Napier Street and Semlin Drive chicane, and recommended removal of the chicane and a process to resolve neighbourhood traffic concerns.

Jim Hall, Neighbourhood Transportation Engineer, reviewed the report and rationale for the recommendations, and with Ian Adam, Assistant City Engineer - Transportation, responded to questions. Sylvia Kirk, Neighbourhood Transportation, was also available to respond to questions.

Mr. Hall, with the aid of a wall map, reviewed traffic issues caused by street configuration and the large volume of cut through traffic destined downtown in the morning and leaving downtown in the afternoon. Mr. Hall noted chicanes have proven they only marginally reduce traffic volume and speeds, therefore, they will be removed from the traffic calming devices toolkit.

Mr. Hall confirmed work with resident groups is underway, that draft traffic calming plans for the area have already been developed, and that a review of arterials will be included in the process.

The following generally spoke in support of removing the temporary chicane and to continue working collaboratively on a neighbourhood traffic reduction and calming plan. Other comments and suggestions made by the speakers are also noted:

Sue Melnychuk, Neighbourhood Traffic Group
John Brohman
Petronella Vandervalk
Carol Rosset

The following is a summary of comments made by the foregoing speakers:

· livability of the neighbourhood has been severely impacted by increased traffic;
· Grandview Woodland traffic calming plan has been very effective on some streets but has had negative effects on streets such as Napier;
· request was made that the City undertake a comprehensive traffic reduction plan through a collaborative effort with the community;
· the traffic reduction plan should look at the entire area from Hastings to 1st Avenue, including arterials;
· request was made that the plan be introduced within a reasonable time frame;
· residents in the Graveley Street area are also negatively impacted by cut through traffic coming out of downtown and from traffic attempting to shortcut off First Avenue into downtown;
· the traffic reduction plan must be a collective and comprehensive solution; stop gap measures only divert traffic onto other streets;
· suggestion was made to use disincentives such as tolling systems on bridges to limit flows on arterials in the east side of the city;
· suggestion was made that Victoria Drive be downgraded from a secondary arterial to a residential street.

Discussion ensued on the possibility of implementing employee trip reduction plans to reduce traffic.

MOVED by Councillor Louis
THAT the Committee recommend to Council

A. THAT Council approve the removal of the temporary chicane that was installed on a trial basis on the 1900 and 2000 block of Napier Street with funding of $1,000 from Streets Basic Capital Unappropriated Account Group SCA5A-UNAP (Local Area and Other Improvements).

B. THAT staff continue to work with neighbourhood residents (generally bounded by Parker, Nanaimo, 1st Ave, and Victoria) to design a neighbourhood traffic reduction and calming plan, which would be reported back for Council's approval no later than June, 2003.

CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

MOVED by Councillor McCormick
THAT the Committee recommend to Council

C. THAT arterial routings be reviewed as part of this process.

CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

MOVED by Councillor Bass
THAT the Committee recommend to Council

THAT staff report back with a comprehensive review and implementation plan for traffic demand reduction strategies that will decrease the number of cars entering traffic arterials.

LOST
(Councillors Clarke, Daniel Lee, McCormick, Puil and Sullivan opposed)

Dave Rudberg, City Engineer, noted undertaking a comprehensive review and implementation plan would require a significant amount of resources, that many of these decisions are driven at the regional level, and that the City is working with TransLink on a regional strategy.

2. Protect Public Health Care (File 4101)

At its meeting on April 30, 2002, Vancouver City Council referred the following motion to a future Standing Committee meeting in order to hear speakers.

"MOVED by Councillor Bass
SECONDED by Councillor Louis

WHEREAS, universal access to health care is an economic and social asset;

AND WHEREAS, the provincial government announced dramatic changes in the delivery of healthcare which will limit access to health services and negatively affect the population of the city of Vancouver;

AND WHEREAS, the provincial government's proposed changes in health care could lead to radical privatization of healthcare services;

AND WHEREAS, once privatization is introduced into the system, international trade agreements will likely limit the provincial governments' ability to set healthcare policy;

AND WHEREAS, the changes to health care were conducted with no broad public consultation;

AND WHEREAS, municipal councils across British Columbia - including the councils of the District of North Vancouver, the City of North Vancouver, Burnaby, Hope, Port Coquitlam, Williams Lake and Terrace - are considering resolutions on opposing cuts to health services;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT, the City of Vancouver:

(A) call on the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority and the provincial government to conduct broad, public consultations prior to going ahead with any of the proposed privatization of services, hospital closures and health service cuts;

(B) obtain comprehensive social and economic impact studies to assess the effect that the proposed healthcare changes would have on Vancouver residents; and

(C) request the Union of British Columbia Municipalities and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities to examine the implications of free trade agreements on our public healthcare policies and operations."

Due to time constraints at the May 28, 2002, Standing Committee on Transportation and Traffic meeting, the Committee heard from the first four speakers, and agreed to refer the matter to a future Standing Committee meeting to continue hearing speakers.

The following spoke in support of the motion:

Isabel Minty
Ellen Woodsworth, Downtown Eastside Seniors Centre
Valory Craske
Carol Korm
Cheryl Hewitt
Charlie Richmond
Colleen Fuller
Bert Massiah
Jeff West, REACH Centre Association
Deb Niemi

The following is a summary of comments made by the foregoing speakers:

· the present public health care system should be maintained rather than introducing public private partnerships or privatization;
· public heath care is a fundamental right and social value;
· cost effectiveness comparisons favour public health care over private;
· a case should be made for the federal government allotting more tax dollars to support and maintain a universal health care system;
· seniors built this health care system yet are among the people most severely affected;
· many seniors cannot afford to pay for rent, food, medical fees, user fees, and drugs; this results in more seniors who are homeless, using the food bank, and in emergency wards;
· broad consultation should take place on economical and social costs of the cuts;
· health care cuts will result in increased homelessness, crime, and desperate people;
· Canadian health care is well known for being superior; if there is no difference between health care in Canada and the U.S., businesses may not stay in Canada;
· the City of Vancouver has a direct role in providing and regulating health care, and it has a mandate to represent its citizens;
· comprehensive consultation will not be valid if the City of Vancouver is not involved;

·privatization will result in health care not based on needs, but based on profits;
· Council should be concerned regarding the lack of citizen input into the changes.

AMENDMENT MOVED by Councillor Puil

THAT the Motion on "Protect Public Health Care" be amended by deleting all but the first "Whereas".

CARRIED
(Councillors Bass and Louis opposed)
(Councillor Sullivan absent for the vote)

AMENDMENT MOVED by Councillor Puil

THAT Resolution A of the Motion on "Protect Public Health Care" be amended as follows (italics denote amendments):

A. call on the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority and the provincial government to conduct broad, public consultations about proposed health service changes;

CARRIED
(Councillors Bass and Louis opposed)
(Councillor Sullivan absent for the vote)

The amendment having carried, Resolution A was put and LOST (tie vote) with Councillors Daniel Lee, McCormick and Puil opposed, and Councillor Sullivan absent for the vote.

AMENDMENT MOVED by Councillor Puil

THAT Resolution B of the Motion on "Protect Public Health Care" be amended as follows (italics denote amendments):

B. obtain comprehensive information to assess the effect that the proposed healthcare changes would have on Vancouver residents, particularly the impact on seniors; and

THAT Resolution C of the Motion on "Protect Public Health Care" be amended by striking the words "Union of British Columbia Municipalities", as follows:

C. request the Federation of Canadian Municipalities to examine the implications of free trade agreements on our public healthcare policies and operations.

CARRIED
(Councillors Bass and Louis opposed to the amendments to Resolution C)
(Councillor Sullivan absent for the vote)

MOTION AS AMENDED
THAT the Committee recommend to Council

WHEREAS, universal access to health care is an economic and social asset;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT, the City of Vancouver:

A. obtain comprehensive information to assess the effect that the proposed healthcare changes would have on Vancouver residents, particularly the impact on seniors; and

B. request the Federation of Canadian Municipalities to examine the implications of free trade agreements on our public healthcare policies and operations.

CARRIED
(Councillor Puil opposed to Resolution A)
(Councillor Sullivan absent for the vote)

The Committee adjourned at 12:15 p.m.

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CITY OF VANCOUVER

REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES
STANDING COMMITTEE OF COUNCIL ON
TRANSPORTATION AND TRAFFIC

JUNE 25, 2002

A Regular Meeting of the Council of the City of Vancouver was held on Tuesday, June 25, 2002, at 12:16 p.m., in Committee Room No. 1, Third Floor, City Hall, following the Standing Committee on Transportation and Traffic meeting, to consider the recommendations of the Committee.

PRESENT:	Acting Mayor George Puil Councillor Jennifer Clarke Councillor Fred Bass Councillor Daniel Lee Councillor Tim Louis Councillor Sandy McCormick
ABSENT:	Mayor Philip Owen (Civic Business) Councillor Lynne Kennedy (Civic Business) Councillor Don Lee (Civic Business) Councillor Gordon Price Councillor Sam Sullivan (Sick Leave)
CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE:	Judy Rogers, City Manager
CITY CLERK'S OFFICE:	Lori Isfeld, Meeting Coordinator

COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE

MOVED by Councillor McCormick
SECONDED by Councillor Daniel Lee

THAT this Council resolve itself into Committee of the Whole, Acting Mayor Puil in the Chair.

CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

COMMITTEE REPORTS

Report of Standing Committee on Transportation and Traffic
June 25, 2002

Council considered the recommendations of the Committee, as contained in the following clauses of the foregoing report:

Cl.1: Napier Street and Semlin Drive Chicane - Follow up
Cl.2: Protect Public Health Care

Clause 1

MOVED by Councillor Clarke

THAT the recommendations of the Committee, as contained in Clause 1 of this report, be approved.

CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

MOVED by Councillor Bass

THAT staff report back with a comprehensive review and implementation plan for traffic demand reduction strategies that will decrease the number of cars entering traffic arterials.

LOST
(Councillors Clarke, Daniel Lee, McCormick, Puil and Sullivan opposed)

Clause 2

MOVED by Councillor Clarke

THAT the recommendations of the Committee, as contained in Clause 2 of this report, be approved.

CARRIED
(Councillor Puil opposed to Resolution A)

MOVED by Councillor Bass

A. (That the City of Vancouver) call on the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority and the provincial government to conduct broad, public consultations about proposed health service changes;

LOST (tie vote)
(Councillors Daniel Lee, McCormick and Puil opposed)

RISE FROM COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE

MOVED by Councillor McCormick

THAT the Committee of the Whole rise and report.

CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

ADOPT REPORT OF COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE

MOVED by Councillor Daniel Lee
SECONDED by Councillor McCormick

THAT the report of the Committee of the Whole be adopted.

CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

The Council adjourned at 12:18 p.m.

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(c) 1998 City of Vancouver