Agenda Index City of Vancouver

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT

TO:

Standing Committee on Planning and Environment

FROM:

General Manager of Engineering Services

SUBJECT:

Additions to the Major Road Network

 

RECOMMENDATION

COUNCIL POLICY

Council has supported the formation of the GVTA and its responsibilities for funding and governance of the transportation facilities, including a Major Road Network and its component within Vancouver.

Other key existing transportation policies include:

· Vancouver Transportation Plan (1997), which emphasized the need for increased provision and use of transit, not increasing overall road capacity above the present level, maintaining an efficient goods movement network; traffic calming in neighbourhoods, and providing more comfortable biking and walking environments.

· Downtown Transportation Plan (2002), which emphasized creating a sustainable transportation system that will meet the needs of the present without compromising the future.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this report is to designate Burrard Street from Hastings Street to Broadway as an addition to the Major Road Network (MRN), including extensions to other existing MRN streets for network continuity.

BACKGROUND

In 1999, the Greater Vancouver Transportation Authority Board (TransLink) approved the guiding principles for the establishment, funding and operation of the regional Major Road Network. The purpose of the Major Road Network (MRN) is to maintain regional mobility by providing continuity through municipalities for all types of traffic.

Roads are included in the MRN only if they meet the set of evaluation criteria established by TransLink (see Appendix A) and receive the approval of the municipality in which they are located. As part of the initial Major Road Network, Council approved several streets within the City of Vancouver (see Appendix B). Since this initial network was finalized in advance of a completed Downtown Transportation Plan, the GVTA was advised that the City may submit revisions to the MRN streets in the downtown peninsula.

In 2002, Council approved the Downtown Transportation Plan, which included a review of existing downtown MRN streets as well as identifying other downtown streets for potential inclusion in the MRN. The plan confirmed that the existing designated MRN streets are appropriate and that other streets are potential candidates.

To date, there have been no new road segments added to, or removed from, the originally conceived MRN. However, TransLink is currently considering adding some new road segments to the overall MRN network. This process includes reviewing whether or not the proposed additions meet the MRN evaluation criteria in Appendix A.

DISCUSSION

Major Road Network Principles and Funding

When the original MRN network was created, several principles were established by TransLink to describe the roles of both the GVTA and the member municipalities. For example, TransLink provides overall major road planning, standards for maintenance and construction, and funding for maintenance activities as well as new capital projects. The municipalities retain ownership and control of designated MRN streets and the operation of the MRN is guided by a set of co-management principles and by a consultative planningprocess. Issues around maintenance standards, reductions in people carrying capacity or truck route status need to be mutually agreed upon.

Funding is provided by TransLink to the municipalities to maintain and, where appropriate, upgrade the MRN. In 2002,Vancouver received the following funding assistance from TransLink with respect to the MRN:

· MRN Minor Capital Program = $2,958,000

· Operations, Maintenance, and Rehabilitions (OMR)Program = $4,941,000

Downtown Transportation Plan

As part of the Downtown Transportation Plan process, a review of other downtown streets for potential inclusion in the MRN resulted in the following observations:

· "Burrard Street, from Burrard Street Bridge to Hastings, is one of the busiest streets in the downtown with traffic volumes similar to Georgia Street. Burrard could qualify as an MRN street based on its support of major regional transit services, its designation as a truck route, its role in providing network continuity, its accommodation of regional traffic to and across the downtown, particularly between the north shore municipalities and UBC."
· "Granville Street from the Granville Bridge to Hastings Street is a major transit corridor. Granville Mall carries more people by all modes than any other downtown street, including the Lions Gate Bridge. Its role in providing efficient transit service in Vancouver is critical in reducing congestion along other MRN streets in Vancouver."

For either of these proposed road segments to be added by TransLink to the existing MRN, they must first meet the established MRN evaluation criteria as shown in Appendix A. Secondly, these road segments must be recommended by City Council.

Burrard Street

As the future role of Burrard Street is becoming more apparent with the Burrard Bridge Sidewalk Study and the Transit Priority Study, it is recommended that Burrard Street from Hastings Street to Broadway be included in the MRN. This should also include its connections to the rest of the MRN (i.e. Burrard Street to Nelson, Smithe and Hastings streets) and the Burrard Street Bridge.

Adding Burrard Street to the MRN as part of the current review by TransLink would allow the City to be eligible for funding assistance as early as next year to implement some of the Downtown Transportation Plan recommendations on Burrard Street. In addition, the City could expect to receive approximately $200,000 per year in new OMR funding if sufficient funding is available.

Granville Street

While Granville Street and Mall would likely meet the technical MRN evaluation criteria, its inclusion in the MRN should be deferred until completion of the upcoming transportation engineering and urban design study of Granville Street where its transportation role and context will be better defined.

Public Consultation

The public were provided an opportunity to comment on the proposed recommendation to add Burrard Street to the MRN through notification in the Courier, Sun and Province newspapers. As well, stakeholders from the Burrard Bridge Study were directly notified by mail requesting their feedback on this proposal.

In general, there was little to no concern by the general public about adding Burrard Street to the MRN. There was also little feedback provided by the stakeholders, noting that Burrard Street was recommended in principle to be added to the MRN as part of the final Downtown Transportation Plan report.

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

This report describes the potential new road segments in the City that could be added to the existing Major Road Network (MRN). Staff recommend that Burrard Street from Hastings Street to Broadway be included in the MRN as part of TransLink's current process of reviewing additions to the regional network. This includes adding the extensions of Nelson Street, Smithe Street and Hastings Street to Burrard to the MRN to ensure network connectivity of the existing MRN.

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APPENDIX A

Major Road Network Evaluation Criteria

A 3-step approach has been used by TransLink to determine the appropriateness of including segments in the overall Major Road Network (MRN). This filter process is presented below:

1. Regional Connectivity

First, the overall goal is to ensure that a region-wide road network exists that connects major activity centres. These activity centres are:

· Downtown and the Regional Town Centres
· Major Post Secondary Education Sites (i.e UBC)
· Industrial Areas (i.e. Burrard Waterfront)
· Regional Gateways (i.e. Vancouver International Airport)

2. Traffic Usage

Second, for a road to be included in the MRN, it must demonstrate at least one of the following "use" criteria:

· The street provides significant intra-regional transit volumes

· The street must carry a high daily truck volume

· The street must carry a high proportion of longer trips and carry a minimum volume

3. Reasonableness and Completeness

Thirdly, the overall network must be seen to be reasonably complete or "connected" (network continuity).

APPENDIX B1

APPENDIX B2

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