Vancouver City Council |
ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT
Date: October 24, 2003
Author/Local: W. Chou/7913
RTS No. 03735
CC File No. 5762
Meeting Date: December 2, 2003
TO:
Vancouver City Council
FROM:
General Manager of Engineering Services
SUBJECT:
Insurance Corporation of British Columbia - Funding for Road Safety Improvements 2001-2003
RECOMMENDATION
A. THAT Council accept contributions from the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC), Road Safety Strategic Initiatives Program for various safety improvement projects as specified in this report, and that the Director of Legal Services be given standing authority to enter into agreements on behalf of the City relating thereto, provided they are drawn to the satisfaction of the Director of Legal Services in consultation with the General Manager of Engineering Services.
B. THAT the Mayor, on behalf of Council, write ICBC, thanking ICBC for its ongoing support and funding contributions of $2,076,000 between 2001 to 2003 for safety improvements in the City of Vancouver.
C. THAT ICBC be requested to recognize the need for improved pedestrian and cyclist safety in its public education campaigns.
COUNCIL POLICY
Council has approved similar programs and funding contributions from the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia since 1994 as part of their Road Safety Strategic Initiatives Program.
PURPOSE
The purpose of this report is to seek Council approval to accept contributions from the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) for Road Safety improvements within the City of Vancouver.
BACKGROUND
Since 1994, ICBC has participated in joint reviews with staff of traffic safety throughout the City of Vancouver. As a result of these reviews, ICBC has contributed over $4 million from its loss prevention program for safety improvements in the City, through a variety of projects such as signal enhancements, left-turn bays, neighbourhood traffic calming, and support of enforcement.
This funding has been used to provide an improved level of service on projects that Council had approved, and has resulted in substantial reduction in collisions.In addition, ICBC sponsors public education campaigns and police enforcement programs throughout the year.
DISCUSSION
2001 - 2003 ICBC Road Safety Contributions
ICBC continues to work with staff and consultants to identify and review high collision locations in the City. As a result of these studies, ICBC has agreed to provide funding towards Road Safety Initiatives. The following lists a summary of projects ICBC has provided cost-sharing for, from 2001 to 2003. Further details of these projects are shown in the Appendix.i) Corridor Operational Reviews - Kingsway, King Edward, 4th Avenue, & Rupert
Since 1994, staff in partnership with ICBC have completed corridor operational reviews along 16 of the City's major corridors. The purpose of these reviews is to study traffic conditions along the corridor, identify any operational issues relating to traffic and pedestrian safety, and to recommend measures to reduce the risk of collisions.
Between 2001 and 2003, four corridor reviews were completed including Kingsway, King Edward Avenue, 4th Avenue, and Rupert Street. Based on these reviews, traffic
measures ranging from additional signage to new traffic signals were recommended to enhance safety. ICBC has provided cost-sharing totalling $415,000 for these corridor improvements.
ii) Pedestrian Safety Measures - Pedestrian Signals, Special Crosswalks, & Bulges
City Council has approved the installation of pedestrian-controlled signals, special crosswalks, and pedestrian bulges, as part of the Annual Traffic Signal Program and the Enhancements at Pedestrian Crossings report. Over the past 2 years, ICBC has provided cost-sharing on 27 pedestrian signals, 9 special crosswalks, and 16 pedestrian bulges. ICBC's contributions towards these measures from 2001 to 2003 amounts to a total of $445,000.
iii) New Traffic Signal Installations and Intersection Re-Design
ICBC has agreed to provide funding for projects previously approved by Council which involve the installation of new traffic signals and/or geometric re-design. New traffic signal installations enhance safety for motorists and pedestrians by assigning right-of-way at intersections. Re-designing intersections improves level of service while increasing safety. Due to the safety benefits related to these projects, ICBC has contributed $611,000 between 2001 and 2003.
iv) Light Emitting Diode (LED) Traffic Signal Retrofit
On June 11, 2002, City Council approved a two year program with BC Hydro to retrofit all traffic signal lights with energy efficient LED technology. ICBC has agreed to provide cost-sharing to increase the size of existing signal heads in conjunction with the LED retrofit program. Signal visibility improvements such as this have been successful in reducing collisions throughout the City. ICBC has contributed $200,000 in 2002 and $80,000 in 2003 for this program.
vi) Additional projects
ICBC has agreed to provide funding towards the following projects:
Stop Sign Infill Program:
This program involves neighbourhood streets identified by staff as having accident types which could be reduced through the addition of stop signs to
better identify right-of-way. Many such neighbourhoods have some intersections presently controlled and would benefit from having the remainder of the area stop sign infilled. ICBC has contributed $150,000 towards this program over the past two years.
Speed Hump Program:
Speed humps are an effective means to calm traffic and reduce speeds on local residential streets, while not diverting traffic. ICBC contributed $50,000 in 2001 and $75,000 in 2003 towards this program.Boundary Road Lay-by:
In partnership with ICBC, the Vancouver Police, and Engineering, a lay-by was installed at the south-end of Boundary Road in 2002. This assists Police in enforcing traffic speeds of southbound motorists on Boundary between 49th Avenue and Marine Drive. ICBC has contributed $10,000 towards this project.Colour Change of School Area and School Crosswalk Ahead Signs:
In 2001, the Province approved the use of flourescent yellow/green for school area and school crosswalk ahead signs to enhance motorists' awareness of school zones. This program involved the retrofit of existing signs to this new standard. ICBC has contributed $40,000 towards this program in 2001.
Additional information on these projects is included in the Appendix.
In addition to the Engineering measures listed above, ICBC supports public education campaigns (including media advertising and public safety fairs) and supports police enforcement activities (such as the red-light camera program). Given the evolving nature of travel patterns in the City, it is suggested that these campaigns could place a great emphasis on protecting pedestrian and cyclist safety.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
Funding provided by ICBC has been used to improve the level of service of projects that Council has approved previously. With the additional funding contributed by ICBC, the City is able to include in the capital program a variety of projects to address traffic safety issues, which has resulted in reduction in collisions and improvements in pedestrian safety.
CONCLUSION
Since 1994, ICBC has participated in joint reviews with staff of traffic safety. As a result of these reviews, ICBC has contributed over $4 million from its Road Safety Strategic Initiatives Program. These funding contributions have helped to improve the level of service for projects that Council has already approved, and have resulted in reduction in collisions. Therefore, staff recommend that Council accept contributions from ICBC; and that the Mayor, on behalf of Council, thank ICBC for its ongoing support for safety improvements in the City of Vancouver.
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