SUPPORTS ITEM NO. 1
VTC AGENDA
APRIL 18, 1996
ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT
Date: March 18, 1996
Dept. File No. 165 645
TO: Vancouver Traffic Commission
FROM: General Manager of Engineering Services in consultation with
Director of Community Planning
SUBJECT: Traffic Measures for the Lane Between the
6100-6400 block Ash and Cambie, South of 45th Avenue
COUNCIL POLICY
Council supports a variety of measures to calm traffic in residential
areas.
PURPOSE
The purpose of this report is to inform Council about the actions taken
by staff regarding the traffic concerns in the lane between the 6100-
6400 block Cambie and Ash, south of 45th Avenue.
BACKGROUND
At the Vancouver Traffic Commission on February 2, 1995, Council
requested that the Engineering Department, in consultation with the
Planning Department, review the traffic concerns in the lane west of
Cambie Street, south of 45th Avenue.
On July 28, 1995, the residents of the 6100-6400 block Ash/Cambie
forwarded a petition to the City expressing their opposition to any
developments at the northern portion of the block. Their concerns are
that the developments will result in increased traffic in the area,
particularly in their lane where it will likely be used for future
parking access.
DISCUSSION
Referring to Figure 1, the northern portion of the 6100-6400 block
Ash/Cambie consists of institutional uses, while the southern portion
is residential. Residents in the southern portion expressed concerns
regarding existing back lane traffic volumes, congestion and speeds
caused by the institutional uses to the north primarily due to
daycare/school pick-up and drop-off activities.Reviews of the site
conditions confirmed that most of the daycare/school traffic is
concentrated at the northern portion of the lane as parents drop-off or
wait to pick-up their children. The southern portion of the lane is
used by some motorists to access the institutions. These traffic
conditions generally last about fifteen minutes, several times per day,
during the week.
Interim Measures
In order to encourage parents to use Ash Street for child pick-up and
drop-off at the Peretz School and to alleviate the concentration of the
daycare/school generated traffic in the lane, parking restrictions on
Ash Street in front of the Peretz Academy and the Police Station site
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were removed in March, 1995.
Further to that, the Oakridge/Marpole Integrated Services Team and
staff continued to work with area residents and institutions to better
resolve the back lane traffic concerns. Several mitigation options to
reduce the traffic volume and speed in the southern portion of the lane
were reviewed. It was concluded that the option of installing four
speed bumps in the residential portion of the lane, shown in Figure 1,
would be a viable option.
Rather than forwarding the option as a local improvement to be funded
by the area residents, the institutions were approached for the funding
of this improvement. As a result, St. John's Ambulance, Peretz School,
the Chinese Presbyterian Church and Alliance Francaise agreed to fund
the installation of speed bumps. Adjacent residents were notified in
writing on December 12, 1995 by the Integrated Services Team members
regarding the speed bump installation and no opposition was received.
On February 27, 1996, speed bumps were installed in the residential
portion of the lane between Ash and Cambie, south of 45th Avenue at no
cost to the residents. Response to date from residents has been
positive. Traffic in the lane will continue to be monitored to assess
the effectiveness of the measures.
Longterm Measure
A new midblock lane oriented east-west connecting to Cambie and to Ash
has been identified as a possible long term mitigation measure to
separate the institutional and residential uses. Such an improvement
is viewed as a long term measure as it will require appropriate lands.
The City could allocate the appropriate lands by requiring dedications
from future adjacent developments at the time of rezoning. The concept
of a midblock lane separation addresses the neighbourhood concern
regarding the anticipated impacts of increased traffic on the
residential lane as a result of future development on the northern
portion of the block. This issue can be brought forward for further
discussion at such time as a rezoning proposal is prepared.
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