City of Vancouver
Inter-Office Correspondence
ENGINEERING SERVICES File No. 120 630
DATE: June 11, 1997
MEMO TO: Standing Committee on Transportation and Traffic
FROM: Dave Rudberg, General Manager of Engineering Services
COPY TO: Ken Dobell, City Manager
Ann McAfee, Director of City Plans
Peter Judd, Transportation Plan
SUBJECT: Burrard/Cypress Traffic Plan - Further Information
At the May 14, 1997 meeting of the Standing Committee on Transportation
and Traffic, the Committee requested further information on some of the
issues. The following responds to questions asked at the meeting.
I) Left turns at 1st Avenue
In the p.m. peak hours, the left turns from Burrard to 1st Avenue
are approximately 120/hr northbound to westbound and 100/hr
southbound to eastbound. This number is lower than prior to the
installation of the pedestrian signal at 1st and Burrard (Volumes
had been 240/hr westbound and 130/hr eastbound). Volumes have
declined because it is more difficult to turn left at a signal,
with no left-turn bays or left-turn arrow in place. Many of the
displaced turns have relocated to 2nd, 3rd, and Cypress Street.
However, although volumes have decreased, the accident rate has
increased significantly at 1st and Burrard, which is now the worst
pedestrian signal location in the City. Left turns at both 2nd
Avenue and 3rd Avenue in the p.m. peak are approximately 110/hr
northbound to westbound and 50/hr southbound to eastbound).
Observations show that one third of the northbound left turns at
1st Avenue are destined to Kits Point. The remaining two thirds
are destined to the immediate commercial area and the residential
area south of Cornwall.
ii) Truck Traffic on 1st Avenue
Molson's, a major source of trucking in the area, reports that
approximately 40 trucks per day serve its brewery. These trucks
presently use 1st Avenue and Fir Street to access 4th Avenue, which
has created noise impacts for residents along 1st Avenue. This
routing is a problem because of the noise, and the City and
residents have requested that the trucks use Burrard instead. This
would require the pedestrian signal at 1st and Burrard be upgraded
to a full signal. Molson's has indicated that if a signal is
installed at Burrard and 1st, its trucks would not follow the
1st/Fir route.
iii) Supplemental Report - Option K
The supplemental report dated April 30, 1997, proposed a minimum
3.7m curb lane on Burrard to reduce property costs and impacts.
The attached Figure 1 shows this option. The following provides
some background for this supplemental report:
The Comprehensive Bicycle Plan of 1988 recommended 3.7 metre
curb lanes,
On July 21, 1994, the Bicycle Advisory Committee asked and
Council approved 4.3 metre curb lanes where possible,
the original report proposed 4.0 metre lanes as a compromise,
to reduce property impacts, but some delegations indicated they
found the extra width unhelpful.
therefore a 3.7 m curb lane (option K) was presented as a
cost-saving alternative for consideration
iv) A T-intersection proposal for Burrard and Cornwall
Background
A T-intersection has been proposed by the Transportation Planning
Team, Planning staff, and members of the public who attended the
Committee meetings as a way to reduce pedestrian crossing
distances, slow traffic entering Cornwall, and increase green
space. This concept is still in a preliminary stage and a thorough
analysis can not be done without a detailed design. However, some
general comments and a preliminary assessment has been conducted
and is shown below. It is also worthwhile to highlight some of the
history of the public process related to Burrard/Cornwall:
Spring of 1994 - Initial meetings and studies to consider
traffic calming on Cypress.
Fall of 1994 - Cypress residents propose an arterial
connection (left-turn bay) from Burrard to
Cornwall.
June 1995 - Open House to evaluate traffic calming on
Cypress and left-turn bays on Burrard
(including a bay at Cornwall).
November 1995 - An Engineering report on traffic calming
(Cypress) and arterial changes (Burrard)
is presented to the Traffic Commission.
Based in part on input from the Cypress
Residents' Group, the Commission
deferred a decision on left-turn bays
until the future of the Burrard Bridge
upgrade is known.
Spring 1996 - The Burrard Bridge upgrade is deferred
pending further study. Residents of Cypress
request that left-turn bays on Burrard be
considered separately from the Bridge
proposals. The Traffic Commission agreed.
Fall 1996 - Project notification signs were installed and
a survey was delivered to a broad area
proposing left-turn bays on Burrard,
including a bay at Cornwall (which received
75% support).
As indicated, the development of a T-intersection (including design
options, analysis and public input) has not been possible in the time
available. However, the following overview is intended to assist in
determining the appropriate option. (Figure 2 shows a sketch of the
left-turn bay design and Figure 3 shows a sketch of a T-intersection
design. Figure 4 shows an aerial photo of the existing intersection and
Figures 5 and 6 show an overlay of the left-turn bay design and the
T-intersection design.):
Pedestrian and Bicycle Issues.
A T-intersection would reduce the pedestrian crossing distance and
provide a more direct path across Cornwall and Burrard. Pedestrian wait
times and crossing times within the intersection would be reduced.
However, a T-intersection would result in a high volume of right-turners
(presently 1300 per hour in the pm peak) from southbound Burrard to
westbound Cornwall turning through the pedestrian crosswalk. (At
present, pedestrians cross this traffic at a controlled pedestrian cross
walk.) This right-turn traffic (likely in a dual right-turn lane) would
be a safety concern for pedestrians (similar to the situation at the
north end of the bridge). This could be addressed with a separate
right-turn signal phase. However, this could significantly reduce
capacity of this manoeuvre and needs to be looked at in more detail.
The existing situation can present difficulties for cyclists on the west
sidewalk of the bridge proceeding southbound to Burrard Street since
they must cross vehicle traffic destined for Cornwall. A T-intersection
will not necessarily improve this situation since high right-turn
traffic can be difficult to cross (particularly a dual right-turn).
More work is needed to improve cyclist connections. One proposal with
the existing geometry is to provide a push-button and a special crossing
for cyclists, next to the existing controlled pedestrian crossing. This
would provide a fully protected route to the proposed bicycle lanes on
Burrard.
Costs
The cost of providing a T-intersection would vary depending on the final
T-intersection design. This cost cannot be estimated in detail but is
expected to be in the range of $600,000 to $750,000. If the left-turn
bay (estimated to be $375,000) is installed beforehand and the
T-intersection is phased in, the total project costs are estimated to
range from $700,000 to $1,000,000. It is emphasized that these costs
are only a rough guide.
Capacity and Queuing
A detailed analysis of capacity changes and trip diversion can not be
done at this point. However, some general comments can be made about
the effect a T-intersection proposal would have on capacity.
There is about 15% excess capacity in the intersection today. The bay
will use up this spare capacity. The greatest impacts on capacity will
be to southbound and eastbound vehicles because they will be stopped
during the new left-turn phase. As a result, queues for both southbound
(Burrard Bridge) and eastbound (Cornwall Avenue) traffic would increase.
Overall, the T-intersection would be expected to further reduce
capacity. However, the reduction will depend on the chosen design. It
is possible, with a T-design, to maintain the same number of lanes as
exist today, but the sharp right-turn would lead to reduced capacity.
Furthermore, as discussed previously, a separate right-turn phase to
Cornwall to address pedestrian concerns has been suggested, and would
cause a significant, additional reduction in capacity.
The vehicle storage of the left-turn bay design in the report before
Council is 14 vehicles. The T-intersection design would reduce storage
to approximately 9 vehicles, which could mean that the signal phase for
this turn would need to be increased. Storage for the southbound
right-turns destined to westbound Cornwall would also need to be
considered.
Traffic Calming on Cornwall.
Due to the slower-speed sharp right turn, traffic speeds on Cornwall
between the Bridge and Cypress Street would be reduced. This could also
lead to a traffic reduction on Cornwall and reallocation of trips to
arterial streets such as Burrard Street and 4th Avenue, and local
streets such as 1st and 2nd Avenues.
Green space
Approximately 0.30 hectares of landscaped island and roadway could be
consolidated to the north side of Cornwall. The planned "Welcome to
Kitsilano" sign could be relocated to this area.
Options
Staff believe there are three potential courses of action and Council
may wish to consider these:
. Approve and construct the left-turn bay design now, as recommended
in the March 17, 1997 report. Then, as part of the Burrard Bridge
review, consider changes to the south end of the Bridge. If a
T-intersection is favourable, it could be phased in when the Bridge
changes are made.
. Do not approve the left turn bay now, and instead, conduct further
studies, possibly involving public input, to develop a
T-intersection design for report back to Council later this year.
. Do not approve the left-turn bay now, and include study of a
T-intersection as part of the changes to the Burrard Bridge.
Staff View Points.
Both Planning and Engineering staff agree that further study would be
needed before a T-intersection could be recommended.
Engineering staff believe that based on the long public process that has
occurred and the strong support from the overall community, the
left-turn bay should go ahead (as described in option a. above). The
T-intersection will impact the operation of the Bridge and it should be
considered when the changes to the Bridge are made. The left-turn bay
could be constructed now and, if approved, the T-design can be phased-in
later. This would also provide the opportunity to evaluate the impacts
of the left-turn connection before making more significant changes.
Planning staff would prefer that the further study proceed now, before
money is spent on the left-turn bay (as described in option b.). This
would potentially save costs and allow the final intersection design to
be built in the near future. Planning staff believe that the
T-intersection would be compatible with any new bridge configuration.
I hope that this memo will help Council. If there are any questions,
please contact me.
D. H. Rudberg, P. Eng.
General Manager of Engineering Services
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