North east sidewalk starting soon. Havelock step to go. New trees in progress.

By this weekend work should be completed on the south sidewalk and base asphalt from Montrose Ave. to Havelock St. Work will then be moving to the remaining north sidewalk at Bartlett Ave. headed east towards Montrose Ave. Expect noise, dust and sidewalk closures as excavation and reconstruction take place. Sorry for the inconvenience.

As part of this project we will be re-grading the Havelock St. and Bloor St. intersection to remove the legacy two-step curb and ramp on the north side.

Get a last look at the two-step curb at the top of Havelock St. – to be replaced with a normal one-step curb and pedestrian curb cut.

Tree planting started on June 9, on the south side. City Forestry Operations is planting 

approximately 10 trees a day. The species are Maple, Elm and Locust. You can learn more about the improved growing conditions for boulevard trees being provided on Bloor in this recent CBC news report.

Concord Avenue south of Bloor is closed this week as the new sidewalk “bump out” is installed. Further planting and streetscape upgrades will be completed there in the fall.

All major road and sidewalk work between Lansdowne Ave. and Havelock St. should be completed by the end of June. The area east of Havelock St. will be completed by the end of July.

Additional streetscape upgrades will be completed in the fall.

Thanks again for your patience and cooperation.

A top priority for me as Councillor has been expanding the West Toronto Railpath – a linear park that runs along the Georgetown Rail Corridor and an incredible community asset. Over the last 3 years, I have been working hard to secure the funding, approvals and support to keep this important project growing. With much of this now secured, in spring 2013 the enviromental assessment for Phase 2 was awarded. This began a phase of public consultation with residents, stakeholders, businesses and community organizations to determine the preferred route for expansion. The design consultant then incorporated this information into their study.

With the additional construction for the new Pearson Air-Rail Link, however, it has been difficult to negotiate the space needed in this corridor to extend the Railpath south of Dundas Street.

In response, I convened a meeting with the CEO of Metrolinx and local Councillors to reinforce the importance of this City project and am pleased to report that solutions were identified that have increased the space available for Railpath.

With the consultant’s designs being finalized, we are again receiving public feedback on Railpath Phase 2. Please watch for upcoming meetings, call my office or visit my website for more information and to be involved in this exciting project. Whether you walk, run or cycle, I look forward to hearing from you and seeing you on the path!

Example of old temporary asphalt and planters to be replaced

The Bloor Street West road and sidewalk work will restart on May 5 with two crews working simultaneously at each end of the work area: one finishing off elements from Landowne Avenue going east, and the other starting sidewalk reconstruction on the south side from Montrose Avenue (by Christie Pits Park) going west.  Expect lane reductions, parking restrictions and traffic delays (sorry!).

This year’s work will again include:

• repair existing road base, curb and sidewalks (as required)
• replace existing elevated tree planters with tree pits
• add “bump outs” of widened sidewalk area on some side streets with additional decorative treatments
• grind the existing pavement and resurface the roadway

We expect all the road work to be completed by July 25, 2014.  Additional streetscape upgrades east of Dufferin Street, including  special pavers, seat walls, trees, bike racks and the Bickford Centre driveway, will be completed in early Fall 2014.

Trees to be Removed

You can expect to see the remaining streets trees in planters west of  in the work area to be removed in the next few weeks. While we are sad to see any  trees cut down, we will start planting 159 new healthy elm, maple and locust trees starting in late May.  There will be a total increase of 49 street trees.  The new trees will be planted at sidewalk level with concrete covers and decorative iron tree protections.  The removal of the old planters will provide more sidewalk space and these improved conditions will encourage a long and healthy future for these trees.

Reminders for business owners:

• Please label your curbside waste collection bins with your address.

• Please remove any privately owned items from the sidewalk area. The City will not be responsible for damage to
  any privately owned items installed on City property.

• Expect limited access to street front entrances during sidewalk excavation and concrete installation. Contractors will notify your business prior to starting in front of your entrance.

Again, your co-operation and patience during the construction period is crucial and appreciated. 

The Dufferin Street Bridge in Toronto has re-opened for vehicular traffic. The bridge, which is south of Springhurst Avenue and goes over the GO Transit/Metrolinx Rail Corridor, has been closed to traffic since last June.

The purpose of the closure was to ensure public safety. The bridge was scheduled for replacement, but as a result of inspections done in 2013, the City made the decision to expedite the closure and install temporary bridges before the construction of a permanent bridge.

The temporary bridges will remain open to traffic until the permanent bridge is completed in 2019.

Toronto Parking Authority Taps Alta Bicycle Share, Inc. to Operate Bike Share Program

March 31, 2014 - Toronto – The Toronto Parking Authority (TPA) today announced that effective April 1, 2014 Alta Bicycle Share will take over the operation of Bike Share Toronto from the Public Bike Share Company (PBSC). 

“We’re committed to making bike share in Toronto a success,” said TPA President Lorne Persiko. “Our objective as a global leader in parking services is to connect people and places by providing a parking experience that is second to none. We want to provide users of Bike Share Toronto the same high-level experience and hope to become a global leader in bike sharing.”

The new name comes with a fresh start for Toronto’s bike share system. The selection of Alta Bicycle Share, Inc., will ensure a seamless operation of the bike share system with 80 stations and 1,000 bikes. The change in management is intended to result in a more reliable system led by Alta, an operator that has successfully managed large scale urban bike share programs in New York City, Chicago, Washington DC, Boston, San Francisco, and several others. This year, Fast Company Magazine named Alta one of the Top 50 Most Innovative Companies in the world. 

“We are pleased that the bike share program will continue to operate in our city,” said Toronto City Councillor and bike share supporter Denzil Minnan-Wong.  “A vibrant city like Toronto needs bike sharing to be one of its transportation options and the Toronto Parking Authority, with its track record of running an excellent business, is best placed to make it work.”

“Bike sharing is a popular way to get around in Toronto,” said Deputy Mayor Norm Kelly. “I’m sure Torontonians, tourists, and businesses will benefit from the efforts of all involved to give it a fresh new start.”

In addition to the name change to “Bike Share Toronto,” the TPA will be making some adjustments to the program, including a change to the price of Long-Term and Short-Term Membership. Starting in April, Long-Term Memberships will be reduced from $97 to $90 per year for Annual Membership and $41 to $18 per month for Monthly Membership. Short-Term Membership will increase slightly from $12 to $15 for 72-Hour Passes and $5 to $7 for 24-Hour Passes. They will also begin offering Corporate Memberships, which allow local businesses and organizations to offer reduced or subsidized Memberships to their employees.

"The City of Toronto is always looking for ways to improve Toronto's transportation system,” said Stephen Buckley, General Manger of Toronto Transportation Services. “We are pleased that bike sharing will remain a viable option for Toronto residents.”

The TPA and Alta encourage current members to email customerservice@bikesharetoronto.com with any feedback or comments, and to note that, beginning April 1, they can find the bike share program online at BikeShareToronto.com. Customer service representatives can be reached 24/7 at the new number 855.898.2378.

About the TPA:

The Toronto Parking Authority is a self-sustaining public corporation owned by the City of Toronto. It contributes significant revenues to the City's general reserves while successfully meeting its mandate to provide safe, attractive, conveniently located and competitively priced off and on-street public parking, required by commercial strips and neighbouring residential areas to survive. Recognized as a world leader in parking technology services the Parking Authority has been successful in ensuring that businesses in these areas continue to grow and the neighbourhoods remain vibrant.

About Alta Bicycle Share:

Bike Share Toronto is operated by Alta Bicycle Share based in Portland, Oregon. Alta currently operates Capital Bikeshare in Washington DC, Arlington and Alexandria, VA and Montgomery County, MD; Hubway in the Boston-Metro region;Melbourne Bike Share in Melbourne, Australia, Bike Chattanooga in Chattanooga, TN; Citi Bike in New York City; Divvy in Chicago; CoGo in Columbus, OH; and Bay Area Bike Share in the Bay Area, CA.

TPA Contact:

Marie Casista
VP Real Estate, Development & Marketing, TPA|
Direct: (416) 393-7295
mcasista@toronto.ca

Alta Contact:

Scott Hancock
General Manager, Bike Share Toronto
Direct: (416) 853-7765
scotthancock@bikesharetoronto.com

Residents who have on-street parking permits are being asked to delay moving their vehicles to the other side of the street for parking until Tuesday, April 15.

Traditionally, on-street parking takes place on one side of the street for six months of the year and then switches over to the other side of the street for the next six months.  However, due to the heavy snow and ice accumulation, there has been a build up of ice between parked cars and the City of Toronto feels it is not safe or practical to switch sides until the ice and snow has melted.  This change traditionally takes place on April 1.

It is expected that the road will be clear by April 15, allowing alternate parking rules to go into effect on this date.

Toronto Police Service will honour this delay and ticketing for this offence will not begin until April 16 at 9:00 am.  However, where vehicles are parked in a hazardous manner, creating obstructions or hampering the free flow of traffic, tickets will be issued and the vehicles could be towed.

At the recent meeting of the Executive committee, the proposal to expand the Toronto Island Airport was discussed.

While this proposal offers potential benefits to downtown businesses, tourists, and travellers, City Staff made strong recommendations to Executive Committee this week that advised more time was needed to weigh the potential benefits and negative impacts. These concerns echo those expressed by Ward 18 residents who have contacted me in recent months, including impacts to our City's waterfront, development, ecology, downtown traffic, boating zones, modified flight paths and noise.

I also recognize that significant public funding and resources have been allocated to the GO Transit Air-Rail Link which is in the final stages of construction. The cost of this new service was justified specifically by the projected demand of people travelling from Union Station to Pearson Airport and it remains unclear how this service will be impacted with an expansion at the Toronto Island Airport. This uncertainty becomes even more significant as I work hard to advocate for additional investment in the Georgetown line to ensure it is electrified and serves local residents.

The convenience of an expanded downtown airport may be clear; however, the impact of the expansion and new engine-type is far from, demonstrating itself to be highly complex. From environmental assessments to Transportation Canada approvals to the original tri-partite agreement, I thoroughly support City Staff's advice that there is insufficient information to responsible pursue the expansion proposal at this time.

The Executive Committee voted 11-1 in favour of staff recommendations to further study the impacts of the expansion proposal and this item will be brought forward for discussion at full Council on April 1^st. I will continue to seek out evidence and consult City Staff on the remaining unanswered questions. I also invite you to contact me at anytime on this or any other issue.

UPDATE: Monday afternoon, March 24th

There has been a major sewer chamber collapse in front of #1379 Bloor Street West which has also damaged the sewer system entering and exiting this chamber. The sewer system is still flowing and is not causing any sewer back up or basement flooding.

Toronto Water's District Contractor is on site. To perform this work, Bloor Street West must be closed from Symington Ave to Lansdowne Ave for a estimated time of 7 days. Unfortunately due to the amount of damage beneath the road surface all four lanes must be closed at this time for safety of the public and the construction crew working within this site.

In order to re-open this road quickly, it will be necessary for crews to work around the clock. To ensure ample warning for people commuting along Bloor Street, the contractor has set up "Road Closure Ahead" signage so that commuters have warning prior to reaching Symington and Lansdowne.

Toronto Police will be on site performing traffic control to allow local traffic to enter side streets for business and homes.

I will be in close contact with Toronto Water staff for the duration of this work and will keep our community informed through my website social media. Follow me on Twitter @Ward18AnaBailao and Facebook Councillor Ana Bailao for the most up to date information on news affecting Ward 18.

[Photo by @peanut_butter_b on Twitter]

Toronto City Council has approved a comprehensive congestion management plan that will see the implementation of numerous initiatives over the next five years aimed at improving traffic movement on Toronto streets including the downtown area.

Many of these initiatives will help to reduce vehicle delays, fuel consumption for drivers as well as reduce the impact on our environment. And it's not just about moving cars. About 60 per cent of TTC users travel on our road network. Getting our road system performing more efficiently will improve the quality of life for all residents.

Congestion has a significant impact on residents, businesses and visitors. Recent studies have indicated that congestion costs Toronto commuters several billions of dollars annually in travel delays, vehicle operating costs and accidents.

Among the key elements of the congestion management plan are:

• upgrading the City's traffic signal management software to a new system by the end of 2014
• the re-evaluation and co-ordination of approximately 1,000 traffic signals
• the installation of 100 traffic cameras on arterial roads to better detect problems on these key transportation routes
• the addition of 13 variable message signs along the Don Valley Parkway and Gardiner Expressway
• better management and use of curb lanes.

These changes, along with other initiatives, will allow the City to better respond to changes in traffic conditions, provide motorists with updated information to allow them to change routes as necessary, and improve traffic efficiency along key corridors.

By the end of this year, the City will have re-timed 245 traffic signals along parts of Kingston Road, Weston Road, Keele Street, Parkside Drive and both Lawrence Avenue East and Lawrence Avenue West, which will result in improved traffic flow.

One of the reports concerning congestion, The Downtown Traffic Operations Study, specifically deals with the challenges of congestion in the downtown core and some potential strategies that might positively impact the flow of traffic and improve safety in the downtown core.

Potential initiatives in this report that could be implemented in the next few years include dedicated curbside locations for couriers to load and unload their items during non-rush hour periods, traffic assistance personnel who would go to key intersections to discourage blockages, and the extension of peak-period parking regulations and turn prohibitions on selected roads such as Queen Street and King Street to keep traffic moving on those streets.