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Home My WebLink AboutEGD-027-12 • REPORT Leading the Way ENGINEERING SERVICES Meeting: GENERAL PURPOSE AND ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE Date: Monday, October 15, 2012 I 7� Report#: EGD-027-12 File #: By-law #: Subject: WEST BEACH ROAD SAFETY REVIEW RECOMMENDATIONS: It is respectfully recommended that the General Purpose and Administration Committee recommend to Council the following: 1. THAT Report EGD-027-12 be received; 2. THAT an accessibility parking space be approved at the West Beach Parkette Parking lot including the necessary signage and amendments to the Traffic Bylaw; 3. THAT the park and road signs located along West Beach Road in the vicinity of the West Beach parkette be reviewed and relocated or consolidated where possible, to enhance the appearance of the parkette frontage 4. THAT staff be authorized to develop conceptual plans and a park implementation strategy in 2013 with public input and participation. x X Submitted by: Anthony Cannella, C.E.T. ranklin Wu Director of Engineering Services Chief Administrative Officer ASC*jb October 09,2012 CORPORATION OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF CLARINGTON 40 TEMPERANCE STREET, BOWMANVILLE, ONTARIO L1C 3A6 T 905-623-3379 F 905-623-9282 REPORT NO.: EGD-027-12 PAGE 2 1.0 BACKGROUND At the Council meeting of June 18, 2012 there was discussion about the needs of pedestrians as well as the driving public on West Beach Road in the vicinity of the parkette, specifically the installation of an accessibility parking space, the need for a pedestrian sidewalk, the installation of a lockable bollard and the relocation of existing bollards to the roadside in the immediate vicinity of the parkette. As a result of that discussion resolution #C-200-12 was passed stating: "THAT the entire issue be referred to the Director of Engineering for a report on safety-related issues and alternatives; and "THAT the Director of Engineering be authorized to spend up to $1,000.00 to make the post, located in the West Beach Parkette, a more permanent structure"; This report will provide a brief summary of our review of the issues and will give an overview of the Municipality's short and long term development of the waterfront, particularly in terms of how that development may have an impact on traffic volumes and road safety in that area as development proceeds. 2.0 THE PORT DARLINGTON WATERFRONT PARK Providing residents with access to waterfront parks and trails has been a quality of life issue that Council has been committed to since the early 2000's under a land acquisition strategy that was purposefully designed to increase the land base for the future development of the Port Darlington Waterfront Park. In a careful and deliberate manner., as was identified in the Municipality's Strategic Plan, Council has provided improved public access to the waterfront on both the East and West Beach sides of the REPORT NO.: EGD-027-12 PAGE 3 Bowmanville Creek. The 2012 Capital Budget, as approved by Council, provided the opportunity implement an initial phase for the development, which was completed this summer. The Port Darlington West Beach Waterfront Park currently consists of a parkette at the west end of West Beach Road and a newly constructed park at the east end of West Beach Park (see attachment#1). The public can access the parkette by walking, cycling and driving. A small, three to four vehicle parking lot exists providing easy access to this portion of the lakefront, especially for residents with accessibility issues. The newly constructed park does offer a boardwalk that allows for greater accessibility but the distance from the parking lot to the waterfront is much closer at the parkette for those who can perhaps walk a short distance. This parkette has been used by the public for many years, allowing access to the waterfront for a variety of uses, including walking and picnics by the lake. The initial phase of development, as explained above, included the construction of a 33 car illuminated parking lot, a boardwalk leading to the beach, and several benches placed along the water's edge. Along with the parkette, there are now two access points to the lake at the Port Darlington Waterfront Park. They are approximately 300 feet apart, (see attachment #1). 3.0 ROAD SAFETY REVIEW 3.1 West Beach Road West Beach Road is considered to be a quiet, low-volume, low operating speed, dead end street that provides public access to the waterfront via the newly constructed park and parkette, as well as access to approximately nine private homes. The road has been constructed and maintained over the years within an existing public road allowance as well as a portion of the road that is defined as a REPORT NO.: EGD-027-12 PAGE 4 forced road (see attachment #1). The forced road section of West Beach Road is approximately 22 feet in width and can only accommodate the driving surface of the road. A widening for the installation of roads and related infrastructure (ie. Sidewalks) is not a practical undertaking along this section of the West Beach Road. 3.2 Traffic Volumes The developing waterfront park is attracting vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists to the area, precisely as was intended within our Corporate Strategic Plan. A traffic study completed on June 12, 2012 between the hours of 2p.m. to 6p.m., captured both pedestrian and vehicular traffic. During this four hour period 71 vehicles and 9 pedestrians were counted. The vehicular count of 71 equates to an Average Annual Daily Traffic (AADT) count of 236 vehicles per day. For comparative purposes, a local street is capable of handling up to 1,000 vehicles per day safely. Present traffic volumes alone clearly do not suggest a safety concern. 3.3 West Beach Road and Cove Road Intersection Review Staff have conducted a review of this intersection for consideration of an all-way stop. In this review, the Municipality's warrants for an all-way stop need to be satisfied. Our review concluded that the existing traffic volumes are so low at this "T" intersection that only 25% of the total traffic volumes required to justify consideration of an-all way stop have been met. At this time there is no need to provide all-way stops at this intersection. REPORT NO.: EGD-027-12 PAGE 5 3.4 Traffic Calming Over the years, traffic related concerns have been forwarded to staff by area residents who have asked for traffic calming measures to deal with what they have perceived as excessive speeds. The natural roadside environment and winding features of the roadway act to self regulate driver behaviour. The presence of multiple "No Exit", advisory "20 km/hr", signs, plus a playground sign, further remind drivers to operate in a safe manner. To-date there have been no motor vehicle accidents reported and on record for the area, nor is there a documented speeding problem. The road and roadside environment and low operating speed does not suggest a need for the implementation of traffic calming measures at this time. 3.5 Park and Road Signage Currently there exists a multitude of road signs, parkette signs, park signs and others scattered along the road allowance. These signs shall be reviewed and a consolidation of signs related to park and road could be made to reduce any visual clutter and provide clear direction to the public for the respective uses. 3.6 Pedestrian Counts and Sidewalk Warrants The reported pedestrian count of nine was too low to meet the Municipality's warrants for sidewalks and so it would be very difficult to justify such an expenditure. Furthermore, the topography of the area and the road allowance constraints would make it difficult to physically construct sidewalks to our current standard on West Beach Road even if the counts were supportive. REPORT NO.: EGD-027-12 PAGE 6 3.7 Parkette Parking Lot and Accessibility Parking Space Staff have reviewed the parkette parking lot configuration and the access to the West Beach Road in the vicinity of the horizontal curvature. The parkette parking lot does not have a defined entrance, nor are the parking spaces delineated or defined. In the short term, based on the current traffic data, road geometrics, operating speed, etc., access from this parking lot for three or four spaces is not considered a safety concern. Access in the vicinity of the road curvature apex is reasonable providing sufficient site distance for the road operating speed. It would be desirable if the spaces within the parking lot were clearly defined with appropriate signage or delineation, including a proposed accessibility space (see attachment #2). Upon installation of the necessary signage for the accessibility space the appropriate amendments to the Traffic By-law for the enforcement of the accessibility space, will be addressed by staff. In the interim the parkette parking lot should remain in place at its current location as it provides accessibility to the waterfront for the driving public, cyclists, as well as far easier waterfront access to those with accessibility or mobility issues. As the waterfront park develops in the future and further features are added that attract greater numbers of visitors to the area it may well be appropriate to do a complete review of the parking and access at the waterfront. When that time comes we will look to see if the parking at the parkette should be expanded, relocated or removed in its entirety. 3.8 Roadside Bollards Staff have reviewed the request for roadside bollards in the context of road safety and have found that generally roadside barriers or bollards are required where there is a documented concern that a vehicle may leave the pavement and REPORT NO.: EGD-027-12 PAGE 7 encroach onto the roadside posing a hazard to either the occupants of the vehicles or people along the road. If we are concerned about the possibility of damage or injury we are cautious in installing bollards simply because of the vehicular damage or personal injury that the bollards themselves can cause if a vehicle leaves the roadside. West Beach Road, being a low speed, low volume roadway with no accidents on record, has not exhibited any of the warrants that would justify a roadside barrier. We will continue to monitor the area and should this accident history change we would be willing to re-consider this option at that time. 3.9 Lockable Post Access to the parkette for maintenance and emergency vehicles was available via an opening between the existing bollards whereby a 4x4 wooden post was installed in the ground and removed when access was necessary. It was Council's direction that this post be replaced with a lockable more permanent structure. A lockable permanent structure has been installed by our Operations Department and is now functional. 4.0 CONCURRENCE Not applicable 5.0 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS In the long term West Beach Road will need to be improved as the waterfront park develops to meet the needs of the walking, driving and cycling public. At the present time our road safety review did not identify any needs that require immediate attention. As the waterfront park usage increases so will the demands on the existing infrastructure. It is anticipated that there will be higher levels of service required for REPORT NO.: EGD-027-12 PAGE 8 maintenance relating to walking, cycling and driving, as well as capital improvements at some point to facilitate the increased number of visitors we expect the park to attract to the waterfront. As the park develops, in addition to annual maintenance we may consider pavement upgrading, road shoulder widening where possible, illumination, and road pavement markings to delineate the centre line, and edge of pavement, cycling lanes and sidewalks. Essentially however, what seems most important is the need to empower the community to be part of Council's vision for the waterfront park. In our Strategic Plan we have identified that the development of waterfront parks is a vitally important quality of life issue for our residents and our land acquisition strategy shows commitment to that vision. What the Strategic Plan goes on to say is that in moving forward we need to "develop conceptual plans with public participation". This may in fact be the time to do precisely that. How do we move forward? What additional features would our residents like us to provide and when? What needs do we consider and how, what are our priorities, where should we spend our dollars to best serve our community and when and how do we do all of this while taking everyone's needs and wishes into account? The development of the waterfront park will be an undertaking that will take many, many years to complete as we await the availability and subsequent acquisition of additional waterfront properties. In the meantime it appears time to host a public information centre that will allow us the opportunity to work directly with the public to further refine Council's vision. The time has come to set the vision for the waterfront park. It is therefore our suggestion that in 2013 staff will develop conceptual plans and a park implementation strategy with public input and participation. The Bowmanville waterfront park is a major undertaking and if we are successful it will enhance many lives and serve many needs. REPORT NO.: EGD-027-12 PAGE 9 CONFORMITY WITH STRATEGIC PLAN The recommendations contained in this report conform to the general intent of the following priorities of the Strategic Plan: _ Promoting economic development — Maintaining financial stability _ Connecting Clarington _ Promoting green initiatives X Investing in infrastructure Showcasing our community — Not in conformity with Strategic Plan Staff Contact: A. S. Cannella, Director of Engineering Services Attachments: Attachment 1 – Key Map-Existing Waterfront Park Attachment 2 – Key Map-Parkette Parking List of Interested Parties to be advised of Council's decision: Not applicable E S :?«fit. A1� �,.... �� .•� S';�i � r s. � .�c� I ��I•il 1 .,t zwi nk /y op s• ' 110 jf Y. Legend Forced Road Allowance Municipal Land Holdings (Waterfront Park) ................. r • ,,.�-'� `fin - — �I� —i D• ` DA October ■ • ' a 1 �� ■ i I !� I , I � HP �0 I Existing I Gravel I HL�� z \ - O - -Proposed Access Consolidated to Signage Beach 1:250 Legend Accessible Parking Regular Parking N �® ® S, Ime Rd. E13 a HwY• 401 E a S West ,=East CN Beach Beach R• BOWMANVILLL F,t° °,Rd. Rd. DRAWN BY: E.L. DATE: October 9, 2012 REPORT EGD-027-12 PARKETTE PARKING Lake Ontario KEY MAP ATTACHMENT NO. 2 G:\Attachments\West Beach Port Darlin ton Safetv 2.mxd