Comment 107755

By RobF (registered) | Posted January 09, 2015 at 22:54:06

Yes, the outcome of the roadwork has been less than satisfying. There was supposed to be a traffic circle at James N and Strachan, but it was removed late in the game because of the needs of buses linked to the new GO station. I wasn't in love with traffic circle, but the change was run by North End Traffic Management Plan implementation committee with little opportunity for feedback from what i gather ... they did see updated drawings. From the perspective of a pedestrian, cyclist, and occasional rollerblader, the redesigned James North and Strachan intersection is better as the gap to cross is narrower. But it doesn't really do much to slow traffic and there still isn't a regular traffic light or stop-sign from Barton to Burlington ... at Simcoe and Picton there are pedestrian activated lights, but unless someone hits them while you are trying to cross at Strachan in high volume periods there aren't many breaks in traffic and as Ryan points out little accommodation has been made for cyclists on James North. The importance of this intersection for cyclists will grow once the multi-use path on the south side of Strachan from Ferguson to Bayfront is completed this year or next. Technically Ferguson is identified in the city's plans as the north-south bike route through the North End, but it isn't the alignment most cyclists, myself included, use. Mary Street tends to be the route to and from Cannon in my view. As you say, some (the city?) will probably argue that this and McNab will get you to the new GO station area, so why bother messing with James ... not right, just saying.

The city's insistence on keepin' things moving on James North and Burlington at 50km/h (60Km/h+ in reality) was why NEN appealed the original traffic plan in Setting Sail to the OMB. The traffic management plan pre-dates me, so i don't know how much emphasis was placed on cycling infrastructure by the NA at the time. Aside from missing bike lanes, is a 4-way stop at James and Strachan with cross-walks too much of an imposition on traffic? It would ensure that pedestrians and cyclists could use Strachan as a crossing on par with other (vehicular) users.

We get the city we allow the city to plan for us.

Comment edited by RobF on 2015-01-09 23:06:31

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