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9. RESTORING
GLENDALE AVENUE TO A DEAD END - MOTION
RÉTABLISSEMENT
DE L’AVENUE GLENDALE EN CUL-DE-SAC - MOTION
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Committee Recommendation
That Council direct staff to provide
a recommendation from an Area Traffic Management point of view of restoring Glendale
Avenue to a dead end so that the two segments of the park on either side of the
closed segment could be joined.
Recommandation DU Comité
Que le Conseil de demander au
personnel de formuler une recommandation du point de vue de la Gestion de la circulation
locale en vue du rétablissement de l’avenue Glendale en cul-de-sac afin de que
les deux parties du parc situées de chaque côté du tronçon fermé puissent être
joints.
Documentation
1. Councillor’s report dated 3 June 2010 (ACS2010-CCS-TRC-0018).
Report to / Rapport au:
Transportation
Committee
Comité des
transports
and Council /
et au Conseil
3 June 2010 / le 3 juin 2010
Submitted
by / Soumis par:
Conseiller / Councillor Clive Doucet
Contact / Personne-ressource : Councillor C.
Doucet
(613) 580-2487,
Clive.Doucet@ottawa.ca
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Capital
/ capitale (17)
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File.
No. ACS2010-CCS-TRC-0018
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SUBJECT: RESTORING
GLENDALE AVENUE TO A DEAD END - MOTION
OBJET: RÉTABLISSEMENT
DE L’AVENUE GLENDALE EN CUL-DE-SAC - MOTION
REPORT
RECOMMENDATION
That the Transportation Committee recommend
that Council direct staff to
provide a recommendation from an Area Traffic Management point of view of
restoring Glendale Avenue to a dead end so that the two
segments of the park on either side of the closed segment could be joined.
RECOMMANDATION DU RAPPORT
Que le Comité des transports recommande au
Conseil de demander au personnel de formuler une recommandation du point de vue
de la Gestion de la circulation locale en vue du rétablissement de l’avenue
Glendale en cul-de-sac afin de que les deux parties du parc situées de chaque
côté du tronçon fermé puissent être joints.
BACKGROUND
On 2 June
2010, the Transportation Committee received the aforementioned Notice of Motion
with respect to the above. A full copy
of the Motion is attached as Document 1 to this report.
DISCUSSION
The original configuration
of Glendale Avenue east of Percy was a dead end. The former City of Ottawa vacated the City yards at the east end of Glendale and a
road segment was added linking Chamberlain and Glendale.
A majority
of Glendale residents have submitted a petition requesting that Glendale be
restored to a dead end and that two segments of the park on either side of the
closed segment be joined.
Glendale
Avenue will be reconstructed this summer as a result of watermain
works that need to be undertaken and this will provide an opportunity to
reconfigure the street.
CONSULTATION
Planning
and Growth Management Comments
Background
Residents
of Glendale Avenue submitted a petition to the City, in November of 2007,
requesting the City “reduce the number of vehicles that cut through Glendale
Avenue from Chamberlain Avenue to enter the Glebe.” The request was considered as a potential
Area Traffic Management Study, utilizing the procedures for prioritizing and
initiating new studies as per the City’s Council approved Area Traffic
Management Guidelines. A letter
indicating that Glendale ranked relatively low when compared to other study
requests, and that the request could not be carried forward in the foreseeable
future, was provided to the applicants in August 2008. Glendale is currently ranked 41st
of 45 study requests.
The main
concern of residents, as indicated in their petition, was that southbound Percy
Street traffic, travelling under Highway 417, is not permitted to continue
southbound across Chamberlain Avenue “…therefore, to enter the Glebe, many…
turn left onto Chamberlain Avenue and right onto Glendale Avenue, and continue
through Glendale Avenue to Percy Street.”
Traffic Conditions along Glendale Avenue
Traffic
Volumes - 400 veh/day
(AM Pk Hr - 17 veh/hr, PM Pk Hr - 70 veh/hr)
Traffic
Speeds - Average speed – 35
km/h, 85th percentile speed - 41 km/h
Collisions - No reported collisions
between Jan 2004 and Jan 2007
A resident
conducted survey, from Oct 22 to Nov 10, 2007, found “…an average of 126 cars
turned onto Glendale from Chamberlain during the 3:30 to 6:00 PM timeframe each
workday. Of these cars, only 3-6 are
Glendale residents.”
Staff Comments Regarding Street Closure
Street
closures represent the most extreme technique for addressing traffic concerns,
and often result in the creation of new concerns/issues or simply the
relocation of concerns from one street to another. Typical impacts of street closures include:
- diversion
of traffic to abutting streets where this traffic and its impacts may be
equally undesired (e.g. Lyon Street, Renfrew Avenue, Percy Street)
- more
circuitous routes for local residents
- reduced
emergency and service vehicle access or increased response times
Other
techniques could be considered for Glendale Avenue, such as right turn
prohibitions along Chamberlain at Glendale, covering either the entire day, or
portions of the day. Before proceeding
with a solution, however, it is generally advisable to consult not only
residents living along the street of concern, but also those who could
potentially be affected by the changes, as well as those who currently use this
street. This broader consultation is
primarily what would occur through the undertaking of an Area Traffic
Management Study.
While the
larger Glebe community may be using Glendale Avenue as an access road, volumes
along Glendale are still well within the expected range for local residential
streets.
Glendale
Avenue is scheduled for full reconstruction in 2010, and Infrastructure
Services indicate that the closure of the north/south section of Glendale
Avenue could be accommodated as part of this project, at essentially no
additional cost, if a final decision on this closure were made before the
beginning of September. The process for
formal closure of a public street typically takes approximately 17 weeks to
complete.
Fire
Services Branch
The
proposed street closure on its own would not have significant negative impacts on
response times for Fire Services.
However,
the new street design would require the construction of a turn-around area at
the proposed blockage with sufficient radius to allow fire apparatus to safely
turn and exit from Glendale Avenue back onto Percy Street. Fire route signage and enforcement would then
pose a challenge for this cul-de-sac.
This
street would appear to be a low priority for snow removal from recent past
history. Once the through traffic is
removed the priority would probably become even lower. In past, this street has been reduced to one
lane for significant time periods after heavy snowfalls and rendered almost
impassable.
Also of
concern in this area is the lack of fire hydrants. There is currently only one hydrant located
on the north side of the street across from 32 Glendale Ave. The current dead end portion located west of
Percy Street does not have any hydrants in the dead end portion and the closest
hydrant to service this area is located on the east side of Percy Street at the
corner of Renfrew Avenue.
According
to our information from the City GIS mapping software, both of the water mains
supplying water to these hydrants are of iron construction and have been in use
since 1911. The age and the accumulation
of scaling in the pipe will have greatly reduced the available water flow
required for fire suppression operations.
Should one of these two available hydrants break, freeze or be
obstructed from view by snow during the winter months the lack of additional
available water supply could become disastrous.
The
Glendale Avenue hydrant is currently obscured from view when looking east from
Percy Street by a mature tree and a hydro pole.
Of further
concern is the unknown impacts of the demolition and re-construction of the
Bronson Avenue eastbound off ramp. The
current proposal would see the demolition of the School Board building at the
corner of Bronson and Imperial. The
closure of the Glendale/Chamberlain intersection would require responding
apparatus to use Bronson Avenue as their response route and would eliminate the
alternate route of Percy Street to Chamberlain and then onto Glendale Ave. There is currently no through traffic allowed
on Percy Street at Chamberlain Ave., and fire apparatus, due to their size, are
not able to manoeuvre through the channelization that is currently in place to
preclude the through movement.
This may
just be an issue of timing where the Bronson interchange future design and
realignment would need to be completed before the Glendale closure in order to
maintain an acceptable response time into this neighbourhood.
Our
recommendations with regard to fire protection for this area would be:
·
To
ensure that an additional hydrant is installed in the dead end portion of
Glendale Avenue west of Percy Street.
·
To
develop streetscape plans that include a cul-de-sac of sufficient radius to
allow fire apparatus turn and exit back onto Percy Street.
·
To
explore the opportunity to install additional hydrants along Percy Street to
enhance the water supply for this area as well as Percy St., Powell Ave., Clemow Ave., and Glebe Avenue.
The
simpler solution to the through traffic issue might be to try the restricted
right turn signage from Chamberlain Avenue onto Glendale and measure the
effects before physically blocking off access to this neighbourhood.
Once a
permanent blockage is in place the area becomes critically dependent and
affected by events happening on streets remote from their area, which could
leave the residents isolated from emergency service and protection. In this instance, the Bronson at Imperial
intersection will become extremely important as a primary conduit into this
area and this left turn movement is already affected by overcrowding and long
periods of congestion.
LEGAL/RISK MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS
There are no legal or risk management implications in
relation to the implementation of the report’s recommendations.
RURAL IMPLICATIONS
There are no rural implications.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
Glendale Avenue is scheduled for full reconstruction
in 2010, Infrastructure Services indicate that the
closure of the north/south section of Glendale Avenue could be accommodated as
part of this project, at essentially no additional cost, if a final decision on
this closure were made before the beginning of September.
The development application cost for a local street
closure paid for by the applicant is $4,556.90.
If the closure is a motion of Council these fees could be waived.
SUPPORTING
DOCUMENTATION
Document 1
– Councillor Doucet’s Notice of Motion
Document 2 – Location Map
DISPOSITION
If approved by Council, staff will take the
appropriate action as directed.
