Westbury Fellows Drury Parkway sidewalks

Project description

This project includes the construction of approximately 740 metres of new sidewalks, a short multi-use (MUP) connection, new stop signs, and a new pedestrian crossover (PXO). The new sidewalks and other improvements will provide greater walkability in this residential community, facilitating access to Terre-des-Jeunes Catholic Elementary School, the Iris Transitway/LRT Station and the pedestrian pathways within the neighbourhood including the Pinecrest Creek Pathway. The sidewalk will support pedestrians, including more vulnerable users such as children, seniors, wheelchair users and persons with vision impairment. Tactile walking surface indicators will be installed at pedestrian crossings along the new sidewalk.

More specifically the mobility and safety improvements will include:

• 2 metre wide concrete sidewalk along the east side of Parkway Drive between Iris Street and Drury Lane, 
• 2 metre wide concrete sidewalks along the north side of Drury Lane between Parkway Drive and Fellows Road
• 2 meter wide concrete sidewalks along the east side of Fellows Road between Dury Lane and Westbury Road (except where the sidewalk is already existing in front of the school).
• 2 metre wide concrete sidewalk along the north side of Westbury Road between Highgate Road and the new multi-use pathway (MUP) connection at the end of the cul de sac.
• 3 metre wide asphalt multi-use pathway (MUP) connecting the new Westbury Road sidewalk to the NCC Pinecrest Creek Pathway.
• 2 metre wide concrete sidewalk along the east side of Highgate Road from Westbury Road southerly for 35 metres to a new pedestrian crossover (PXO).
• New PXO across Highgate Road located 35 metres south of Westbury Road in line with the existing pathway connection to Bloomsbury Crecent / Regency Terrace
• New stop signs: 
  • Westbury Road at Highgate Road
  • Rideout Crescent at Westbury Road
  • Cheshire Road at Parkway Drive
• New parking restrictions will be implemented in the following locations:
  • Along the north side of Westbury Road, between Highgate Road and Fellows Road
  • Along the west side of Fellows Road, south of Drury Lane
  • Along both sides of Drury Lane, east of Parkway Drive
  • Along the west side of Parkway Drive, approximately 50 metres south of Iris Drive to Drury Lane

The proposed sidewalks will be partially installed within the roadway and grassed area. The typical width of the reduction in grassed area ranges from approximately 0 to 2 metres.

Westbury Road, Parkway Drive, and Fellows Road will be narrowed to 7.5 metres. This is being done to avoid impacts to trees and private properties while still maintaining on-street parking on one side of the street. Drury Lane will be narrowed to 7.0 metres between Parkway Drive and Fellows Road to reduce the impacts on mature trees. The new sidewalk will be constructed within the City right of way, using some of the existing roadway to accommodate the infrastructure.

Landscaping and other features within the right of way may be impacted during construction. Impacted residents will be notified prior to construction.

Project timing

Design completion: spring 2024
Construction start: summer 2024
Construction completion: fall 2024

Project budget

Approved project budget is $1.23 million.

Public engagement

In May 2022, a virtual public open house was scheduled to be held, but the event was cancelled due to the City-wide storm power outage. The public comment and survey periods were extended to allow the public additional time to view the material online and provide their comments. The display boards and as we heard it report from that consultation is included below under ‘Past consultation and review’. The City of Ottawa held a pre-construction virtual open house on Zoom at 6:30pm on April 10, 2024, to discuss the project. 

Accessibility

Accessibility is an important consideration for the City of Ottawa. The City makes every effort to provide access through and around construction sites. If you require a disability-related accommodation, please contact the project team listed below. Accessible formats and communication supports are available, upon request.

Safety

The City of Ottawa is committed to safety in and around project sites. The project team continues to work closely with the industry and to comply with recommendations provided by municipal, provincial and federal health officials, as well as the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development.

For any emergency outside normal working hours, please call the City at 3-1-1.
For general project information, please contact the City’s Project Manager.
For construction related questions or concerns, please contact the Contractor Representatives.

City Project Manager
Will Ball, P.Eng.
Senior Engineer, Infrastructure Projects
100 Constellation Drive, Ottawa, ON K2G 6J8
Tel.: 343-996-3663

Contract Administrator
Katie Clowater, P.Eng
AECOM
Tel: 613-820-2363

Contractor Representatives
Musha Shaik
Project Manager
Royal Crown Construction
Tel.: 289-505-5043

In July, the City of Ottawa will start construction for the installation of new sidewalks as well as a new pedestrian crossover and multi-use pathway in your neighborhood.

What: The contractor will complete the following work:

• Installation of a new network of sidewalks on each of the following streets:
  • Parkway Drive (east side)
  • Drury Lane (north side)
  • Fellows Road (east side)
  • Westbury Road (north side)
  • Highgate Road (east side)
• Installation of a new pedestrian crossover on Highgate Road, south of Westbury Road.
• Installation of a new multi-use pathway at the east end of Westbury Road to connect into the NCC’s Pinecrest Creek Pathway.

Why: The following summarizes the goals of this project:

• Improve access between the neighbourhood institutions, school, residences and local transit stops, filling a gap in the local sidewalk network
• Contribute to traffic calming by strategically reducing the width of useable road space between the curbs and emphasizing the presence of pedestrians and cyclists to drivers
• Intersection improvements, including the addition of new Stop requirements, will be implemented as part of this project
• Improve accessibility for people with mobility challenges
• Address safety concerns for pedestrian use of the streets, especially during school drop off and pick up times, and during the winter months
• Encourage sustainable transportation, and
• Introduction of some additional parking limitations as part of the road narrowing

Where: The limits of the project are as follows:

• Parkway Drive (Iris Street to Drury Lane)
• Drury Lane (Parkway Drive to Fellows Road)
• Fellows Road (Drury Lane to Westbury Road)
• Westbury Road (Entire length)
• MUP across the wooded area at the east end of Westbury Road
• Approximately 35m of Highgate Road, south of Westbury Road

When: Construction is expected to begin in July with final paving expected to be completed in late fall 2024. Some final landscaping may be completed in spring 2025.

Who: The City of Ottawa has retained the contractor, Royal Crown Construction, to complete the work.

Traffic management

To accommodate the proposed construction, some lane reductions will be required.

Lawn irrigation systems

If you own a subsurface lawn irrigation system, please notify the City Project Manager identified below.

On-street parking and local access

As the various road reconstruction activities are in progress, on-street parking will be restricted in the areas where construction activities are being undertaken. Should you have additional concerns about reduced access, such as business deliveries or accessibility requirements, please contact the project manager listed below.

Impact on the right of way and adjacent private properties

While the reconstruction is within the City’s right of way, it may result in some disruption to part of the private property directly adjacent to the work. The City will reinstate sections of landscaping, driveways and walkways that are disturbed by construction. However, if you have plants or any other assets located within the City’s right of way that you want to preserve, we suggest that you move them in preparation for the construction work.

Additionally, your driveway will not be accessible when the sidewalk is being constructed in front of your property. When access to your driveway is impacted, you will receive 24-hours’ notice and provided with a Temporary On-Street Parking Permit (orange form) to permit on-street parking within two blocks of your residence. Residents with electric vehicles will need to find alternative charging arrangements when access is restricted. The use of extension cords within the public right of way is not permitted.

Construction disruptions

The contractor will take every precaution to minimize interruptions to the everyday life of your family and/or operation of your business, but, as you can appreciate, there may be some inconvenience during the course of the work, such as traffic delays, noise and dust. You may also feel vibrations due to heavy equipment operations. Vibrations from construction activities are quite common and rarely cause any problems. We would like to thank you for your patience and co-operation. For construction activity hours of work, the City of Ottawa follows provincial requirements and the City’s Noise By-law (2017-255).

A virtual public information session was held on Wednesday, April 10 at 6:30 pm to discuss the project.

The City of Ottawa invites you to review and provide comments on the new documents and illustrations for the Westbury Fellows Drury Parkway Sidewalks project by April 17. Your feedback can be submitted by email or by phone to the Project Manager.

Presentation [ 5.57 MB ]

What: This project will install a new network of sidewalks within the local community to improve connectivity for pedestrians and increase accessibility features in the neighbourhood. A new sidewalk will be installed adjacent the curb on one side of each of the following streets:

• Parkway Drive (east side)
• Drury Lane (north side)
• Fellows Road (east side)
• Westbury Road (north side)

In addition, the project will add a new pedestrian crossing on Highgate Road south of Westbury Road and will construct a multi-use pathway at the east end of Westbury Road to connect into the NCC’s Pinecrest Creek Pathway.

Why: The following summarizes the goals of this project:

• Improve access between the neighbourhood institutions, school, residences and local transit stops, filling a gap in the local sidewalk network;
• Contribute to traffic calming by strategically reducing the width of useable road space between the curbs and emphasizing the presence of pedestrians and cyclists to drivers;
• Intersections improvements including addition of new Stop requirements will be implemented as part of this project;
• Improve accessibility for people with mobility challenges;
• Address safety concerns for pedestrian use of the streets, especially during school drop off and pick up times, and during the winter months; 
• Encourage sustainable transportation; and
• Introduction of some additional parking limitations as part of the road narrowing.

Where: The limits of the project are as follows:

• Parkway Drive (Iris Street to Drury Lane)
• Drury Lane (Parkway Drive to Fellows Road)
• Fellows Road (Drury Lane to Westbury Road)
• Westbury Road (Entire length)
• MUP across the wooded area at the east end of Westbury Road.
• Approximately 30m of Highgate Road, south of Westbury Road

When: The current project schedule is as follows:

• Design is expected to be completed in spring 2024
• Construction is expected to start in summer 2024

Notices will be sent prior to construction.

Who: The City of Ottawa has retained the design consulting firm, AECOM Inc., to develop a design for the Westbury Fellows Drury Parkway Sidewalks project.

For further information about this project and/or to submit comments on the project, please contact the City project manager.

The City of Ottawa is proposing to construct a new 2.0 metre wide concrete sidewalk on: the east side of Parkway Drive from Iris Street to Drury Lane; the north side of Drury Lane / east side of Fellows Road from Parkway Drive to Westbury Road; the north side of Westbury Road from Highgate Road to the end of the cul-de-sac. The total length of new sidewalk will be approximately 730 metre.

The proposed sidewalk will connect to the existing sidewalks on the south side of Iris Street at Parkway Drive, on the east side of Fellows Road in front of Terre-des-Jeunes Catholic Elementary School and on the west side of Highgate Road at Westbury Road.

Construction of a connection to the Pinecrest Creek Pathway through School Board and NCC lands is under discussion. This connection would involve a new 3.0 metre pathway from the end of the cul-de-sac east of Fellows Road to the Pinecrest Creek Pathway.

This project is identified as a Phase 3 project in the 2013 Ottawa Pedestrian Plan and will complete a missing link in the pedestrian network providing improved connectivity to schools, transit and the multi-use pathway network.

As local roads that lead directly to a school, these portions of Parkway, Drury, Fellows and Westbury should have a pedestrian facility, according to current City policy. The provision of a sidewalk aligns with the City’s transportation goals and objectives to maximize walkability and create safe pedestrian environments.

The sidewalk will provide greater walkability in this residential area facilitating access to Terre-des-Jeunes Catholic Elementary School, the Iris Transitway/LRT Station and the pedestrian pathways within the neighbourhood including the Pinecrest Creek Pathway. The sidewalk will support pedestrians, including more vulnerable users such as children, seniors, wheelchair users and persons with vision impairment. Tactile walking surface indicators will be installed at pedestrian crossings along the new sidewalk.

The proposed sidewalk will generally be installed within the City’s right-of-way. Westbury Road will be narrowed to 7.5 metre from Highgate Road to Fellows Road to reduce the impacts to trees and on properties while still maintaining on-street parking on one side of the street. The roadway will also be narrowed in segments where feasible along Parkway Drive and Drury Lane / Fellows Road to reduce impacts on trees. Landscaping and other features within the right-of-way may be impacted during construction. Please see the drawing below for the extent of the study area.

Additional information regarding this project:

Display boards [ PDF 11.346 MB ]

Comments from the public about the proposed pedestrian improvements have been received via phone, email and the online survey which closed on June 30, 2022.  A summary of the public feedback is available online:

As we heard it report [ PDF 392 KB ]

We would like to thank all residents who have shared their thoughts and concerns about the project.

The project is now slated to proceed to engineering design over the winter with construction anticipated in spring/summer 2023.

For more information, please contact:

Robin Bennett, M.C.I.P. R.P.P.
Project Manager, Cycling Program
City of Ottawa, Transportation Planning
Planning, Real Estate and Economic Development Department
613-580-2424, extension 21795
Email: robin.bennett@ottawa.ca