I BRLi.;PTON 3 r bmnptam Flower City

April 3, 201 3

Kathryn Lockyer, Regional Clerk Regional Municipality of Peel 10 Peel Centre Drive, Suite "A , !jth Floor Brampton, ON L6T 4B9

'P .m

Council an

Dan Labrecque Commissioner of Public Works Regional Municipality of Peel 10 Peel Centre Drive, Suite "A", 5'h Floor Brampton, ON L6T 4B9

Re: Churchville Village Traffic Study - Ward 6 (File T06)

The following recommendation of the Committee of Council Meeting of March 20, 201 3 was approved by Council on March 27,201 3:

1. That the report from M. Parks, Manager of Traffic Engineering Services, Works and Transportation, dated March 4,201 3, to the Committee of Council Meeting of March 20, 201 3, re: Churchville Village Traffic Study - Ward 6 (File T06) be received; and,

2. That two sets of "speed cushions" be installed and evaluated in Churchville Village (one set south of Steeles Avenue and a second set north of Church Street) on a trial basis from May to November 2013; and,

3. That staff report back to a future Committee of Council meeting to provide the results of the trial for consideration of "speed cushions" in Churchville Village on a permanent seasonal basis and the possibility of incorporating this device into the City's Neighbourhood Traffic Management Guide; and,

4. That the Region of Peel be requested to expedite its monitoring and consideration of traffic signals at the intersections of Steeles Avenue with the two entrance points into the Churchville Village (Creditview Road and Churchville Road) in recognition of the existing and potential development in this area and vehicular and pedestrian activities at these intersections.

ention is directed to clause 4 of Recommendation CW079-2013. R E F E X L ?b p,, aL, a K5 RECOMMENDED DIRECTION REQUIRED RECEIPT REWMmB-ton

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APR 0 9 2013 2 Wellington Street west, Brampton, ON L6Y 4 ~ 2 T 905.874.2000 TlY 905.874.2130

REGION OF PEEL CLERKS DEPT.

By copy of this correspondence to M. Parks, Manager of Traffic Engineering Services, Works and Transportation, he is requested to carry out the direction in Recommendation CW079-2013. (RML #2013-013 - clause 3)

Yours truly,

%nya Pacheco Legislative Coordinator City Clerk's Office Tel: 905-874-21 78 1 Fax: 905-874-21 19 sonva.pacheco @ brampton.ca

cc: Regional Councillor P. Palleschi City Councillor J. Hutton S. Connor, Interim Commissioner of Works and Transportation R. D'lppolito, Director of Operations, Works and Transportation M. Parks, Manager of Traffic Engineering Services, Works and Transportation N. Cadete, Traffic Operations Supervisor, Works and Transportation

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Report 1 Committee of Council

, 1 J Committee of the Council of

The Corporation of the City of Bramptsn

Date: March 4,2013

File: TO6 - Churchville Road

COMMITTEE OF COUNCIL

DATE:

Subject: Churchville Village Traffic Study (Ward 6)

Contact: Michael Parks, Manager, Traffic Engineering Services (905-874-2572)

Overview:

The residents of Churchville Village identified the need for speed bumps as a preferred solution for staff consideration to mitigate the traffic issues within the village.

0 Typical vertical deflections (speed bumps/humps) have negative impacts on the delivery of maintenance and emergency services.

9 "Speed cushions" provide an alternate to speed bumps that address the maintenance and emergency services issues, while still meeting the intent as a traffic calming measure. Staff recommend that the use of "speed cushions" be evaluated on a trial basis within Churchville Village. Staff will prepare a follow up report to Committee of Council summarizing the results of the pilot. The evaluation will determine whether "speed cushions" are an appropriate permanent measure in the Village and whether the use of "speed cushions" should be added to the City's Neighbourhood Traffic Management Guide. Region of Peel staff determined that the traffic conditions at the intersections of Steeles Avenue with Creditview Road and Churchville Road do not meet the technical justification to warrant the need for traffic control signals at this time.

Recommendations:

1. That the report from Michael Parks, Manager, Traffic Engineering Services, Works and Transportation Department dated March 4, 2013 to the Committee of Council Meeting of March 20, 201 3, re: Churchville Village Traffic Study (Ward 6) be received;

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2. That two sets of "speed cushions" be installed and evaluated in Churchville Village (one set south of Steeles Avenue and a second set north of Church Street) on a trial basis from ~ a y to November 201 3; and,

3. That staff report back to a future Committee of Council meeting to provide the results of the trial for consideration of "speed cushions" in Churchville Village on a permanent seasonal basis and the possibility of incorporating this device into the City's Neighbourhood Traffic Management Guide.

Background:

Churchville Village is designated a Heritage Conservation District under the Ontario Heritage Act. This designation provides the City and the provincial government authority to preserve the heritage of the Village. The guidelines for alterations, additions and new construction within Churchville Village include the following provision related to public works:

"Every effort should be made in both day-to-day operations and longer term planning to minimize the adverse effects to the heritage consetvation district and its constituent parts. "

( -3. On September 29, 201 I , the residents of Churchville Village held a brainstorming dd

session to identify potential mitigating measures that they could support in alleviating traffic related issues in the Village. Approximately 60 residents compiled a list of 47 suggestions and prioritized the following three top suggestions for consideration by City and Regional staff:

Speeds Bumps; 0 Closing Hailstone Road; and,

Increase the amount of time available for the westbound left turn phase at Steeles Avenue and Financial Drive.

In response to the aforementioned suggested mitigating measure, staff offer the following comments for consideration:

Speed Bumps - Speeds bumps or humps are not used as a traffic calming device within the City of Brampton due to concerns from Emergency Services Agencies relating to increased response times and negative impacts in administering life saving health procedures.

Closing Wallstone Road - The roadways within the Churchville Village are considered to be a public right-of-way. Any means of physically restricting access into and out of

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, -1 the Village would have an impact on the traveling public (including Churchville .J residents) and a detrimental effect on the requirement of Fire and Emergency Services

to ensure that sufficient access is provided into a neighbourhood.

Left Turn Signal at Steeles Avenue and Financial Drive - The Region of Peel have recently reviewed the signal timing at the intersections of Steeles Avenue with Financial Drive and Mississauga Road and additional time has been provided for the advance left turn phases.

Region of Peel staff conducted traffic studies at the intersections of Steeles Avenue with the two entrance points into the Village (Creditview Road and Churchville Road), in consideration of traffic control signals. The results of the studies revealed that the traffic conditions at the two intersections do not meet the technical justification to warrant the need for traffic control signals at this time. The Region recognizes the existing and potential development in this area and has committed to continue to closely monitor vehicular and pedestrian activities at these intersections.

Current Situation:

As stated above, the primary challenge with the use of vertical deflections (speed i bumps and humps) as traffic calming measures is that they have a negative impact on

the delivery of emergency services; however, speed bumps also pose a significant challenge for the delivery of winter maintenance. Since the City's first review of speed ..

bumps/humps, a number of local municipalities in the GTA (including the Region of Peel) have implemented "speed cushions" as an alternate vertical deflection traffic calming measure.

"Speed cushions" are traffic calming devices designed to include more than one smaller speed bump installed across the width of the road with spaces between them. They are generally installed in a series across a roadway resembling a split speed hump. Figure 1 is a photograph of a set of speed cushions in Caledon, installed by the Region of Peel, to address similar traffic issues experienced on a rural roadway with similar neighborhood characteristics. The design of speed cushions force cars to slow down as they ride with one or both wheels on the humps. However, the wider axle of emergency vehicles such as fire engines and ambulances ,: Speed on the are able to straddle the cushions without slowing down or Forks of the Credit Road

...' increasing response times.

The speed cushions shown in Figure 1 are modular rubber cushions lagged into the pavement surface. The intent of the preformed modular design is to allow the cushion to be removed from the roadway surface during the winter season addressing the challenge of having to clear snow and ice around the speed cushions.

Staff recommend that the use of "speed cushions" be piloted on a trial basis within Churchville Village. The development of the pilot involves examining traffic data (before and after), reviewing road characteristics and seeking input from the residents of Churchville Village.

A letter and questionnaire was sent to the residents of Churchville Village intended to provide them with information on the pilot and identify preferred locations for the speed cushions. Specifically, residents were asked to choose one of the following options:

0 Option 1 : One set of speed cushions (one for each lane) on Churchville Road, south of Steeles Avenue

0 Option 2: One set of speed cushions (one for each lane) on Churchville Road, north of Church Street

0 Option 3: Both sets of speed cushions identified in options 1 and 2 0 Option 4: Do Nothing - Maintain Existing Conditions

Please see Figure 2 attached for an illustration of the proposed "speed cushion" locations. This figure was provided with the questionnaire.

Table 1 below provides a summary of the results received from 122 questionnaires sent to all the homes within Churchville Village.

Table 1 Summary of "Speed Cushion" Questionnaire Results

Under a pilot program, once the "speed cushions" are in place (May 201 3), staff will monitor traffic volumes and speeds in the village to assess the impact of the "speed cushions" on Churchville Road, Hailstone Road and Creditview Road. The "speed cushions" will remain in place until removed in November 2013. Upon completion of the trial, staff will prepare a follow up report to Committee of Council summarizing the

results of the pilot. The evaluation will determine whether "speed cushions" are an appropriate permanent measure in the Village and whether "speed cushions" should be added to the Neighbourhood Traffic Management Guide as an affective traffic calming measure.

To minimize the adverse effects of installing the "speed cushions" within the heritage conservation district, "heritage styleJ1 decorative sign posts will be used to support traffic signs required to compliment the installation of the seasonal "speed cushions".

Financial Implications

The total cost of the "speed cushion" pilot project is estimated at $5,000. Funding for this initiative is available in Capital Project #093010.001 - Traffic Calming.

Corporate Implications:

Peel Reaional Paramedic Services

Comments relating to the use of "speed cushions" have been received from Peel Regional Paramedic Services and they do not foresee a negative impact on the delivery

3 of service to the area or the transport of patients. I

Fire and Emergencv Services

Brampton Fire and Emergency Services have concerns with any traffic calming device that negatively impacts the delivery of service by increasing response times. Vertical deflections, in general, require our vehicles to slow down while responding to emergencies. The requirement to slow down, along with the time needed for a large emergency vehicle to accelerate, will increase the time required for our crews to arrive on the scene of an emergency.

The installation of speed cushions in the Village of Churchville, however, is a somewhat unique situation. The proposed speed cushions will be, by virtue of their locations, near the end of the overall response and will only impact emergency crews responding to that particular limited area.

Therefore Fire and Emergency Services will support this very limited pilot project and will take the opportunity to measure the impact on response times.

Planning, Desian and Development Department

Comments from the Planning, Design and Development Department have been incorporated within this report. The Planning, Design and Development Department fully support this proposal.

Conclusion:

The residents of Churchville Village have identified speeds bumps as the preferred solution for staff consideration to mitigate the traffic issues within the Village. Although, typical vertical deflections (speed bumpslhumps) have negative impacts on the delivery of maintenance and emergency services, "speed cushions" provide an alternate that address these issues.

City staff recommend that two sets of "speed cushions" be installed and evaluated in Churchville Village (one set south of Steeles Avenue and a second set north of Church Street) on a trial basis from May to November 2013.

~ o m u ~ l d o ' ~ ~ l ~ ~ o l i t o , P. Eng., Director, Operations Interim Commissioner of Works and

Transportation

Appendices:

Figure 2: Proposed Speed Cushion Pilot Project

Report authored by: Nelson Cadete, Traffic Operations Supervisor, Traffic Engineering Services

cln OF BRAMPTON rwatcnv

FIGURE 2 Proposed Speed Cushlon Pilot Project Churohvllle Village Traffic Study Potenllal LoCallon(s) of

0.1.: (loptam&. !2011 ,,,. TO6 - Churohville Road $peed Cushlons

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