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Brandon Sun: City hears calls for active transportation (May19'23)
by Beth McKechnie 20 May '23

20 May '23

*City hears calls for active transportation* https://www.brandonsun.com/local/2023/05/19/city-hears-calls-for-active-tra… Despite some opposition, Brandon residents showed overwhelming support for active transportation and community growth during Thursday evening’s city plan event. More than 70 residents filled the Brandon Curling Club’s upper lounge at the Keystone Centre for the first city plan event since March, when a confrontation between attendees and city staff at a previous session led to the temporary cancellation of consultations for the project. A group of citizens confronted staff and accused them of trying to implement elements of a conspiracy theory surrounding 15-minute cities. The concept of 15-minute cities proposes communities be designed in a way that allows residents to access all necessary amenities and services in 15 minutes or less of travel time. The conspiracy theory alleges a plan to assign people to zones within their community they’re not allowed to leave. The first member of the public to speak was Rick Macl, part of the group that confronted city staff in March. He criticized the city for pursuing growth and trying to attract new residents without working harder to reduce the cost of living. He said originally coming from Winnipeg, the property taxes in Brandon were “insane” and decried upcoming increases to Brandon’s water utility rates. Macl brought up 15-minute cities while speaking, saying they aren’t a conspiracy theory and the city’s actions show it is pursuing that goal. While kicking off the meeting, Brandon’s director of planning and buildings, Ryan Nickel, said when the process to design a new city plan started, thought was given to how to generate engagement from the public. Nickel thanked those attending for their time and consideration, and said he hoped people had come because of a variety of interests and opinions. He said he hoped the event would be a safe environment for everyone to address their concerns. “We want to acknowledge that we had a pause,” Nickel said. “We know there was a lot of passion.” After an introduction to the concept of a city plan and how it’s made, city planner Sonikile Tembo and Nickel gave a series of short presentations on elements of the plan broken up by opportunities for attendees to ask questions. On top of the prudence of planning for the city’s future, Tembo said Brandon is required by the province to complete plans like this every so often. Nickel said in recent years around 74 per cent of Brandon’s growth has come from “emerging” areas in the southwest and the North Hill, with 26 per cent coming in more established neighbourhoods. One challenge to industrial growth, Nickel said, is while Brandon plenty of industrial land, only some of it is fully serviced with utilities and infrastructure. During consultations, the city has heard residents ask for a greater variety of housing and a bigger emphasis on mixed-use zoning to allow services to operate near residential areas. While the city has identified a desire for more active transportation routes around town like bike paths, Macl questioned the value of doing so given how many people drive to work and the number of months where biking is inaccessible due to winter weather. He said he’d like to see members of Brandon City Council walk to work every day and see how that suits them. Addressing some of those concerns about active transportation, Nickel said it’s not about restricting vehicles, it’s about providing safe options for people who are travelling on foot, by bike or other methods of movement. “It’s about taking the space we already have and using the space a little bit differently,” Nickel said. In response, Macl argued against the potential cost of maintaining more bike paths and said he hasn’t heard any safety concerns from pedestrians or cyclists. Brandon Police Service Chief Wayne Balcaen, sitting on the panel of city representatives, said there are several motor-vehicle collisions and bicycle accidents every year and it is the city’s goal to prevent them. Macl challenged Balcaen to say how many fatalities he’s seen over his 30-year career, to which a fellow member of the public said: “One is too many.” Cycling advocate Grant Hamilton, who lost a finger and suffered a permanently separated shoulder last year when he was struck by a car while riding his bike, said it is “absolutely wild to hear that people like me don’t exist.” He said he didn’t speak up to complain about himself, but to say he doesn’t want any motorists to feel the guilt the person who hit him did. That, he said, is why Brandon should pursue safety for all road users. Another resident said that while she doesn’t intend to get rid of her vehicle, she appreciated road safety issues being looked at so she and other people can more easily choose to walk if they want to. She pointed out that by making more accessible walking and cycling infrastructure, it will also make it simpler for people using scooters or other mobility aids to get around. Multiple people spoke about how they either bike during the winter or would if the city had the proper infrastructure in place. While speaking about movement, Nickel acknowledged that residents have made it clear they’re unhappy about the current state of Brandon Transit and said city council has identified improving the service as a priority. The city’s community housing and wellness co-ordinator, Shannon Saltarelli, said in working with the city’s most vulnerable population, she’s found how important active transportation options are for them. More information on future city plan events and the feedback generated by the public can be found online at brandon.ca/cityplan. » cslark(a)brandonsun.com » Twitter: @ColinSlark

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WFP: Peg City puts faith, new fleet into free-floating service (May18'23)
by Beth McKechnie 18 May '23

18 May '23

Peg City puts faith, new fleet into free-floating service https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/business/2023/05/17/peg-city-car-co-op-pu… IT’S a new era of car sharing in Winnipeg — one without city parking fees, advanced bookings and precise dropoff locations. Peg City Car Co-op’s free-floating car-share program, nicknamed Flo, will launch June 7. “I really feel the wind is behind our backs,” Philip Mikulec, Peg City chief executive officer, said Wednesday, standing near one of 35 Toyota Corollas set to join the program. The vehicles won’t have a permanent home. Instead, they’ll stay in prescribed zones when not being used, untouched by City of Winnipeg time limits and, for the user, street parking fees. It is “more flexible, but it’s more last-minute” than Peg City’s typical structure, Mikulec said. Currently, Peg City vehicles must be booked for at least one hour and returned to the same spot from where they were picked up. The round-trip program — now nicknamed Fix — will continue alongside Flo. “The two will complement one another,” Mikulec said. Free-floating vehicles must be booked within a half-hour of use. Available cars will appear on a map, real-time, on Peg City’s app for users to book. Members can drive those vehicles without a predefined end, and they don’t have to return the Corollas to the trip’s starting location. However, the car must be parked in one of 12 designated zones throughout the city. When Jared Kozak exits his home base of Osborne Village in a Flo car, he can leave it in a designated zone in River Heights, Crescentwood, Corydon, Riverview, Lord Roberts, Norwood, St. Boniface, West Broadway, Wolseley, St. Matthews or the West End — or back in River-Osborne. “(This will) revolutionize the way that we do last minute bookings,” said Kozak, a Peg City member. The cars, which are decorated with Flo labels, can disregard city time limits and parking fees in designated zones highlighted on Peg City’s app. “It’s, like, brilliant,” said Coun. Janice Lukes, who also serves as deputy mayor. City council unanimously approved a bylaw change allowing for free parking of the co-op cars in the 12 zones. It follows a pilot project in which certain parking spaces were reserved for car-sharing vehicles. Five spots became permanently reserved for car shares in early 2022. Lukes couldn’t say Wednesday how much street parking revenue the city will lose because of the zones. Peg City Car Co-op will spend $875 annually on Flo car parking permits ($25 per vehicle). For Lukes, the program’s gains outweigh the money lost. “It’s doing far more than revenue generation,” she said. “It reduces the wear and tear on our streets, it reduces the greenhouse gases, it’s good for the environment.” Cars are expensive, and this is an alternate form of transport, Lukes added. “It’s… really cheap,” agreed Zephyra Vun. She sold her vehicle in 2019, and got a Peg City membership. She pays $4.50 monthly for a casual spot. A regular membership (with cheaper vehicle rental rates per hour) requires a $500 refundable share. Members are set to pay 35 cents per minute while using Flo vehicles. The price caps at $10/hr and $50/day, with subsequent days costing $40. For a casual user such as Vun, the daily rate is $56. There are nine Flo drop-off spots in clusters of three downtown and in the Exchange District. The cars can also be taken out of province. “The cars are communicating with us,” Mikulec said. “If there’s something going wrong, and the vehicle has been suspiciously out of the zone for a long time and stationary, it’s going to alert us.” Members will be asked to leave the keys in the vehicle after ending a trip in a designated zone. Once alone, the vehicle automatically locks itself down. If it’s in a Flo zone, it will reappear as available on Peg City’s map, Mikulec said. The company has attracted more than 3,000 members since its 2011 launch. Communauto, Canada’s largest car-sharing business and a Peg City partner, assisted the local co-op in launching its app last month. “I’m sure (free-floating cars) will be a big boost in membership and usage (for Peg City),” said Marco Viviani, Communauto vice-president for strategic development. A similar program has been in Montreal for 10 years. Since then, the flexible model has spread to Quebec City, Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto and Hamilton, Ont., Viviani said. In Montreal, usage of the flexible model nearly matches usage of the station- based model Peg City Car Co-op is known for, he added. One car-sharing vehicle takes up to 15 privately-owned cars off the road, according to Peg City Car Co-op. Three-quarters of its members bus or take active transport to work. Lukes (Waverley West) said she wants to see the new program model expand: “I just think that we need to have these (zones) all throughout the city.” Meantime, Peg City Car Co-op also launched a new logo Wednesday, a green circle with white lettering. It will hold its annual general meeting May 31. It has a fleet of more than 130 vehicles. gabrielle.piche(a)winnipegfreepress.com

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WFP Editorial: A tale of two roadway plans (May18'23)
by Beth McKechnie 18 May '23

18 May '23

* A tale of two roadway plans * https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/editorials/2023/05/17/a-tale-of-t… CONSIDERING the urgent need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and motor vehicle use, it is instructive to compare two approaches to urban planning in Winnipeg: one along Route 90 between Ness and Taylor avenues and the other in Osborne Village. The former is a plan to widen a busy roadway, a move that will ultimately attract more vehicles and, in all likelihood, fail to achieve its primary goal of reducing traffic congestion. The latter is an attempt to discourage motor vehicle use by prioritizing pedestrian traffic, public transit and active transportation. The City of Winnipeg is planning to spend some $500 million to widen Route 90 and separate combined sewers along the roadway. The plan includes upgrades to the St. James bridges and would add new, dedicated walking and cycling pathways. The main objective of the mega project is to improve traffic flow for motor vehicles. To achieve that, the city plans to add a lane northbound and southbound and standardize the speed limit at 60 km/h (it currently varies between 50 km/h and 70 km/h). Proponents of the plan argue widening the roadway is necessary to reduce traffic congestion and to prevent it from getting worse as Winnipeg’s population grows. Without the added lanes, commute times along Route 90 for northbound vehicles during morning rush-hour would nearly double over the next 18 years to about 14 minutes, the city projects. Southbound commutes would increase from around eight minutes to 11 minutes during afternoon peak periods. The added lanes would keep both commute times at about seven to nine minutes. What the city’s analysis does not address, however, is that adding more lanes will induce demand for vehicle traffic and create more gridlock over time. What urban centres all over the world have discovered is that building larger, wider roads only serves to attract more vehicles, and does not actually solve the problem of traffic congestion. The analysis also fails to consider how alternative options — including a vastly improved public transit system, enhanced active transportation and the use of other strategies to reduce the use of single-occupancy vehicles (such as more ride sharing) — could reduce traffic congestion and eliminate the need for wider roads. Meanwhile, a few kilometres to the east, Osborne Village is looking to create a more livable neighbourhood by actively discouraging motor vehicle use. Instead of seeking ways to accommodate more vehicles, the Osborne Village BIZ’s “Blueprint for a Vibrant and Healthy Neighbourhood” is proposing less space for cars and trucks and more room and flexibility for pedestrians and cyclists. It is a unique and forward-looking approach. The plan proposes to narrow each of Osborne’s four traffic lanes within the village from 3.25 metres to three metres to allow for wider sidewalks. It also proposes to lower the speed limit and bring in a “pedestrian scramble” at the corner of Osborne and River Avenue, where all vehicles would temporarily stop to allow pedestrians to cross in all directions at the same time. It would be the first such pedestrian crossing in Winnipeg. By favouring pedestrians and cyclists over motorists, the Osborne Village proposal seeks to achieve the opposite of what the Route 90 plan would likely bring: more single passenger, carbon- emitting vehicles to the area and ultimately, more traffic gridlock. Perhaps it’s time to reimagine how the Route 90 corridor could look with less emphasis on motor vehicles and a greater focus on alternative forms of transportation.

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CBC: Widening Winnipeg's Kenaston Boulevard, Chief Peguis Trail not worth the cost: sustainability expert (May17'23)
by Beth McKechnie 17 May '23

17 May '23

City's 'strategic misrepresentation' overstates benefits, understates costs, Ken Klassen says https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/route-90-widening-not-worth-cost-1.… As Winnipeg considers whether to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on two of the most expensive road construction projects in its history, one expert says the city's own data shows the projects aren't worth the cost. Ken Klassen is an engineering technologist with four decades of experience advising companies on ways to improve sustainability. He gave a presentation to city council's executive policy committee in March, urging them not to go ahead with plans to widen Kenaston Boulevard and extend Chief Peguis Trail. Using reports produced by the city, including some obtained through freedom of information requests, Klassen argued the costs far outweigh any purported benefits. "Part of the strategic misrepresentation that the city has consistently done with this project [is] they've overstated the benefits [and] they've understated the impacts on the community," Klassen said in an interview. Earlier this month, the city released its preliminary designs for upgrading the Route 90 corridor between Taylor Avenue and Ness Avenue, including adding two new lanes to Kenaston Boulevard. That report states more than two-thirds of the cost of that project is needed for necessary upgrades to the road, sewers and St. James Bridge. Past cost-benefit study The city estimates the Kenaston Boulevard project will cost about $500 million, and the 2023 budget includes $2.8 million for preliminary planning, including conducting business case studies of the Kenaston and Chief Peguis Trail projects. Klassen, who lives on a street near Kenaston Boulevard, said the city already did that study a decade ago. A 2012 report prepared by MMM Group Ltd. estimated widening Kenaston would generate $125 million in revenue for the city over 20 years — $6.25 million per year. The city's unfunded major capital projects report from 2019 estimates the Route 90 project will cost the city $38.7 million per year, with financing and maintenance costs factored in. The cost of the proposed Chief Peguis Trail extension is also pegged at about $500 million. Klassen said considering those costs, the two projects are "the equivalent of a 14 per cent increase in your property tax every year for the next 30 years." In an emailed statement, Mayor Scott Gillingham said the city would conduct a new cost-benefit analysis using current data before applying for federal and provincial funding. "But this isn't simply about widening a road. It's about removing a bottleneck on one of our most important trade routes," Gillingham wrote. "Kenaston is six lanes wide immediately north and south of this section. The bottleneck creates congestion and causes some drivers to cut through other streets in River Heights." Feds rejected project twice Klassen also cast doubt on the possibility of the city getting federal and provincial support for the project. He points out that the federal government has rejected it twice already — once in 2015 under the Building Canada Fund and again in 2018 under the National Trade Corridors Fund. Other Canadian cities have dedicated massive amounts of money to building their rapid transit networks with the help of federal funding, Klassen said. "The federal government is not funding urban freeways, they're funding rapid transit," he said. "Winnipeg taxpayers are literally seeing their federal tax dollars being used to fund rapid transit in other cities, and we're not at the table." Gillingham points out the Kenaston plans also include new active transportation paths and upgrades to transit stops, allowing for articulated buses to be used along the route. "Outside of this project, we will continue to implement [the] transit master plan and make further enhancements to pedestrian and cycling infrastructure," he wrote. Rather than building wider and longer roads as a way of dealing with congestion, Klassen said Winnipeg should focus on expanding its rapid transit network, which carries an additional benefit. The largest bus manufacturer in North America, New Flyer, is based in the city. As Winnipeg moves to electrify its bus fleet, it can take advantage of Manitoba's abundance of cheap electricity. "We don't build cars like Ontario does. We build buses," Klassen said. "We don't drill for oil and gas the way Saskatchewan and Alberta do. We have hydroelectricity. Yet we're not leveraging our inherent resources. It's ridiculous."

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WFP Analysis: City fails to look to the future (May17'23)
by Beth McKechnie 17 May '23

17 May '23

* City fails to look to the future * https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/analysis/2023/05/17/city-fails-to… MOST Winnipeggers won’t know that on April 18, with the release of the agenda for our five city community committee meetings, they were notified of a chance to comment on the new city strategic plan or Strategic Priorities Action Plan (SPAP), a new guiding document for Winnipeg. Unless you make it your business to know, you would be oblivious, because you had only two days to register by April 21 for the public meeting April 24-26. We have all been jammed by scheduling games like this, where someone doesn’t give the time needed to meet or complete a job. There are terms for this type of action in workplaces — weaponization of procedures, administrative harassment, or social bullying. What do you call it when governments routinely do it to citizens? Governance procedures are often used to exclude, while creating the optics of inclusion with no meaningful engagement and participation. Our city governance routinely makes public meetings a charade, merely a token gesture or formality. The recent community committee meetings of city council, discussing something as important as a strategic plan, were an example, even before disrespectful councillor comments. Policy and procedure are connected. We need an inclusive, participatory process to get good evidence-based public policy, including evidence from lived experience. This was the main point of my presentation at the community committee that caused Coun. Jeff Browaty to confuse unsustainable privilege to drive SUVs around drive thrus with civil rights. Real democracy is required for real progress to address the climate and inequity crisis we face. Cities must become climate smart by design, through good urban planning, and connecting collaborative public engagement, research evidence, budgets, and public policy. But there was not just a problem with undemocratic procedure related to what happened at the community committee, but with the SPAP itself. A strategic plan is mandated by and flows from the requirements of Our Winnipeg, the governing document approved by council to guide city planning and development. This plan to implement Our Winnipeg should not be pet projects cobbled together by councillors and called a strategic action plan — pet projects like Chief Peguis Trail incompatible with guiding policy. The Our Winnipeg document and dozens of related policy documents call for complete communities, where people can access services and resources close to home and for mode shift. Meaning to meet our climate obligations we must reduce our personal vehicle-reliant mode share from 80 per cent to 50 per cent, by 2030. To do this, we must reduce the gasoline purchased and burned by 50 per cent, which requires the city to make transit, car-pooling, biking, and walking viable and convenient. Electric vehicles will help, but electric vehicles don’t address traffic congestion. This mode shift is impossible in a city designed for car reliance, like Winnipeg. A strategic plan which prioritizes the extension of the Chief Peguis Trail expressway and other street widening megaprojects like Kenaston is not aligned with Our Winnipeg and other policies. This infrastructure expansion makes it impossible for us to meet our transportation climate emission goals and responsibilities. Borrowing billions of dollars for vehicle infrastructure we can’t afford just can’t happen. We can’t knowingly continue to design the city for cars, inequity, climate chaos and catastrophe. On May 30, council must not approve the SPAP. After I made these points as a member of the Transportation and Land Use Coalition (TLUC), Coun. Browaty, the finance chair, made shocking comments, implying he, and the constituents he represents, do not support the climate plan, that his constituents wanted to drive their SUVs around drive-thrus to get coffee. Did he violate his councillor code of conduct not just with climate change denying comments but in support of the SPAP? Section 10 of the Code indicates council members will “adhere to all by-laws, policies and procedures adopted by council.” If the integrity commissioner investigated, would they find elected officials not following public policy, particularly those who consider it irrelevant to support policy for addressing climate change? This is important because Coun. Browaty leads city budget development. The mayor, who appointed him finance chair, was quoted saying he did not see anything wrong with Coun. Browaty’s comments. We must stop this disregard for public policy and groups that, acting in the public interest, follow public policy development at city hall. These citizen groups take time to review the documents, prepare, sign up, and speak up, urging those elected to live up to their mandate to create a healthy city for all. There are special interest groups who benefit handsomely from the unsustainable way Winnipeg has been developed and governed for decades. They presented to council meetings in support of the billion-dollar Chief Peguis Trail Highway extension. The Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce spokesperson made some outlandish comments of his own, claiming the Chief Peguis Trail extension would help meet our climate goals by reducing traffic congestion. Wow! Who is relevant? Who is speaking for public interests? Which councillors are going to stand for climate-relevant policy? *Marianne Cerilli is a former MLA and mayoral candidate.*

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WFP Editorial: Two wheels and one big problem (May17'23)
by Beth McKechnie 17 May '23

17 May '23

* Two wheels and one big problem * https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/editorials/2023/05/16/two-wheels-… THE sun is shining, the trees are budding and Winnipeg bike thieves are gearing up for another busy season of breaking locks and reselling stolen goods online. Bicycle theft might seem like small potatoes when compared to more serious local concerns — such as an uptick in violent crimes and arsons — but it’s a nagging issue that commands few resources and sees little improvement year after year. After year. Stolen bikes have become an accepted, embarrassing fact of life in Winnipeg. When Ai Weiwei’s towering sculpture of 1,245 silver bicycles was installed at The Forks in 2019, social media was atwitter with jokes about how long it would take thieves to run off with the 30foot public art piece. During last year’s mayoral race, candidate Rick Shone had his bike stolen minutes after pitching a plan to reduce bike theft — again, online reaction was swift. Few seemed surprised that a bicycle was snatched in broad daylight. While bike theft is a chronic issue in cities across Canada, local efforts to curb the problem have been laughably ineffective. A recent investigation published by the Free Press revealed that Winnipeg has a single bicycle recovery officer. That lone employee is responsible for managing the city’s unclaimed bike inventory, creating promotional materials, responding to police reports, recovering stolen property and returning bikes to their rightful owner. Quite the job description for one person. That there is only a single officer — in a city of 750,000 people — dedicated to addressing bike theft shows how serious the Winnipeg Police Service considers the issue. Last fall, officers reportedly laughed off a resident’s request to help thwart a bicycle robbery in-progress. The victim lost his wheels and his confidence in the system — a sentiment that can have dangerous consequences. The same Free Press investigation profiled a mother and son who had taken to vigilante justice to recover the 13-year-old’s stolen bicycle. After spotting the wheels for sale online, the pair concocted a plan to meet with the seller and retrieve the goods. Things worked out for the pair, but vigilantism is risky business. As many as 3,000 bikes are reported stolen in the city annually; although, the actual number of thefts is likely higher since small-scale property crimes are often underreported. Of that, roughly 400 bicycles make it back to their rightful owners. Missing bicycles shouldn’t be the department’s top priority, but the city needs to reassess how it handles the issue. The current system requires residents to pay $7.35 to register their bicycles with the city’s online database. In theory, registration makes it easier to reunite bikes with owners; however, only 10 per cent of lost bikes ever return home, making it clear the process isn’t working. Vancouver and Edmonton have managed to increase reunions through free online bike databases and point-of-sale registrations. The city would also do well to offer more secure sites to lock up bikes, such as the bike corral in the parkade of the Millennium Library. Winnipeg cyclists have enough to contend with between crumbling infrastructure, aggressive drivers, difficult weather conditions and a lacklustre cycling network. The risk of also having your ride swiped is another hurdle for citizens trying to engage in active transportation. While biking is billed as an important pillar in the city’s forthcoming Transportation Master Plan, Winnipeg has kilometres to go before it can be considered an accessible cycling city. Addressing bike theft is key to that transition. Winnipeg Police don’t need to re-invent the wheel, but they do need to recognize its value. And come along for the ride.

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Global: Winnipeg still lags behind on active transportation, experts say (May13'23)
by Beth McKechnie 15 May '23

15 May '23

https://globalnews.ca/news/9696861/winnipeg-still-lags-behind-on-active-tra…

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WFP: CentrePlan 2050 targets new residents, more traffic on feet, less in cars (May12'23)
by Beth McKechnie 12 May '23

12 May '23

*CentrePlan 2050 targets new residents, more traffic on feet, less in cars* *Vision for a downtown with ‘people’* https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/2023/05/11/city-proposes-massive-ch… A new vision to revitalize Winnipeg’s downtown pitches options to create new green space, calm traffic, reimagine Graham Avenue and attract new residents among its key goals. Described as a blueprint to redevelop downtown, a preliminary version of CentrePlan 2050 released Thursday sets a target to ensure at least 350 new residential units get built in the city centre each year until 2030, followed by 500 annually after that. That’s part of a much broader strategy to attract more residents and visitors. The proposal floats ideas to create “ideal neighbourhood streets” with safe crossings for foot traffic, street trees, pedestrian lighting, on-street parking and narrow road lanes meant to help slow traffic. “We want more people living in the downtown and staying in the downtown and not just driving through the downtown… I think now’s the time to have a conversation about pedestrian safety, cycling… transit and motor-vehicle traffic,” said Mayor Scott Gillingham. “There’s a couple things I really want to see, (including) finding ways to add more green space in the downtown, finding more ways to redevelop surface parking lots and add the amenities to the downtown communities that people depend upon and rely upon in other communities across the city.” The proposal doesn’t identify designated “neighbourhood” streets, though a city official suggested Edmonton and Kennedy could be included. The city is also seeking input to design future bike routes in the areas of St. Mary and York avenues, Notre Dame and Cumberland avenues and William Stephenson Way and Graham Avenue. Additional goals include attracting major grocery stores, planting trees, creating new parks, adding winter activities and increasing access to riverbanks. It has been a busy week for proposals and discussions about inner-city Winnipeg’s future. The proposal’s release followed Wednesday’s unveiling by the Osborne Village BIZ of a multi-pronged plan to transform one of the city’s most densely populated neighbourhoods. There have also been two public open houses staged by city planning department staff to get feedback and answer questions about a consultant’s report on a revitalization of the controversial Portage and Main corridor. The project also aims to “reimagine” Graham Avenue, since the city expects buses will no longer use it within five to 10 years. The report notes car travel is already prohibited on several blocks. It suggests the avenue’s central location could serve as a key cycling connection and makes it “perfectly situated to be downtown’s signature open space.” The report indicates motor-vehicle access on some sections of Graham, mostly where it is currently not allowed, is “to be determined.” The future version of the street could incorporate some combination of: a “shared zone” with more room for pedestrians, cyclists and patios; a “green zone” with trees, plantings and recreation; and a “celebration zone” with a flexible space to accommodate street parties, food-truck festivals and active-transportation paths. Richard Mahé, a senior downtown planner for the city, said Graham Avenue options could be considered “block by block.” “As the buses leave, it gives us a really unique opportunity to rethink how we want to use that space for people,” he said, noting changes could still accommodate vehicles. Mahé said the strategy acknowledges downtown has changed as more people continue to work from home. “We saw a lot of progress in our downtown pre-pandemic, and the pandemic has exposed certain weaknesses in our downtown. We’ve had an (over-reliance) on the office worker to animate our downtown…. We need to provide more housing downtown and a broader range of different housing options to meet different needs,” he said. While the online survey asks residents if they support efforts to “increase safety by reducing car speeds” downtown, Mahé said that’s not a current focus. The document also notes connector and corridor streets would be treated differently. An urban-issues expert said Graham deserves special attention. “Graham is one of these oddities of Winnipeg’s downtown,” said Jino Distasio, a professor of urban geography at the University of Winnipeg. “As a kid that has grown up in the downtown, I scratch my head because I have never understood what Graham Avenue was as a destination… that one, to me, needs help from (public) input to figure out.” Distasio said all downtown routes should be designed to meet the needs of all forms of traffic. “You have to have accessibility and the ability to efficiently and effectively move 50,000, 60,000 workers, students and visitors in the downtown but you also want to do it as safely as possible…. All of this is about scale and balance,” he said. Kate Fenske, chief executive officer of the Downtown Winnipeg BIZ, said any changes should prioritize quality of life for the 18,000 people who currently live in the area and help attract new residents. “I think a lot of our streets downtown are treated like a thoroughfare. (This is) more about how… we design our downtown to be for people first,” she said. “That it’s not just a neighbourhood to pass through… that supports businesses as well,” said Fenske. She believes the initial target to build 350 new homes in the area each year makes sense, since inflation and rising construction costs have recently made development more challenging. Data shows 352 new residential units were built downtown in 2021, followed by 141 last year. A five-year average between 2017 and 2021 was notably higher at 454, but the number of units is “historically volatile,” partly because new homes tend to arrive through large, multi-year projects, city spokesman Kalen Qually said in an emailed statement. While some drivers have expressed concern traffic-calming measures could snarl traffic, the head of council’s property and development committee said other cities have smoothly adopted similar changes. “(As for) the bias… that it’s all going to slow down, I’ve watched other cities do this. Other cities have the same hesitation, the same concerns and then it just doesn’t happen,” said Coun. Sherri Rollins. The new ideas should help guide the city to build a downtown “for everyone,” she said. “They’re reimagining many streets in the downtown and, dare I say, even the potential to eliminate some…. Do we need that many or do we need more walkable malls, and so forth?” she said. Winnipeggers can weigh in on the ideas in an online survey at winnipeg. ca/centreplan2050 until June 15 or attend an open house from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on May 25 at Manitoba Hydro Place (360 Portage Ave.) joyanne.pursaga(a)freepress.mb.ca

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WFP: Portage and Main future draws plenty of interest (May11'23)
by Beth McKechnie 11 May '23

11 May '23

Strong opinions on study of possible changes to iconic intersection at open house Portage and Main future draws plenty of interest https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2023/05/10/portage-and-main-… THE opportunity to weigh in on changes that could transform Portage and Main drew Winnipeggers to an open house inside one of the controversial intersection’s office towers Wednesday. City planners were on hand inside the lobby at 201 Portage Ave., to answer questions about a consultant’s study released last month outlining a variety of projects that could be done at street level and — in some cases — high above it, to improve access and esthetics in the divisive corridor. The ideas, both restrained and grandiose, were generated by the inescapable reality that major surgery is required to repair the city’s deteriorating infrastructure heart. The membrane below the intersection that since 1979 has protected the underground concourse of shops and services that also serves as the only pedestrian access, is well past its life expectancy and needs to be replaced. That massive construction opens the doors to change, if not opening the barricades to foot traffic. “If the real purpose of this is to make downtown a viable place again, it has to be done in a certain manner to make people actually want to be here, which I think is mostly in part to opening pedestrian traffic back into the area,” said Jeff Hodgins, who works near the vehicles-only intersection. “Not only just that, but also making it a safe place for pedestrians, reducing people driving through.” The consultant’s study included a fanciful six-storey-high “sky garden” offering access via glass elevators and another idea featuring lookout towers at each corner, along with possible large-scale art installations and attractive paving stones and tree planting. Hodgins was among visitors who stopped in to speak with city staff, wrote suggestions for improvements on sticky notes and applied red, yellow and green stickers to posters of individual ideas to denote interest. By mid-morning, some had quite a few more green stickers than others. A poster describing edge-to-edge sidewalk paving with trees at the intersection was dotted with mostly green stickers, while the lookout towers, sky garden and public art options were, judging by the smattering of yellow and red stickers, more contentious. Hodgins, who noted that he liked the lookout towers, placed a red sticker on the sky garden and a yellow on the large-scale art proposal. “Before we start throwing up art pieces, we should probably really be addressing the core issues,” he said. “We can put up a beautiful art piece when we’re not broke as a city.” Those “core issues” seemed to be the focus of many; a board left blank for people to place their suggestions was filled with notes including “Priority is opening!” “Bike lanes should be considered,” and “Public safety, more police and security.” Others were concerned about the price tag that could be attached to some of the showier options. Jim Moore, the property manager of 201 Portage, decried the overhead designs as “pie in the sky” and “way too pricey” on his suggestion sticky note. “By far the best, most reasonable ideas are these ones where you take down the barricade, you make it waterproof again with a membrane, you put some bollards up for safety, some trees, some lighting and you’re done,” Moore said. “And you don’t cost hundreds of millions of dollars, or whatever the price tag might be on sky decks or things like that.” Kirby Cote’s suggestion took up two sticky notes: “Designs do not meet the Accessibility for Manitobans Act standard for public spaces.” “We know what universal design looks like, we know how to create accessible, inclusive spaces and we know what vibrant communities need to be safe and healthy,” she said. “And art is part of it, but we also need to think about the space that we are putting the art in, and can everybody move around that space?” Cote, who is visually impaired, lives nearby and struggles to navigate the intersection. “We can’t even keep a bathroom downtown open 24-7, or a transit shelter. How are we supposed to keep towers and bridges and elevators open?” she said. “I feel like whoever submitted these designs was extremely out of touch with the people that are actually walking around in our downtown area.” Critiques of the current set of ideas are what the organizers were hoping for, said Kurtis Kowalke, a principal planner for the city. “If certain ideas don’t resonate with people, that’s what we want to hear,” he said. “We really want to put as many ideas on the table as possible at this stage where we’re really having those discussions about what works, what doesn’t, what resonates, what actually fulfils our project objectives.” A second pop-up open house is being held in the underground concourse this morning and the city will continue to accept online surveys ( https://engage.winnipeg.ca/portageandmain) until May 26. A study based on the results, along with design recommendations, will be released in the fall. “If this morning has been any indication, I think there is a lot of interest,” Kowalke said. “There’s certainly a lot of people that work right at the intersection or catch a bus in the intersection, there’s lots of people nearby, and I think they have a really strong opinion of what Portage and Main should be.” While visiting the open house, Asper Foundation president and businesswoman Gail Asper felt the most important choice wasn’t on a poster. Rather than place a green sticker on any of the existing options, she scrawled her own on a small piece of paper — simply take down the barricades and allow pedestrians to cross the street. Quickly, her paper was dotted with others’ green stickers. “I think it’s good to have these discussions,” she said. “But what concerned me about the things that I saw posted in the lobby, none of them included opening the barricades, and that is a huge disappointment to me.” malak.abas(a)freepress.mb.ca

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WFP Analysis: Outdated thinking fuels proposed Route 90 expansion (May11'23)
by Beth McKechnie 11 May '23

11 May '23

Outdated thinking fuels proposed Route 90 expansion https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/2023/05/10/outdated-thinking-fuels-… IT’S not the first time Winnipeggers have been promised that a large, stand-alone infrastructure project would alleviate their commuting woes. History is littered with stories about local government and construction-sector enthusiasts crowing about how something that is longer and wider, with more underpasses or overpasses or bridges, would eliminate bottlenecks and gridlock. By now, you’d figure we’d recognize a hustle when we see one. The most recent example of the magic bullet theory of infrastructure planning comes in the form of an ambitious, $500-million plan to widen and improve all aspects of infrastructure of Route 90 — sewers, bridges, transit hubs and active transportation — one of the most important north-south traffic corridors in the city. This plan, City of Winnipeg traffic engineers claim, will significantly cut travel time during the busiest parts of the day. Lurking beneath the hoopla and lofty claims that accompanied the recent release of the plan is an inconvenient truth that has been established over decades of experience in other bigger and busier cities: longer and wider roads do not relieve traffic congestion. To quote the legendary Sam Schwartz (the New York City traffic engineer who coined the term gridlock): “If you build it, they will come.” Urban planners refer to the phenomenon Schwartz described as “induced demand.” In other words, the wider and longer the road, the more cars will end up using it. The increased volume that flocks to expanded roadways often leaves them as, or more, gridlocked than they were before. What lessens gridlock? Again, the proven methods in other cities involve making it more difficult and expensive to drive automobiles to and from the busiest neighbourhoods. However, there’s something more: the world’s biggest cities rely on massive investments in mass transit to keep people out of their cars. Cities that look to the future — which includes just about every Canadian city of equal or larger size — are extremely cautious about widening and lengthening roads. They are more enthusiastic about discouraging automobiles and supporting investments in transit. By proposing a widening of Route 90 to alleviate traffic congestion, Winnipeg demonstrates it is about 50 years behind the urban planning curve. There are two things we must keep in mind when considering this project: first, there is a current issue with gridlock on Route 90; second, the project (as it’s now configured) is about a lot more than just widening a road. As presented, the “widening” of Kenaston Boulevard represents only about one-third of the project costs and scope. According to the city’s presentation, 42 per cent would be dedicated to bridge and road repairs or replacement, and 27 per cent would involve much-needed sewer upgrades. The argument is because the road surface and bridges along Route 90 will need to be replaced anyway, it makes sense to include as many other “needs” under the umbrella of one project. What doesn’t make a lot of sense, however, is the city’s insistence that widening it will affect congestion and travel times. It is an argument so flawed, it borders on delusional. When the Route 90 report was released last week, city traffic engineers dutifully showed current loads and then modelled well into the future to predict the increased traffic that will come from expected population growth. Embedded in these calculations, however, is a dangerous assumption: that the city does nothing else to get people out of their cars and onto transit. It’s not even certain, at its current four lanes, traffic loads will increase. Again, in more progressive cities, it is well-known traffic will avoid the busiest routes. Maybe not every day, but as congestion increases, people find different routes or — wait for it — ride the bus. Thankfully, the city will have a chance to save itself from this plan, as described. If the city really wants to widen the road and reduce congestion, then it needs to designate the additional lane in each direction as a bus-only, rapid transit route. If people from the burgeoning neighbourhoods in the southwest quadrant knew they could take an express bus from a transit hub at Kenaston and Mc-Gillivray Avenue, along a rapid transit lane on Route 90 that goes all the way downtown, we’d be an important step closer to solving this city’s traffic problems. Or consider doing the rehabilitation and ancillary infrastructure but don’t widen the road. If the cost of widening is 31 per cent of the total project price tag, then the city could save more than $150 million by just focusing on the other enhancements: better transit hubs, road and bridge rehabilitation, active transportation. The Route 90 plan as presented is badly conceived, based on outdated thinking and jam-packed full of fallacious reasoning. As configured, it hasn’t got a hope in hell of reducing the traffic problems. So, remind me again, why are we spending $500 million on this project? dan.lett(a)winnipegfreepress.com

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