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WFP: The great debate returns - Mayor crosses street in decades-old controversy (Mar2'24)
by Beth McKechnie 02 Mar '24

02 Mar '24

Caution! This message was sent from outside the University of Manitoba. The great debate returns… with a $73-million price tag Mayor crosses street in decades-old controversy after report reveals repairs to membrane protecting concourse will cost $73M, disrupt traffic up to five years https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2024/03/01/mayor-calls-to-re… PORTAGE and Main could reopen to pedestrians by summer 2025 after decades of debate and political wrangling over the fate of the iconic downtown intersection. On Friday, Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham announced he’s now in favour of removing the concrete barricades at each corner preventing pedestrian crossing after a new report said it would cost $73 million to repair the leaking membrane under the concrete that protects the concourse below it. The repairs would involve major construction-caused traffic disruptions for up to five years at what is now Winnipeg’s sixth-busiest downtown intersection, the report said. A motion is being drafted to call for the pedestrian intersection to reopen by summer 2025 to coincide with the launch of the new Winnipeg Transit route network. The engineering report goes to the city’s property and development committee on Thursday. “The goal is to get this approved by the end of the month,” said Gillingham, who previously was opposed to reopening the intersection. He said learning the costs and inconvenience of keeping the concourse open changed his mind. “I think it’s time we put this question to bed once and for all and move onto more important issues like addressing homelessness, safety, housing and improving commuting options for people throughout our entire city.” The so-called “coldest and windiest corner in Canada” has been closed to pedestrian traffic since 1979 under an agreement the city signed with a developer who agreed to build two office towers, a hotel, a bank and an underground mall. The city agreed to force people who wanted to cross the street to do it underground, benefiting businesses in the mall. Permanently closing the city’s portion of the underground concourse could take up to five years and cost $20 to $50 million, Gillingham said. “It’s too soon to tell at this point, but there wouldn’t be access through the concourse once it’s decommissioned,” he said. Public works chairwoman Coun. Janice Lukes said Portage and Main has lower volumes of traffic than other downtown intersections and is the only one closed to pedestrians. Funding and research to ensure the intersection is safe for pedestrians would come through the city budget’s road safety plan, said Lukes (Waverley West). Former mayor Brian Bowman promised to reopen the intersection while in office, but after 65 per cent of voters registered their opposition in a non-binding 2018 plebiscite, he dropped it. Instead of a plebiscite, Gillingham and property and development chairwoman Coun. Sherri Rollins will draft a motion calling for Portage and Main to reopen to pedestrians and the mayor expects the majority on council will support it. “There’s a lot that has changed in the past six years,” said Gillingham, who maintained his opposition to taking down the pedestrian barriers during his 2022 mayoral campaign, pointing to the 2018 plebiscite and saying it would be “disrespectful” to the public to ignore the results. However, Winnipeggers were in the dark concerning how much it would cost and how long it would take to replace the membrane, he said Friday. Since the non-binding vote, a global pandemic has changed commuting and work patterns and a transit network design is helping to improve traffic flow, he said. “We have information today we did not have in 2018 and I did not have during the election in 2022,” the mayor said. Coun. Jeff Browaty, who was one of the loudest voices in opposition to opening the intersection in 2019, said civic officials still don’t have enough information and he doesn’t think there’s been adequate consultation with affected property owners. James Richardson & Sons issued a brief statement Friday saying that it is “in favour of improving and revitalizing Winnipeg’s downtown, including taking the step of opening the Portage and Main intersection to pedestrian traffic.” “We understand that the City (of Winnipeg) is considering closing the underground pathway as part of the re-opening of the intersection to aboveground pedestrian traffic, but without time to consider the details of such a plan, it is too early for us to comment further,” the statement said. A prominent tenant at Portage and Main applauded the push to remove the concrete barricades. “Not only do we care in terms of the downtown at large, but… as tenants that are going to be accessing that intersection every day,” said Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Loren Remillard. Four or five years of anticipated traffic disruptions would add to the challenges already facing downtown, Remillard said. “This isn’t just the responsible decision,” he said. “It is the only logical decision.” Federal Northern Affairs Minister Dan Vandal, a former city councillor, said he supports “100 per cent” closing the underground concourse and removing the barriers. “I wish we would have done it 15 years ago,” the St. Boniface MP said at an unrelated news conference in the city Friday. “COVID really did a number on the underground pedestrian walkway and infrastructure is expensive, and I think it’s the right move,” Vandal said. “I’ve long advocated for opening up Portage and Main when I was a (city) councillor… I think this is an example of a good idea will always rise to the top. And it’s quite clear that there were challenges with closing pedestrian traffic and maintaining the underground vitality.” Premier Wab Kinew, who opposed the reopening in the 2018 plebiscite, didn’t offer provincial help to repair the membrane to keep the concourse open. “Mayor Gillingham and I share a commitment to downtown redevelopment and, if he believes this is a cost-effective path forward, then our government won’t stand in the way,” he said in a prepared statement. — with files from Maggie Macintosh, Malak Abas and Katie May carol.sanders(a)freepress.mb.ca<mailto:carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca> Closed intersection timeline December 1976: City council awards a contract to build an underground parking garage and pedestrian corridor at Portage and Main, and agrees to prohibit pedestrians from crossing the iconic intersection for 40 years. February 1979: A city committee votes to immediately ban pedestrian traffic at the intersection, although crossing from the south corner was permitted to continue until a connection was completed between the concourse and street. March 1979: A caravan of protesters — many using wheelchairs — make three circuits of the intersection to protest the closure. A Winnipeg police sergeant told them, “I must warn you that you are in violation of a traffic-control device.” Officers wrote down the names of about a dozen protesters and gave them to the Crown attorney’s office. August 2014: Mayoral candidate Brian Bowman holds a campaign news conference to announce he would open the intersection to pedestrians, with the goal of getting it done by 2019. “We’ll all be here when the Winnipeg Jets win the Stanley Cup,” he said. October 2018: Voters re-elect Bowman to a second term. Winnipeggers also vote overwhelmingly (65 per cent “no”) against reopening the intersection in a non-binding plebiscite. October 2022: Scott Gillingham is elected mayor. He said during the campaign that he was opposed to reopening the intersection. The second-place candidate, former mayor Glen Murray, previously supported reopening Portage and Main but said that month that “the people have spoken about it once already.” April 2023: The city releases a discussion paper outlining the issues surrounding the intersection, including a massive project to repair the membrane protecting the Winnipeg Square concourse and options to improve pedestrian access.

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CBC: 'A lot has changed,' Gillingham says as he pushes to reopen Portage and Main by summer 2025
by Beth McKechnie 01 Mar '24

01 Mar '24

Caution! This message was sent from outside the University of Manitoba. Mayor says fixing intersection to save walkway below would cause 'traffic chaos' and cost $73M https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/portage-main-reopening-gillingham-1… Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham made it official Friday morning and announced his desire to reopen Portage and Main to pedestrians by summer 2025. A new report from the city's acting urban planning manager says fixing the leaky membrane at Portage Avenue and Main Street in order to protect the city-owned underground pedestrian crossing would create traffic delays for four or five years and cost at least $73 million. Gillingham said Friday at a news conference he cannot support years of traffic disruptions and will not support the plans, outlined in the new report, to fix the leaky membrane at the city's sixth-busiest intersection. "Repairing the membrane would require completely tearing up Portage and Main in sections and create traffic chaos downtown for four to five years," Gillingham said. "We need to pursue a more practical alternative. It's time to reopen Portage and Main to pedestrian traffic." Gillingham's plan, which must be supported by council, would permanently close the circular underground walkway. Reopening the intersection in summer 2025 would coincide with the implementation of Winnipeg Transit's new route network, which will include a transit hub at Portage and Main. Portage and Main has been closed to pedestrians since 1979. An agreement with neighbouring property owners to keep it closed expired in 2019. James Richardson & Sons, which owns the Richardson office tower at the northeast corner of the intersection, said it supports pedestrian crossings at the intersection. "James Richardson & Sons Ltd. is in favour of improving and revitalizing Winnipeg's downtown, including taking the step of opening the Portage and Main intersection to pedestrian traffic," spokesperson Barb Perreaux said in an emailed statement. "We understand that the city is considering closing the underground pathway as part of the reopening of the intersection to above-ground pedestrian traffic, but without time to consider the details of such a plan, it is too early for us to comment further." The Manitoba Métis Federation, which owns the former Bank of Montreal building on the southeast corner of Portage and Main, supports reopening the intersection. President David Chartrand said above-grade crossings will increase the vibrancy of downtown Winnipeg and enable foot traffic to the Métis heritage centre under construction at the Bank of Montreal. That centre is slated to open in 2026, he said. CBC News has reached out to Harvard and Artis, the owners of the office towers at the northwest and southwest corners of Portage and Main. Former mayor Glen Murray sought to reopen the intersection and held a contest to redesign it. That plan was shelved by his successor, Sam Katz, who said he wished to honour a 40-year deal with adjacent property owners to keep the intersection closed. * Refresh coming to Fairmont Winnipeg after hotel acquired by James Richardson & Sons<https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/fairmont-winnipeg-hotel-purchase-ri…> * 'Would have been a step backwards': Winnipeggers vote to keep Portage and Main closed<https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/winnipeggers-vote-portage-main-1.48…> Brian Bowman, Katz's successor, initially promised to reopen the intersection to pedestrians but shied away after a majority of Winnipeggers who voted in a non-binding plebiscite in 2018 indicated they opposed the idea. Gillingham did not support reopening in 2018. "There's a lot that has changed in the past six years. We have information today we didn't have then," Gillingham said. "We didn't know then that replacing the membrane would disrupt traffic for four to five years. We didn't know that it would cost $73 million. We didn't know that we were going to have a global pandemic that would permanently change commuting and work patterns. "We didn't have the transit network design, which will actually help to improve traffic flow at the intersection, and I think if voters did have that information in 2018, I think they probably would have made a different choice. I know I would have. Gillingham said he is not asking the province for money to help with decommissioning the underground concourse. City councillors Sherri Rollins (Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry), Janice Lukes (Waverley West), Cindy Gilroy (Daniel McIntyre) and Vivian Santos (Point Douglas) stood alongside Gillingham at the news conference. Rollins, Gilroy and Santos represent every Winnipeg ward adjacent to downtown, while Rollins also chairs council's property committee and Lukes chairs council's public works committee. Gillingham said he expects some city councillors to oppose his decision. Transcona Coun. Russ Wyatt is one of them. He questioned why a city planner wrote the report and not a city engineer. "It raises alarms and concerns that we would rush to judgment that we would overturn a plebiscite decision made by the citizens of Winnipeg not to open that intersection," Wyatt said in an interview. e later jumped up to the podium where Gillingham spoke at the news conference and addressed people who were there. City hall staff responsible for audiovisual equipment turned his microphone off. Kate Fenske, executive director of the Downtown Winnipeg Business Improvement Zone, said reopening Portage and Main to pedestrians will improve the vibrancy and safety of downtown. Adam Dooley, who was the co-chair of the "vote open" campaign during the 2018 plebiscite, said the city was aware keeping the underground concourse would come with significant costs. The decision should never have been put to a vote, said Dooley, the public relations manager at communications firm UpHouse.

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WFP: City seeks public input on addressing icy sidewalks (Feb29'24)
by Beth McKechnie 29 Feb '24

29 Feb '24

Caution! This message was sent from outside the University of Manitoba. City seeks public input on addressing icy sidewalks https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2024/02/28/city-seeks-public… WHILE city crews are proactively seeking out slippery sidewalks to sand, they’re also asking Winnipeggers to point out trouble spots, after a recent freeze-thaw cycle created treacherous conditions. A City of Winnipeg post on X (formerly Twitter) asks residents to report the streets, sidewalks and paths that need sanding the most. “We’ve got thousands of kilometres of sidewalk and pathway. We do have city staff actively out trying to address public areas by putting out sand … but the more we can work together as a community to help, the better we will be,” said Coun. Janice Lukes, chairwoman of public works. “So, we’re encouraging residents to help, to call in these trouble spots.” For sidewalks, Lukes (Waverley West) said public reports help target sanding where it’s needed most. “When (the temperature is) back and forth like this, for sure we get more calls, because every day the conditions are different. And it is frustrating because people have strollers, they want to walk, it’s slippery. This last spell (of winter weather) was a real bad one … but if we’re notified of the troubled areas, we’ll get out there,” said Lukes. The councillor noted repeated freeze-thaw cycles have made some routes more treacherous this winter, but stressed the city has invested more to keep sidewalks and active transportation paths clear. That included spending $3 million to buy 15 sidewalk snow-clearing machines, which arrived in time for this winter. The recent weather patterns made sidewalks especially tough to navigate on Monday, when Rachel Unger fell on a slick patch of ice covered by a layer of snow. “I think it was an issue of weather just because it melted so much and just got really, really cold. It was snow-covered ice, so I didn’t even see that it was there. … It all happened very fast,” said Unger, who uses they/ them pronouns. The fall caused a torn knee ligament, so they may require surgery. Unger suspects sanding might have prevented the injury altogether and hopes the city will take additional proactive measures to sand sidewalks, such as by adding set timelines to complete the treatment. “This winter has just been so wild and very unpredictable from anyone’s standpoint. This is not typical … (but) it would be nice to have a more standardized approach, knowing that it’s not going to prevent all injuries. If we could prevent some (injuries) that would be amazing,” they said. Lukes said requiring all sidewalks to be sanded within a set amount of time would prove challenging and may not be the most effective use of tax dollars, since sidewalk conditions can vary on a block-by-block basis. “You can literally go down two blocks and see (both) frozen ice and dry sidewalk … I really don’t think sanding every sidewalk in the city (would) be a very efficient use of our resources,” she said. The timing of sidewalk sanding is currently based on visual inspections and weather conditions, spokeswoman Julie Horbal Dooley said in an email. “Sanding/ice control isn’t a matter of one-and-done completeness; often, when conditions are suitable, we will sand the entire Priority 1 (major route) and Priority 2 (collector street) sidewalks after a full network plow. Outside of plowing operations, we will sand if and where conditions require it — not on a city-wide or priority-(based) basis,” wrote Horbal Dooley. Coun. Matt Allard, who has repeatedly called for enhancements to sidewalk snow clearing, said he’s not sure more sanding is the answer. Allard (St. Boniface) said his call to have all sidewalks cleared at the same priority level as major route roads, which was recently rejected by city council, would be more effective in keeping sidewalks passable. “(It would) mean comparable conditions for someone who’s driving a car on a (major route) and someone who’s walking on a sidewalk. It would, in my opinion, involve a situation where a slippery sidewalk is the exception and not the rule when you’re looking at the freeze-thaw conditions,” he said. City policy dictates that roads on Priority 1 major routes be cleared to bare pavement, with plowing completed within 36 hours after a snow event ends. Crews are expected to plow downtown sidewalks to a paved surface when “conditions allow,” while sidewalks along major routes and collector streets are cleared to a compacted snow surface, both within 36 hours after a storm ends. Residential sidewalks are to be maintained to a compacted snow surface, with plowing completed within five working days after work starts. Allard said more frequent sanding may be less effective than changing snow-plowing timelines and standards, since sand can be frozen over during freeze-thaw cycles. joyanne.pursaga(a)freepress.mb.ca<mailto:joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca> X: @joyanne_pursaga

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WFP: Calls to curb cars on Cambridge (Feb29'24)
by Beth McKechnie 29 Feb '24

29 Feb '24

Caution! This message was sent from outside the University of Manitoba. Calls to curb cars on Cambridge Residents complain about traffic volume https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2024/02/28/calls-to-curb-car… A RIVER Heights neighbourhood where residents are fed up with rush-hour drivers treating their streets as shortcuts could get relief in the form of traffic-calming measures. At its March 5 meeting, city hall’s public works committee is set to ask staff to explore interim measures for Cambridge Street north of Corydon Avenue, and the possibility of a longterm traffic management plan with a wider look at the community. “The objective is to try to make the streets calmer and safer for everybody,” said Coun. John Orlikow (River Heights-Fort Garry). He said cut-through traffic has been an issue and Cambridge Street is among the residential streets where it is excessive. If his motion is approved, city staff will be given four months to report back on possible measures. The motion says cut-through traffic is increasing as the south end of Winnipeg densifies and grows. A short-term plan would seek input from River Heights residents and consider possible ramifications for streets adjacent to Cambridge, said Orlikow. He said the city would look at how recent construction work on corridors such as Stafford and Harrow streets has affected nearby residential streets. Last year, Cambridge residents told the Free Press drivers were using the street as a shortcut during the construction projects. About 3,900 vehicles per day use Cambridge between Corydon and Grosvenor avenues, the city said. Lower totals were recorded between Grosvenor and Kingsway (3,400) and Kingsway and Academy Road (2,400). Daily totals are as high as 6,500 between Corydon and Grant avenues, where Cambridge is wider and designed to accommodate more traffic. Tim Fennell, a founding member of a residents group, Calm Cambridge, that has lobbied city hall for traffic calming measures, welcomed the potential for interim solutions. “I believe there is some political will to make this happen,” he said. “We need support from all the different members of council.” The group proposed five interim calming measures in its pitch to city hall. It suggested extending the red light interval for north-south traffic at Cambridge and Corydon, installing temporary speed bumps between Corydon and Academy and temporarily reducing the speed limit to 30 km/h on that stretch. The group has asked the city to consider extending left-turn restrictions, from Grant and Corydon to northbound Cambridge, to include the afternoon rush hour. It also suggested blocking existing slip lanes at Grosvenor and Cambridge, and using the intersection as a normal four-way stop. Fennell said there is some risk of traffic being redirected onto adjacent streets by any new measures on Cambridge, but he believes drivers would choose corridor streets rather than other residential streets. He began lobbying for calming measures out of concern for the safety of Cambridge residents and road users, given the volume of traffic and high speeds of some vehicles. He said Cambridge is narrower between Corydon and Academy, and not designed to handle as much traffic as it does. Some sections do not have sidewalks. Fennell said he obtained Manitoba Public Insurance data that showed 179 reports of collisions on Cambridge and 80 on neighbouring Oxford Street from 2014 to 2022. The highest annual total for Cambridge was 31 in 2019. Wayne Manishen, a Winnipeg doctor, wants the city to consider traffic control measures at Cambridge and Taylor Avenue, an intersection he uses regularly. “I call it the ‘Cambridge carnage and chaos corner,’” said Manishen, who provided photos of a collision that happened last summer and a congested intersection during the afternoon rush. In 2018, council rejected a request for a temporary traffic light during construction of the nearby Waverley Street underpass. Manishen believes another option could be turning restrictions for some directions of travel during certain hours. “You don’t necessarily need lights, but you need something,” he said. “The status quo is still a dangerous option.” A long-term community study would take many months to complete. Last year, public works chair Coun. Janice Lukes told the Free Press a community plan would be more effective than individual changes. A community study in Lord Roberts began in 2018 and closed in 2023, with ongoing monitoring. It proposed about two dozen solutions, including reduced speed limits on some streets, new sidewalks, parking restrictions and cyclist crossing improvements. Meanwhile, the public works committee will also consider a recommendation to include traffic-calming measures, where feasible, in road renewal projects in locations that have higher volumes of “vulnerable” road users, starting next year. A staff report cites school and playground zones, and neighbourhood greenways as examples. chris.kitching(a)freepress.mb.ca<mailto:chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca>

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WFP: Council ponders price hike for residential parking pass (Feb28'24)
by Beth McKechnie 28 Feb '24

28 Feb '24

Caution! This message was sent from outside the University of Manitoba. Council ponders price hike for residential parking pass https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2024/02/27/council-pondering… WINNIPEGGERS who require permits to park on their home street may soon pay much more to do so. Annual residential parking permits are required to park in time-limited areas. They cost $25 each, with each household able to apply for up to three. A new tiered approach would raise that fee to $50 for a first permit per household, $75 for a second and $200 for a third. Pending approval in the city’s 20242027 budget, the new fees would take effect in 2024, and would increase with inflation each year after. Coun. Jeff Browaty, the head of council’s finance committee, said the substantial hikes are meant to deter street parking and encourage greater use of driveways, garages and other alternatives. “This wasn’t really done as a big revenue generator. What we’re really trying to do is discourage long-term on-street parking, wherever possible,” said Browaty. When asked why the fees will increase so much at once, the North Kildonan councillor said he thinks the cost remains relatively low. “Car ownership, like it or not, is not an inexpensive proposition. … Even on a very small car, $50 is basically the cost of a simple tank of gas,” said Browaty, who added the permit fee has also been frozen since 2006. Other councillors agreed the change is warranted. “It opens up the street. It allows other people to park and have turnover. … These are public streets, they’re not public parking lots,” said Coun. Janice Lukes, chairwoman of public works. However, one councillor fears many inner-city residents, who more often lack garages and other parking alternatives, would face an unfair burden if the new rates are approved. “Now, not only are you charging for the parking pass, you’re going to have to have a massive increase for them. It’s just very unfair for residents who are living in the inner city,” said Coun. Cindy Gilroy. The Daniel McIntyre councillor said she already receives complaints about the $25 annual passes and hopes to convince fellow council members to reject the increases. “I don’t think this is a popular move. I think they should look at other ways to generate revenue,” said Gilroy. There are currently about 3,200 active residential parking permits for Winnipeg vehicles, including 86 permits issued for a third vehicle in one household, according to the Winnipeg Parking Authority. If council approves the changes, the higher fees will likely be imposed sometime this summer, said Lisa Patterson, the manager of parking and facilities for the WPA. “We’re really trying to encourage people to not use the city street as car storage. … Try to use the spaces on your property first,” said Patterson. She said such fees are already higher in other Canadian cities and more revenue is needed to cover the program’s cost. While annual operating costs for the permitting program were not provided, Patterson said fee revenues fall short of paying for staff, software and other expenses, though that figure includes an unspecified dividend to be transferred to general city revenues. Overall, the parking authority is expected to transfer about $7.8 million to general city coffers this year. Patterson suggested the higher fees could also entice more Winnipeggers to consider alternate forms of transportation to personal vehicles. “There’s a cost to car ownership and if there’s a way to encourage people to utilize a different method of transportation, that’s something we’re trying to do,” she said. Coun. Sherri Rollins supports the changes as a move away from “subsidizing” vehicle use. “Generally speaking, when you own things like vehicles or bicycles, you have a place where you are going to keep them. When that place is (in) the public realm … then the public sphere acts like a subsidy,” said Rollins (Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry). “I will get arguments, as soon as you publish this, that $50 is too low (for the first car per home), that we should not at all be subsidizing vehicles.” Rollins said she believes the proposed fees — which would affect residents of multiple streets in her ward — are fair. “I’m concerned about affordability on a lot of fronts, including housing. … I’m not concerned about it here, not at these price points. Not at the first car. I still think the third car (permit price) is still too low,” she said. City council will cast a final budget vote on March 20. joyanne.pursaga(a)freepress.mb.ca<mailto:joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca>

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WFP: Vehicle hits three people in crosswalk (Feb23'24)
by Beth McKechnie 23 Feb '24

23 Feb '24

Caution! This message was sent from outside the University of Manitoba. Child and two adults taken to hospital, driver flees scene Vehicle hits three people in crosswalk https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2024/02/22/two-adults-child-… A CHILD and two adults were hit by a vehicle Thursday morning in a River Heights pedestrian crosswalk close to an elementary school and two daycare centres. The student at J.B Mitchell School, a crossing guard and another adult were taken to hospital, police said. The collision happened at about 8:50 a.m. in the warning light-equipped crosswalk at the intersection of Grant Avenue and Lanark Street. “Winnipeg Fire and Paramedic Service members were on scene when police arrived and the pedestrians were transported to hospital in stable condition for precautionary measures,” Winnipeg Police Service spokesperson Const. Dani McKinnon said. “The driver, who was not on scene when police arrived, has been identified and is co-operating with police.” McKinnon said the investigation into the incident is ongoing, but no charges have been laid. Police told the Free Press at one point Thursday the incident was a hit-and-run but later said that has yet to be determined. No evidence of the incident remained near the scene by late morning. When school let out around 3:30 p.m., two crossing guards were stationed at the intersection wearing fluorescent safety vests and activating the crosswalk lights — which were fully operational — before ushering children and adults across the street. When the roadway was clear, a steady stream of motorists cruised past. A Winnipeg School Division spokesperson referred to the crossing location as “very busy.” Multiple parents who were parked near the school waiting to pick up their children said school officials had notified them about the incident via email earlier in the day. “I have a daughter who is in the same class as that little (child who was struck),” said one mother, who did not provide her name. “The school brought in some extra people for the kids to talk to.” One neighbour who lives near the crosswalk but did not witness the collision said it is frequently used by parents who park on Lanark south of Grant before walking their kids to the school located at the corner of Lanark and John Brebeuf Place. As far as the man is aware, the lights have always functioned normally and vehicles typically stop as expected, he said. “It doesn’t seem like a trouble spot, but if I had kids, I’d just be careful; you’ve got to be careful at every corner,” he said. While Lanark is designated as a school zone to the north and south of the intersection, motorists travelling eastbound or westbound on Grant are not required to slow their speeds below the 50 kilometre per hour limit. At least one home on Lanark has a yard sign that urges drivers to “please slow down.” Collisions between drivers and pedestrians are not uncommon on city streets. City council approved the Road Safety Strategic Action Plan in 2022, a year in which drivers killed 11 pedestrians in Winnipeg. The document outlined several infrastructure improvements and safety recommendations, including the creation of a road safety committee, a road safety branch within the public works department and three new full-time safety-focused staff positions. One of those positions was filled early this year, a city spokesperson said Thursday. The 2023 city budget allocated $282,000 in funding for the project. In just over a year, Winnipeg police have issued news releases about 10 incidents in which pedestrians were seriously injured or killed by motorists. Of those, four occurred in the last two months. Most recently, a 23-year-old woman died after being struck by a 58-year-old driver on the 1400 block of Pembina Highway the night of Jan. 26. Investigators learned the woman had run in front of the vehicle, which was travelling southbound on Pembina near Clarence and Boston avenues. The driver stopped and remained on scene. On the morning of Jan. 13, an 18-year-old man was struck and killed near Notre Dame Avenue and Cecil Street. Investigators again determined the victim had run in front of the involved vehicle, which was heading southbound on Notre Dame. Police said the driver stopped his vehicle, called police and provided emergency medical care to the victim until an ambulance arrived. The week prior, a 48-year-old man was killed after being run over by a motorist attempting to pull into a car wash. The man had been lying near the entrance, police said. Finally, a woman died after a driver struck her near Kildonan Place mall on Jan. 5. Police said the victim had been involved in an earlier collision with another vehicle, got out of her car to exchange information with the other motorist and was hit by a passing truck. The driver remained on scene. Thursday’s collision is not the first time a child accompanied by an adult was hit by a vehicle at a city crosswalk. Rezene Habtegergish, 4, and her mother were hit by a vehicle at a crosswalk on Isabel Street at Alexander Avenue the morning of March 18, 2019. Rezene later died. Surafiel Musse Tesfamariam, 8, was struck and killed at a crosswalk on St. Anne’s Road, between Bank and Varennes avenues, the morning of Feb. 13, 2018. He was crossing the road with his mother. Signs were later put up on Varennes with the honorary name Surafiel Way. tyler.searle(a)freepress.mb.ca<mailto:tyler.searle@freepress.mb.ca>

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WFP Analysis: Commuters, meet Marchetti (Feb20'24)
by Beth McKechnie 20 Feb '24

20 Feb '24

Caution! This message was sent from outside the University of Manitoba. Commuters, meet Marchetti https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/analysis/2024/02/20/commuters-mee… IF you’re ever hosting a dinner party and you get the feeling that urban planning theory might be just the right topic to spark some lively conversation, casually bring up Marchetti’s Constant. It might make you the hit of the party. It’s a simple but powerful idea that has defined the shape and size of cities for thousands of years and is a key determinant of the sprawling metropolises we live in today. In 1994, Italian physicist Cesare Marchetti published a research paper titled Anthropological Invariants in Travel Behaviour. The study looked at how people of all cultures have moved around their cities from ancient times to the present day and recognized a consistent human behaviour, now known as Marchetti’s Constant. His research identified that when taking the average across a population, the maximum time people will comfortably dedicate to urban commuting is one hour per day — half an hour in each direction. Marchetti found that the half-hour commute has remained consistent throughout time, and the size of the cities we live in has been defined by how far we can commute in that time, using the transportation technologies of the day. He looked at Ancient Rome and found that even as it became the largest city on Earth with more than a million people, it never grew past four kilometres in diameter. With an average human walking speed of four kilometers per hour, a person could do a pedestrian commute from the periphery to the city centre in half an hour. Despite incredibly high densities and no natural boundaries to stop outward expansion, the size of the city remained defined only by how far people could comfortably walk. Cities across the world, from China, to Mesoamerica, to Europe, roughly maintained this size well into the Industrial Revolution. With the invention of bicycles and the development of streetcars in the late 1800s, the speed of urban mobility increased, and the size of cities followed, but the half-hour commute time remained constant. Commuters on bikes or riding streetcars could travel about six kilometres in half an hour, and the streetcar cities that developed across North America during this time followed by growing to this dimension. The pre-automobile city of Winnipeg with 400 streetcars serving 100 million riders per year, was about five kilometres from downtown to the periphery, about a half-hour commute. Today, the size of cities is defined largely by vehicles and the road networks they travel on, but Marchetti’s Constant remains. Comparing major Canadian cities, average commute times are remarkably consistent despite vast population differences, with the three largest cities averaging about 30 minutes and smaller cities ranging between 23 and 27 minutes. This consistency can be attributed to larger transportation networks in more populous cities. Calgary as an example, covers twice the area of Winnipeg, yet its commute times are only about a minute longer because it has a much larger road network. Intuitively, this would seem to indicate that cities should be striving to build larger roads to reduce travel times, but this is where the lessons of Marchetti’s Constant become important. Cities don’t build their transportation networks to create 30-minute commutes, they naturally expand to the 30-minute limit that their transportation systems will accommodate. We often expect that expanding a road network works like replacing a small pipe with a larger one, creating more room for water to flow smoothly through. When it comes to roads, however, it’s more like installing a larger pipe that naturally draws more water into itself until it’s filled again. When a road is made larger, people can drive faster, and commute times are reduced. Because of Marchetti’s Constant, people will naturally begin to live farther away, until that magic half hour commute time limit is once again reached. This brings more cars travelling longer distances to the enlarged road, resulting in traffic congestion that increases commute times beyond half an hour. Residents will again lobby for larger roads in response, and the cycle will begin again. The result is that cities are not only saddled with the prohibitive cost of constructing larger roads, but they must also pay to service and maintain more infrastructure in an ever-expanding urban area. Continually stretched civic budgets, with reduced services and crumbling infrastructure, are the result of cities being caught in this unsustainable growth cycle. All of Winnipeg’s long-term strategic plans and guidelines encourage higher density and inward growth to make our city more livable, affordable, economically viable, and environmentally sustainable. Experience demonstrates that when we build bigger roads, we are not only making it impossible to achieve these strategic goals, but we are also not solving the problem of traffic congestion. Bigger roads invariably lead to physically larger cities and more vehicle traffic. An alternative strategy to increasing road capacity is to address congestion by incentivizing ways for people to live closer to where they are commuting to. These inward growth patterns can reduce driving distances and in turn, the number of cars on the road. With higher densities and shorter commuting distances, alternative mobility options like walking, biking and public transit become more viable. Targeted investments to make these different transportation modes more attractive can reduce vehicle use and further alleviate traffic congestion. From ancient Rome to North American streetcar suburbs, and the sprawling cities of today, Marchetti’s Constant has demonstrated for thousands of years that transportation systems are fundamental in shaping cities, and they can either be used to expand urban sprawl, or they can naturally push growth and development inward in a more sustainable way. Brent Bellamy is creative director at Number Ten Architectural Group.

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Re: Plans for twining Mcgilvary west bound from tracks to perimeter...what do you think?
by Mark Cohoe 19 Feb '24

19 Feb '24

Caution! This message was sent from outside the University of Manitoba. Thanks Terry, I hadn't seen this, and we never got an invite to participate as a stakeholder on this (we usually do). It does seem to completely ignore the city's cycling strategy as well as OurWinnipeg 2045. I'm very glad that you contacted us and sent this my way. Cheers, Mark On Fri, Feb 16, 2024 at 5:22 PM Terry Zdan <tjzdan50(a)gmail.com<mailto:tjzdan50@gmail.com>> wrote: I think a grade separated pedestrian/cycle crossing such as gateway @ chief peguis would be most appropriate. Anything less not so much. Have to also address access to Bison Crossing. Apparently you can comment at this site https://engagemb.ca/pth3 ? -- Mark Cohoe Executive Director Bike Winnipeg t: 204-894-6540 e: mark(a)bikewinnipeg.ca<mailto:mark@bikewinnipeg.ca>

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WFP: Eyebrows raised over what’s not in City of Winnipeg's budget (Feb9'24)
by Beth McKechnie 09 Feb '24

09 Feb '24

Crucial infrastructure projects aren’t financed Eyebrows raised over what’s not in budget https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2024/02/08/eyebrows-raised-o… THREE major infrastructure projects are notably absent from the City of Winnipeg’s proposed multi-year budget; no funding was earmarked for the now closed Arlington Bridge, Kenaston Boulevard (Route 90) widening or Chief Peguis Trail extension. That’s despite some councillors and advocates pushing the city to prioritize replacement of the 112-year-old Arlington Bridge, a major connection between the North End and West End over the Canadian Pacific Railway yards. Funding demands grew louder in November when the city suddenly closed the bridge — even for pedestrians — due to structural concerns. “We should (have started) funding a replacement (bridge) quite some time ago because we knew it was going to fail,” said Coun. Ross Eadie (Mynarski), whose ward includes the structure. Eadie said he would have liked to see the city devote part of the revenue raised from frontage fees, which the previous 2023 budget raised by $1.50 per foot, to start saving for a replacement. A 2018 report suggested a new bridge would cost about $330 million. Eadie said the bridge is a “critical” link between communities, with emergency response times to some homes likely running longer since its closure. Mark Cohoe, executive director of Bike Winnipeg, said the loss of the bridge also cut off a key active transportation route. “Realistically, we need to be seeing money to replace the Arlington Bridge to include (new) protected bike lanes … or to see money going into rail relocation (so the bridge is no longer required),” said Cohoe. While the Chief Peguis, Kenaston and Arlington Bridge projects aren’t financed in the draft 2024 to 2027 budget, it notes Mayor Scott Gillingham promised revenue from the 2023 frontage fee hike could be used for the road projects. That revenue was allocated to general road repairs but would be diverted to Chief Peguis and Kenaston “trade corridor” projects, if federal and/or provincial funding is confirmed. “Once we’re ready to proceed with Kenaston (that can raise money) to pay for the city’s portion of it,” said Coun. Jeff Browaty (North Kildonan). Browaty, who leads council’s finance committee, said unallocated roads funding in the six-year capital plan could also be used. The proposed municipal budget assumes the province’s strategic infrastructure funding to the City of Winnipeg will remain frozen at $89.8 million each year until 2027, with all the money already allocated to various capital projects. Ian Bushie, Manitoba’s municipal relations minister, was tight-lipped about a possible increase to the city’s infrastructure funding being included in the NDP’s first budget in the spring. It will be up to the city to bring forward a proposal that prioritizes the Arlington Bridge and other major capital projects before the provincial government makes any decisions about financial support, said Bushie. “We’ve had continued… discussions to see how we can best accommodate the City of Winnipeg with their significant challenges,” Bushie said, He said a seven-year freeze on the city’s provincial operating grant under the former Tory government is forcing it to catch up in a lot of areas. “When they bring their priorities to the table, we’re open to having those discussions.” As for the widening of Kenaston Boulevard and the western extension of the Chief Peguis Trail, Bushie said discussions continue across levels of government. “I can assure you that we are more than willing to be an advocate and open to those discussions to see how we can best support,” Bushie said. The mayor plans to wait on the results of business case studies on the feasibility of the Kenaston and Chief Peguis projects before taking further city action. Browaty noted the city will wait for an ongoing engineering study on Arlington to be finished before deciding its fate. All three studies are expected this year. If approved, the Chief Peguis Trail extension would stretch from Main Street to Brookside Boulevard and Kenaston Boulevard would be widened to include three lanes in each direction between Ness and Taylor avenues for a combined cost of about $1 billion. — With files from Danielle Da Silva joyanne.pursaga(a)freepress.mb.ca X: @joyanne_pursaga

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WFP: Treacherous walkways (Feb9'24)
by Beth McKechnie 09 Feb '24

09 Feb '24

Treacherous walkways Wacky winter weather is making sidewalks a risky, slippery mess https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2024/02/08/mild-weather-has-… WENDY Scharf watched from the steps of her home in the Central St. Boniface neighbourhood Wednesday afternoon as passing pedestrians shuffled, slid and sidestepped over slick sections of ice and pools of water covering the northbound sidewalk. It’s a common sight, she said, and part of living in a residential area typically considered lower priority by city street-clearing crews. “It’s like this all the time. I mean, all the time,” Scharf said, pointing toward the brown, slush-covered sidewalk. “It is very dangerous this time of year to be out here. I think it adds a level of difficulty, especially for the elderly and people who have strollers.” Winnipeg is experiencing an uncommon pattern of weather conditions that have contributed to the issue this winter, with mild temperatures causing a freeze-thaw cycle that generates ice on roads and sidewalks and in gutters and drains. Reports of slippery conditions have spiked as a result, with the city receiving 562 requests for service related to icy sidewalks and active transportation pathways since Oct. 1. During the same period the previous year, it received just 121 such complaints, city data shows. Last year, when there was more snow, the city received 1,622 requests for service related to blocked sidewalks and active transportation pathways. The same period this year generated just 402 complaints, the data show. Overall, the requests for sidewalk maintenance are down by 44 per cent so far this season, the city said. Coun. Janice Lukes, who leads the public works committee, and Coun. Matt Allard, who has been a vocal proponent of improved snow clearing, traded barbs on the subject during a committee meeting last week. Allard (St. Boniface) demanded better service on sidewalks, saying they should be plowed to the pavement, while Lukes (Waverley West) argued the city is doing everything it can to stay ahead of challenging conditions on major thoroughfares. Up to four centimetres of snowfall and sub-zero temperatures were forecast for Winnipeg beginning Thursday afternoon. The city organizes its snow-clearing schedule in order of priority, with major thoroughfares and adjacent sidewalks classified as Priority 1, non-regional bus routes and collector streets designated as Priority 2 and followed by Priority 3 residential streets. P1 areas are typically plowed to bare pavement within 36-hours of snowfall and then salted. Sidewalks along P1 and P2 streets are plowed after a five-centimetre snowfall and maintained to “a compacted snow surface,” except for downtown sidewalks, which are supposed to be cleared to bare pavement. Sidewalks in residential areas are considered the lowest priority and are plowed to a compacted snow surface only after all the other sidewalks have been plowed. Recently, a number of groups advocating for persons with disabilities launched the S(NO)w Plow campaign to lobby for better clearing of sidewalks. The groups say for persons with disabilties, sidewalks can be impassable when not properly cleared of snow. Michael Cantor, manager of streets and maintenance, said the current sidewalk-clearing equipment operated by the city is incapable of stripping pathways to bare pavement, owing to their uneven surfaces. Clearing sidewalks in such a way could damage equipment or infrastructure — whichever breaks first, he said. City workers would need to use salt and chemicals to reach bare pavement, but current bylaws restrict the use of such materials to P1 streets in an effort to reduce their associated negative environmental impacts, he said. Cantor said he’s looking forward to colder temperatures that will temporarily halt the thaw and allow workers to spread sand to improve traction. In the current conditions, sand mixes with melting ice and has a negligible effect. Allard noted the city has unsuccessfully attempted to pass various motions approving a plow-to-pavement pilot project for P3 zones at least three times in recent years. He believes investments in improved sidewalk-clearing equipment could improve maintenance quality without draining the city’s coffers, saying the snow-clearing budget reserved for roadways is often overspent, while the sidewalk clearing budget is underspent. Lukes pushed back on the idea, saying even if equipment was able to clear pathways to the pavement, the resulting ice and snow would need to be hauled to one of the city’s snow storage locations at an exorbitant cost. She pointed out that Winnipeg’s approach to sidewalk clearing is unique, given that some other municipalities — including Calgary, Edmonton, Regina, Saskatoon, Toronto and Vancouver — require homeowners to clear walks in front of their homes. The topic has been raised in recent years, but as snow-clearing bylaws are currently written, the City of Winnipeg can fine residents who take it upon themselves to clear snow and ice from city property. Allard said he is opposed to the idea of residents being asked to clear walkways, given such maintenance is an expected return on taxpayer funds. However, he believes the current bylaw should be amended to protect residents from fines, should they choose to do so. Martin Pollock, a Winnipeg lawyer specializing in personal-injury cases, said it is difficult, but not impossible to prevail in a slip-and-fall lawsuit against the city on its property. Municipalities are exempt from certain sections of the Occupiers Liability Act, meaning they cannot be held liable under the legislation for injuries occurring on their property. “Now, that doesn’t mean you can’t sue them for negligence,” Pollock said. “The question becomes, how often did they inspect that piece of the sidewalk? Did they know about it? Did somebody call them five times? “It all depends on the circumstances.” The Winnipeg Regional Health Authority said it does not reliably track slip-and-fall injuries, but noted “hundreds of Manitobans are injured from slipping on snow and ice, most commonly in and around parking lots and on sidewalks and especially when temperatures fluctuate around freezing temperature.” tyler.searle(a)freepress.mb.ca

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