[URBAN NOTE] "That’s a nice laneway, but it’s no woonerf"

[rfmcdonald]

Spacing Toronto's Dylan Reid argues, with the help of photos from the Netherlands and from Toronto's own Trolley Lane, that Toronto has not yet built its first woonerf.

One of the more intriguing elements of the West Don Lands development was the promise that it would include some “woonerfs“ — a Dutch concept generally translated as “living street” though more literally (according to Wikipedia), “living yard.”

The first one, Trolley Lane, has now been partially built, and has already been touted as Toronto’s first woonerf. It’s a U-shaped route just south of King St. East, intersecting twice with Lower River Street (the joining part is not yet complete).

I recently went to check out this promising new feature, but it was rather disappointing. While Trolley Lane is nicely designed, it’s not really a woonerf. There’s no fixed definition of a woonerf, but it seems fair to say that, if we are using the Dutch word, it should somewhat resemble what the Dutch do. In essence, a woonerf is intended to be a front yard for the residents who live on it. Cars should be rare, local, and restricted to walking speed. Often the street is configured to be narrow and a bit awkward so that cars have to be careful manoeuvring in it. Parked cars are sometimes arranged to deliberately contribute to this awkwardness. There are no sidewalk curbs restricting pedestrians to the side of the street, and signage indicates that pedestrians have priority and playing children should be expected.

Netherlandic types, can you chime in?