[URBAN NOTE] "It’s time to reimagine Toronto’s streetcar ‘King”"

[rfmcdonald]

In the Toronto Star, Jennifer Keesmat suggests that Torontonians might do well to look to the example of Australian metropolis Melbourne in finding a way to deal with gridlock on King Street.

Other cities around the world are rethinking their downtown surface transit streets and transforming them into complete streets that are more than just corridors for movement. They are creating iconic, vibrant and attractive streets with inviting public spaces that help make their cities more livable and economically competitive.

One such example is Melbourne, Australia, named the world’s most livable city for the fifth year in a row in 2015. In the mid 1990s, with the help of Danish architect Jan Gehl, the city embarked on an ambitious plan to revitalize its downtown by creating great public spaces that cultivate public life. Melbourne has come a long way in a short period of time, something I saw for myself on a recent trip Down Under.

The city recently adopted Walking Plan 2014-17, which sets out the next chapter in its quest for liveability and competitiveness. An important thrust of the plan is to create what are called ‘High-Mobility Streets’ on corridors served by trams (a.k.a.: streetcars). This type of street will have high frequency streetcars and priority bus services, with excellent pedestrian access to and around stops.

Swanston St. was one of the first streets transformed into a high-mobility street and preeminent civic space. Where once cars and streetcars competed for limited space in the right-of-way, today the street is shared only by streetcars, bikes and pedestrians. It functions as a high-frequency public transit corridor capable of carrying 5,000 passengers in approximately 50 streetcars each direction per hour: a capacity at the lower end of LRT performance.

Essential vehicle access for deliveries, property servicing and access to off-street parking is limited to certain times of the day using a permit system. Streetcar stops are universally accessible, with paving and curb design supporting safer cycling. High-quality streetscape materials across the entire right-of-way — such as bluestone paving, trees, street furniture and pedestrian-scale lighting — promote patio-style outdoor dining and active public life.