Uptown Active Transportation Improvements

Thank you for your input on the cyclist push button at the Eighth Street and Seventh Avenue intersection. Further details of the recommended design are still being refined, and your input on the crossing button and operations on the Moody Park side will be considered as part of the next steps in advancing the preferred design. 

Further details of the recommended design are still being refined, and your input on the ramps at the Eighth Street and Seventh Avenue intersection is very much appreciated and will be considered as part of the  next steps in advancing the preferred design.

Thank you very much for your comments and question about maintenance of improvements and the corresponding operating funds.  

Our Engineering Operations staff are essential to maintaining the vast majority of the proposed infrastructure. They are consistently involved throughout the development, implementation and life of the infrastructure. One important piece of this work is working with them to identify the maintenance requirements and corresponding resources. This informs the development of the annual City budget, which includes a five-year financial plan that shows an annually increasing operating budget to account for increases in costs. The annual budget process also provides an opportunity to request enhancements to account for increases in scope (e.g. maintenance that goes beyond what was originally identified).  

Some other important aspects that impact maintenance include:  

• We plan to use high-quality and durable materials for the hardscape wherever possible to minimize maintenance requirements 
• Where landscaping requires additional maintenance, we will work with our Parks and Recreation team and consultant to choose plants and materials that minimize maintenance needs 

As the scope for Engineering Operations and Parks and Recreation cover a very wide range, there sometimes arise maintenance issues that we may be unaware of, or conditions change between the scheduled maintenance routines in a particular area.  Where this is the case and these come to the attention of residents, we encourage residents to let us know via SeeClickFix (link here).

Kind regards, 

The Uptown Active Transportation Project Team

Thank you for your comment and question regarding the Rotary Crosstown Greenway Upgrades. 

The Rotary Crosstown Greenway (RCG) Upgrades will improve safety, comfort, and accessibility on the section of the existing Rotary Crosstown Greenway along Seventh Avenue, between Eighth Street and Fifth Street. These projects take direction from the vision set in the City of New Westminster’s Council-approved Uptown Streetscape Vision and align with the City’s Master Transportation Plan goals and 7 Bold Steps for Climate Action – specifically Car-light Community, Quality People-Centered Public Realm and Urban Tree Canopy.  The project goals include providing a crosstown greenway that is safer and more comfortable for people of all ages and abilities, improves the cycling and walking experiences, improves accessibility, enhances the public realm and tree canopy, seeks opportunities for green infrastructure, and reduces the impacts of motor vehicles and through traffic in this neighbourhood.

However, to realize these upgrades, there are trade-offs required. It is with this in mind that another important goal of the project is to limit the impacts to people who rely on on-street parking.

In the first round of public engagement, participants indicated that their design preference was for a protected bicycle lane with parking on one side of the street (46% of survey respondents). Based on this feedback, the recommended design includes parking only on the south side of the street. As such, over half (53%) of on-street parking spaces have been retained with the recommended design. There will also be two loading zones maintained on the north side of Seventh Avenue to provide spaces for short term loading ( passenger pick-ups/drop-offs and deliveries, etc.). This maintains five of the six loading zones that are currently in the project area.  

Kind regards, 

The Uptown Active Transportation Improvements Team

Thank you for your questions on weather and the Uptown Active Transportation Improvements.  

1. Snow Removal 

With regard to your question about snow removal, the City utilizes snow plowing and salting for roadways such as Seventh Avenue. Specialized equipment for clearing protected bike facilities are also being explored by the City and we are happy to provide an update as soon as more information is available.

With regard to your question on the timing of snow removal, the City follows the City of New Westminster’s Snow Response Plan (link here) which prioritizes major routes near transit, hospitals, or schools. The Rotary Crosstown Greenway (RCG) would fall under priority 3, which has a target response time of 24 hours after the completion of snow removal for priority 2 routes (which in turn has a target response time of 48 hours after the end of snow fall).  

2. Rain and Sun Protection 

 The proposed design for the RCG includes the addition of a new row of street trees along the south side of the corridor, between     the bike lane and roadway. This would provide shade and contributes to New Westminster’s urban forest canopy cover. 

New opportunities for weather protection (e.g. street trees, awnings, etc.) will be explored by the City as part of adjacent re-           development projects.

 I hope this information is useful! 

Thank you for your question and feedback on Option 1 for the NWSS Cycling Connector, specifically with regard to the east/west alley connection. For this option, we do not anticipate closing laneway access to vehicles.  This would be a shared connection for use by vehicles, cyclists, and pedestrians.

Thanks for your question on the portion of the alley that connects to 5^th Street for the New Westminster Cycling Connector Option 1. The width of the alley and the corresponding concerns and questions you raise are important considerations for that routing option. In selecting a preferred design, a technical, multiple-account evaluation of the options (for both projects) will also be conducted and will be an important factor, along with public input. The width of the lane would be a component of the technical review for Option 1.

A requirement for this project is that it meets the All Ages and Abilities criteria for motor vehicle traffic volume. The bike route south of Seventh Avenue does not meet this requirement. Due to the inability of the traffic volumes to be reduced below the threshold for an All Ages and Abilities shared bikeway (no more than 500 vehicles per day) on Fifth Street between Eighth and Seventh Avenue this design is not being considered.

Thank you for your question.

Option 1 for the New Westminster Secondary School Cycling Connector would involve a protected bicycle facility on Fifth Street all the way from Seventh Avenue to the laneway between Eighth and Tenth Avenue. 

Protected facilities were identified for Option 1, instead of a shared local street, because of traffic volumes and turning movements at Seventh Avenue and Fifth Street, as many vehicles use Fifth Street to access Westminster Centre shopping mall via Seventh Avenue due to the left turn restrictions at Sixth Avenue. 

The configurations for this segment could include off-street bike path in the boulevard, which would not impact parking or on-street protected bike lane, which would impact parking. 

 Please note that the protected facilities would not extend north of the laneway towards Tenth Avenue.  

A pedestrian and cyclist actuated half signal would be installed at the intersection of Fifth Street and Eighth Avenue if Option 1 is selected. The signal may be coordinated with the intersection signal timing at Sixth Street and Eighth Avenue to minimize additional delays for motorists while maintaining safe crossings for people walking and biking.