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TO: |
Mayor and Members of Council |
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FROM: |
Alan Brown,
Director of Engineering |
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PREPARED BY: |
Arup Mukherjee, Manager of Transportation Domenic Smarrelli, Traffic
Operations Supervisor |
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DATE OF MEETING: |
2004-Sep-27 |
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SUBJECT: |
Markham
Safe Streets Strategy - Implementation Plan |
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RECOMMENDATION:
That the Markham Safe Streets Strategy Implementation
Plan as outlined in this report be endorsed;
And that the Neighbourhood
And that the existing resident members of the Markham
Safe Streets Task Force be appointed to the Traffic
Safety Committee for a term ending
And that Council appoint two Councillors to serve on
the Traffic Safety Committee;
And that, subject to the Traffic Safety Committee
comments, the
Top 25 Streets proposed for the Enforcement
Plan (Attachment C) be approved and that York Regional Police be requested to
provide enhanced enforcement on these streets in accordance with the Markham
Safe Streets Strategy;
And that, subject
to the Traffic Safety Committee comments, the 5 Streets proposed for the
community-based education plan (Attachment B) be approved;
And that the Road Watch Programme be
established for the Town of
And that, subject to comments by the Traffic Safety Committee, the
Priority Routes (Attachment D) as outlined in the report be approved;
And that Engineering and Corporate Communications staff be authorized to
retain services of marketing consultants in accordance with Town Purchasing
By-law;
And that the Markham Safe Streets kick-off, as outlined in
the report be approved;
And That funding for
the Implementation Plan be provided through the existing Markham Safe Streets
Task Force account number 083-5399-6144-005 with a current balance of
$92,926.00;
And That additional
funding for the 2005 Markham Safe Streets Strategy be identified through the
capital budget process;
And That $50,000 be
considered in the 2005 operating budget for additional staff resources to
implement the Markham Safe Streets Strategy;
And that the Traffic Safety Committee and staff
update Committee on the progress of Markham Safe Streets Implementation Plan.
PURPOSE:
This report outlines the key
steps and action items required to begin implementation of the Markham Safe
Streets Strategy.
BACKGROUND:
Implementation Plan based upon the
3-point Safe Streets Strategy
The Markham Safe Streets Task Force
developed a 3-point strategy to affect driver behaviour and improve community
safety. The strategy is based upon
focusing efforts in the three areas of Education, Enforcement and Engineering. The strategy is the foundation for the
Markham Safe Streets Implementation
Plan. The Implementation Plan, as outlined in this report, provides details on
specific programmes, activities and deliverables in each of the three strategy
areas.
SUMMARY:
The MSSTF established
a 3-point strategy to improve safety on local roads. The Implementation Plan as outlined in this
report outlines the specific programmes and funding requirements to initiate
the strategy. The specific programmes
are based upon the three strategy areas and involve the following key
initiatives
These activities represent
the first steps to launch and implement the Markham Safe Streets Strategy to
improve driver behaviour and safety on our local streets.
DISCUSSION:
Establishing a Traffic Safety Committee to
initiate the strategy
The Markham Safe Streets Strategy provides
the framework to guide annual programmes aimed at
improving safety on our local roads. To
oversee the implementation of the annual programmes,
the strategy recommends the establishment of a Traffic Safety Committee
(TSC). Given the work done to date, and
their familiarity with the strategy, it is recommended that the resident
members of the Markham Safe Streets Task Force form the inaugural TSC along
with at least two Councillors, York Regional Police
members and with the support of Town Engineering staff. The present term will be until the end of
2005 at which time staff will submit updated memberships for the following
year. The resident members are as
follows:
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Ward 1 – Michael Curran |
Ward 5 – Glenn Schaeffer |
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Ward 2 – Joel Landis |
Ward 6 – David Johnston |
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Ward 3 – David Macbeth |
Ward 7 – Randa Issa |
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Ward 4 – John Cosgrave |
Ward 8 – Sal Difede |
The Traffic Safety Committee,
through Town staff, will report to the
Objective #1
Objective #2
w
Monitoring
results
w
Recommend if
physical measures required
Additional details regarding
the role and responsibilities of the TSC are outlined in the terms of reference
(Attachment A).
Specific programmes
for the first year
As noted earlier, efforts are required in each of the three strategy
areas of Education, Enforcement and Engineering. A comprehensive set of programmes
based on each of these areas is needed to affect driver behaviour
and improve safety on local roads. The
following sections outline the specific programmes to
be launched in the first year of the strategy.
The following three initiatives are
recommended to start the education portion of the strategy. This is the area that will focus on
increasing the profile and awareness of the Markham Safe Streets Strategy and
will strive to make speeding and aggressive driving unacceptable in our
communities.
1.
The objective of the Kick-off event is to
broadcast Town wide the implementation of the Markham Safe Street Strategy and
how this strategy will increase community safety through changing driver behaviour.
An event planner along with Corporate
Communications will coordinate and oversee the Kick-off Event. The event will
incorporate key note speakers such as the Town’s Mayor, York Region’s Police
Chief and members of the Markham Safe Streets Task Force.
Key messages will be incorporated into the
promotional materials currently being developed by the Marketing Consultant and
these materials will be distributed to the attendees of the event. In addition,
the Markham Safe Streets Strategy Report, brochure and pamphlets will also be
distributed on the day of the event. Refreshments will also be provided.
2. Town-wide marketing/communication
A Town-wide
marketing and communication plan will be implemented to increase awareness of
the Markham Safe Streets Strategy. The
marketing campaign is intended to build brand awareness and ensure that key
messages are being delivered to the public.
The campaign will include the development of logos, slogans, branding, collatoral materials, newspaper ads, website and any other
methods and products needed to send key messages to affect driver behaviour.
3. Community-based education
Community-based education will include elements such
as the radar message board, flyers, community signs, special programmes at local schools and community events. The enforcement strategy noted below will
select the top 25 streets for enhanced enforcement. It is recommended that the next 5 streets
that are ranked in priority (i.e streets 26-30) be
selected for community-based education as shown in Attachment B. These 5 streets will be reviewed and endorsed
by TSC. The intent of the
community-based education is to work at a local level to educate and inform
communities of the Markham Safe Streets Strategy and deliver the key message of
driving safely.
Effective measurements will be conducted and following
the completion of one year, the streets will be re-evaluated and ranked for
future education or enforcement.
Enforcement
Enforcement will continue to play a vital
role to ensure compliance with traffic laws on our streets. The following outlines the key initiatives to
work efficiently with the available resources at York Regional Police and
prepare for new technology such as red light cameras and photo radar
1. Road Watch Launch
The MSSTF
recommends that the Road Watch program be established in
Road Watch is
a community-based program that currently exists in every municipality in York
Region. The program is aimed at making
drivers more aware of their actions and provides citizens with an opportunity
to report unsafe driving behaviour. Vehicle owners who are reported will receive a letter from
the police. If a vehicle owner receives
more than one letter, a police officer will make personal contact.
The Road Watch
launch will be incorporated into the Markham Safe Streets Kick-off. The newly
formed Traffic Safety Committee will be the driving force behind this
program. York Regional Police will
undertake the administrative and enforcement process while the Town will
provide engineering technical support and participation.
Start-up costs
have been identified later in this report. As for the annual budget
requirements, the Traffic Safety Committee will provide the detailed planning
and identify funding to successfully run the program. The committee will also
seek funding through the Ministry of
The Town will
provide a web page on the Town’s website, drop box locations such as libraries
and recreation centers, Town wide signs, brochures, citizen report forms and
flyers.
2. Enhanced
Enforcement of top 25 streets in
The ability to provide enhanced enforcement on
selected Town roads requires a coordinated effort between the Town of
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Vehicular Speed
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Vehicular Volume
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Sidewalk Availability
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Proximity to Schools and / or Parks
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Residential Frontage
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Collision History
Each road has been evaluated based on the above criteria.
From this list, the top 25 streets were identified and evaluated to determine
the resources required to implement enforcement initiatives. These
roads, shown in Attachment C, will be submitted to TSC for endorsement then to
York Regional Police, who will provide routine, enhanced enforcement for the
duration of one year. The Traffic Safety Committee will update this list
on an annual basis.
After a period of 12 months, the effectiveness of the
enforcement initiatives will be measured. Should these initiatives
achieve the desired results, the enforcement initiatives will continue at the
desired locations under a maintenance plan.
Should these initiatives not achieve the desired results, then the potential
for physical traffic calming will be assessed.
Prior to the enhanced enforcement, notification will
be provided to the selected communities. The primary communication method will
be notice boards and they will be located at each entrance of the selected
road. Other methods include the Town’s website and newspaper notices.
3. Red Light Cameras and Photo Radar
In August of this year, the Provincial government
completed the Red Light Camera Pilot project in selected municipalities. Based on the favourable
results, legislation has been passed to allow all municipalities to implement
this programme.
This project is a comprehensive programme
involving both technological issues and impacts to the courts and judicial
system. The Region of York has initiated
the first steps towards implementing this programme. Given the significant capital costs and
implications to the court system, it is recommended that the Town work closely
with the Region to identify suitable local intersections and provide input on
Regional intersections in the Town of
Photo radar is currently not legislated for use on
local roads. Markham Council has
requested the Provincial government to establish this legislation and will
continue to work with other municipalities to lobby for this tool to combat
speeding on local roads.
Collection of
data and monitoring results will continue to be a key role as part of the
Engineering portion of the strategy.
Establishing appropriate routes for traffic calming based on
accessibility of transit and emergency services was identified in the strategy. This exercise has been completed and the process
and recommended routes are noted below.
These routes will establish the framework to determine the appropriate
physical measure for each road in the Town.
1. Priority Routes –
Staff has established Priority Routes (Attachment D) as
a means to best accommodate York Region Transit as well as a primary response
route for emergency services. The affected agencies,
that is Fire Department / Emergency Medical Services / York Region
Transit, have reviewed and commented on the Priority Routes. A map showing the priority routes is provided
in Attachment E and will be reviewed with the Traffic Safety Committee.
Vertical traffic calming measures (i.e. speed humps,
raised intersections, etc) will not be considered on these priority routes due
to the impact on emergency vehicles and transit. Instead only horizontal
measures, such as roundabouts, traffic circles, chicanes, bump-outs and medians
will be considered. Given that most
priority routes function as residential collectors and the significantly higher costs of horizontal measures, the
Markham Safe Streets Task Force
recommended that 85th
percentile speeds must be 55 km/h or higher before physical measures are
considered. Otherwise, these streets
will continue to be candidates for enhanced enforcement and education
strategies only.
Major collector roads (4-lane roads) are prohibited
from having any physical traffic calming. The only exception to this rule
is heritage districts, where characteristics of the street require slower speeds.
Alternatively, major collector roads are candidates for enhanced enforcement
and education strategies. A major collector classification includes such
roads as
Due to their functionality to carry heavy truck
traffic, roads serving industrial and commercial areas are also prohibited from
having physical traffic calming. These roads are better suited for
enhanced enforcement.
All other roads are candidates for physical traffic
calming, provided that enhanced enforcement and education strategies have been
unable to reduce the speeds on the subject street, and that speed averages are
50 km/h or greater.
FINANCIAL
CONSIDERATIONS:
The start-up funding requirements
for the various programs in the implementation plan is estimated to
consume the remaining budget of $92,926.00 including initiatives such as:
Funds for the start-up initiatives will be provided through the existing Markham Safe Streets Task Force account number 083-5399-6144-005 with a current balance of $92,926.00.
Funding to continue the implementation in 2005 will be identified as part of the 2005 capital budget process in consultation with the Traffic Safety Committee. Funding in the amount of $50,0000 has been identified for consideration in the 2005 operating budget to offset staffing resources to start up this new initiative.
ATTACHMENTS:
Attachment A - Traffic Safety Committee Terms
of Reference
Attachment B – 5 Streets – Community-based Education Plan
Attachment C – Top 25 Streets – Enforcement Plan
Attachment D – Priority Routes List
Attachment E – Priority Routes Map
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Alan Brown, C.E.T. Director of Engineering |
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Jim Baird, M.C.I.P., R.P.P. Commissioner of Development Services |
Q:\Development\Engineering\REPORTS\2004\September\Markham
Safe Streets Stategy - Implementation Plan\Markham Safe Street Strategy
Implementation Plan Draft 5.doc
