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UPDATE:<\/em><\/strong> There will be another opportunity for the public to comment\u00a0 and view the presentation materials tomorrow,\u00a0 Saturday, March 28 from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM at an Open House held at the Harbourfront Centre (Lakeside Terrace). The public will will have the opportunity for one-on-one discussions with planners and officials.<\/p>\n The presentation from the Wednesday, March 25 meeting is now up on Waterfront Toronto’s website. <\/a>(PDF, 18 MB)<\/p>\n Waterfront Toronto presented their recommendations tonight at the Westin Harbour Castle Hotel on how Queens Quay will be turned into a grand lakefront boulevard by placing streetcar lanes in the centre, traffic only on the north side and a pedestrian focused space on the south side. The study, which is for the section between Bathurst and Parliament Streets, is expected to be completed in the Fall of this year, and detailed design work to be complete in Spring 2010.<\/p>\n Highlights:<\/p>\n • There are two recommendations going forward. Both will restrict Queen’s Quay to two traffic lanes, on the north side of the streetcar tracks; one will see westbound one-way traffic, the other will have bi-directional traffic. The current centre streetcar\u00a0reservation and bike lanes\u00a0will be maintained west of Spadina Avenue.<\/p>\n • A four-metre wide Martin Goodman Trail, separated from the streetcar right-of-way with a row of trees, and will complete the missing link in this important recreational and commuter route.<\/p>\n • A six-metre wide sidewalk along most of the south side, with additional tree plantings and the potential room for street stalls.<\/p>\n •\u00a0 Wider, fully accessible streetcar platforms. Stop locations will be realigned in places, but stop spacing will remain about the same, approximately 350 metres apart.<\/p>\n •\u00a0 The first phase of the Waterfront East Streetcar will run through the existing Bay Street Tunnel, to Queen’s Quay and emerge onto Queen’s Quay East between Yonge and Freeland Streets. The potential for a decorative portal entrance by the West 8\/du Toit Allsopp Hillier design team has been identified. In the short term, a loop at Parliament and Queen’s Quay will be the eastern terminus of this new transit line, until connections are made with the planned Cherry Street streetcar route from King Street. •\u00a0\u00a0 There will be additional spots for bus loading and unloadings, as well as management of commercial deliveries to mitigate access and congestion issues for autos. There will also be limited on-street parking available. It is anticipated that the “level of service” for auto traffic on Queen’s Quay will be about the same, even with the obvious pedestrian, cyclist and transit priority measures.<\/p>\n More details and images can be found at the Waterfront Toronto website here.<\/a><\/p>\n The written press release is below. Let the discussion begin!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Waterfront Toronto will officially present the technically recommended alternative and two options for the traffic lanes, one which would have two-way traffic and the other one-way traffic, for public discussion and input tonight. While Waterfront Toronto has a slight preference for the two-way option at this time, further analysis and public input are required before a final option is presented to City Council.<\/em><\/p>\n \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Today we are one step closer to our goal of revitalizing Toronto’s central waterfront area,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said John Campbell, President and CEO of Waterfront Toronto. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153From east to west, Queens Quay is the backbone of our waterfront and it will soon become a revered destination not only for Torontonians but the world.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/em><\/p>\n Transforming Queens Quay by creating a beautiful linear park on the south side of the street that would include a generous new pedestrian promenade and an expanded Martin Goodman Trail was part of the winning design for revitalizing the central waterfront selected by Waterfront Toronto in 2006 after an international design competition.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Prior to making any changes to Queens Quay, Waterfront Toronto and the City of Toronto began a Class Environmental Assessment (EA) process to study the feasibility, impact, and alternatives to the idea. In fact, Queens Quay has been subject to two EAs, one on the revitalization itself and another, done in conjunction with Toronto Transit Committee and the City of Toronto, focusing on planning transit services for the new waterfront development underway in East Bayfront and future communities in the West Don Lands and Port Lands.<\/em><\/p>\n The EA process, which has been ongoing for the past two years, has included the examination of several alternative planning solutions for Queens Quay. Each alternative presents a different configuration for a revitalized Queens Quay that has been analyzed and rated against a series of city planning and environmental criteria. The EA process also includes a thorough and continuing public consultation component and extensive in-depth technical analysis.<\/em><\/p>\n Furthermore, rigorous traffic and transit modeling were undertaken to test the feasibility of all of the alternative design solutions.<\/em><\/p>\n Results of the EA show that the technically recommended alternative provides the greatest opportunity for creating a world-class waterfront street. Traffic analysis confirms that reducing traffic to two lanes on the north side of Queens Quay is not only feasible in the short term but can also accommodate future traffic demands.<\/em><\/p>\n The Class Environmental Assessment process is ongoing and public input is still being sought. The recommended plan incorporating the Preferred Alternative will be identified after we have taken into account public and stakeholder input. It will go to City Council for approval in July.<\/em><\/p>\n The revitalization of Queens Quay is budgeted at approximately $192 million which includes all new services and public realm improvements and $150 million for new transit along Queens Quay in the new East Bayfront area.<\/em><\/p>\n The first phase of construction from York to Spadina is expected to begin about one year after the completion of the EA. Waterfront Toronto’s goal is to finish construction along Queens Quay by 2012.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n photo by Kevin Steele <\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\n•\u00a0 A two-way traffic pattern on Queen’s Quay may allow for a grass-covered transit right of way.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n