Pedestrian Strategy P Ublic Engagement – What We Heard Report July 13Th, 2015
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Pedestrian Strategy P ublic Engagement – What We Heard Report July 13th, 2015 Project Overview The City of Calgary Transportation Planning is developing the Pedestrian Strategy to focus on improving pedestrian safety, providing universal accessibility, improving the quality and experience of the pedestrian realm, promoting a culture of walking, and furthering walking as a sustainable, convenient and viable part of Calgary’s multi-modal transportation system. The framework for the Pedestrian Strategy was presented and approved by the Standing Policy Committee on Transportation and Transit on July 18, 2014. The engagement, along with other considerations, will inform the development of the Pedestrian Strategy. The Pedestrian Strategy will be presented to the public in Q3 2015. Engagement Overview The City undertook a comprehensive engagement process between March and July 2015 for the Pedestrian Strategy that included three streams of engagement. The three streams of feedback were the Main Streets project undertaken by Planning, Development and Assessment (PDA); multiple stakeholder events focused on the Pedestrian Strategy; and an online software tool MindMixer that supplemented the in-person engagement. Main Streets The Pedestrian Strategy team partnered with the Main Streets initiative from PDA. The focus of the Main Streets project was to analyze the needs of neighbourhood residents, along with economic research, to identify success criteria for future growth in 24 of Calgary’s traditional main streets. The focus of workshops for participants was identifying issues, opportunities and outcomes for the main streets. It was recognized early on in the Main Streets process that the pedestrian realm was being identified as being a critical component identified by community residents. Administration then chose to form a partnership for these two projects as it was a natural fit and an opportunity for PDA and Transportation Planning to collaborate. Through 13 workshops consisting of 450 participants, a number of concerns and opportunities for improvement were identified. Please visit http://www.calgary.ca/mainstreets for a full list of the verbatim responses from the Main Street project’s engagement not included in the Pedestrian Strategy verbatim responses. Public Events and Outreach Public Events The Pedestrian Strategy team held a series of public events across the city within each quadrant and downtown in March 2015. Participants were asked two questions: “What is important to you when walking?” and “What would encourage you to walk more?” These questions would go on to form the basis of further in-person engagement as well as the online component. The March and April sessions garnered a total of 136 participants over five sessions. Outreach In April and May, City staff engaged people where they were: Stephen Avenue, malls, universities and colleges, as well as LRT stations and community centres. Through 13 engagement opportunities, 239 Calgarians conveyed issues and opportunities for walking. Online (Mindmixer) There was opportunity for Calgarians to provide input online through the MindMixer tool throughout the engagement process. Participants were able could pin locations on a map-based application and provide insight into what made that location great in terms of walkability, or presented a challenge. The Summary 2 format also allowed for participants to interact, offering others the ability to support or challenge the assertions made, sparking additional dialogue. Over 70 days, 170 participants and 617 interactions were made through the MindMixer tool. What We Asked Main Streets Main Streets workshops were focused on asking participants: What do you think the key issues are on this street? Where have you seen opportunities for improvement along this street? What would you like the street to be like in the future? What would you like the street to be known for in the future? Public Events and Outreach Public events and outreach efforts were focused on asking participants: What is important to you when walking? What would encourage you to walk more? Asking these questions allowed for a range of responses from specific, location-focused feedback, to broad, city wide applicable feedback. Online (Mindmixer) Online engagement was focused on asking participants: What is important to you when walking? What would encourage you to walk more? Online engagement also allowed for participants to tie comments to a specific location on a map and to add pictures if so desired. What We Heard The charts and themes presented on here summarize all of the input that was received from all of the various forms of engagement including Main Streets, Public Events and Outreach, and Online. A graph is included to show the relative levels of themed responses from the engagement. The graph is a useful way to see the overall number of themed responses from participants. The project team developed a total of 37 themes out of the engagement and other activities. The other activities that influenced the creation of themes were supplementary research, internal project consultation and best practices review activities. Summary 3 2214 responses were collected from the three Number of Mentions by Theme - All Engagement streams of engagement Theme Number of Mentions activities. Art & Aesthetic Design 295 Street Crossings 276 The top 5 themes based on Land-use 176 the number of comments Place-making 150 were: Art & Aesthetic Design Sidewalk Condition & Repair 147 (295); Street Crossings (276); Pathway Connections 84 Land-use (176); Place- Lighting 80 making (150); and Sidewalk Speed Limit 77 Condition & Repair (147). Missing Sidewalks 72 These 5 themes were the SNIC 70 only themes with over 100 Car Parking 66 comments. Re-development 62 Street Furniture 60 Shared Public Areas 58 Signals & Signs 56 Feeling secure 55 Under & Overpasses 53 Culture of walking 53 Separate Pathways 38 Connections to Bus Stops 35 Universal Accessiblity 34 Driver education 34 Turning Vehicles 28 City work coordination 26 Sidewalk Closures & Detours 23 Sidewalk Obstacles 22 Pedestrian education 17 Derelict Properties 11 Schools 9 Healthy lifestyles & sustainability 9 Car Driveways 8 Street names & Way-finding 8 Research & innovation 7 Distracted walking and driving 5 Engineered Walkways 4 Train Crossings 3 Visibility Campaigns 3 Summary 4 The following themes were expressed in the submitted comments for all engagement. Themes are listed in order from most to least commonly mentioned. The overview provides a summary of the themed responses. For a comprehensive list of responses, please see the Verbatim Responses. Pedestrian Strategy Engagement Themes Theme Sample Responses Art & Aesthetic Design - improve beauty & safety of streets & landscapes - better landscaping, more trees, lighting public art, and better sidewalks - iconic and interactive public art Street Crossings - use staggered crossings more - more scramble crosswalks - No right on red downtown or in Beltline Land-use - improved retail downtown, and better stores so I can walk to it rather than driving to the suburbs. I would like to do every day shopping near my home - increase land use mixing - develop walkable communities Place-making - create a dignified entry to Stanley Park - more pedestrian only areas like Stephen Avenue Mall - vendor kiosks Sidewalk Condition & Repair - replace all "legacy" sloping driveway cuts with level sidewalks - wider sidewalks and narrower streets - maintain sidewalks to minimize tripping hazards Pathway Connections - better connections across Deerfoot - in new developments, pedestrian and cycling connections should be included between cul-de-sacs and the back of crescents - ensure bollards are in place so that pedestrians at roadways Lighting - more light on multi-use trails - make lighting at intersections angled to light up pedestrians (e.g. East Village) - proper lighting in underpasses Speed Limit - decrease speed limits in residential area, especially inner city - speed limit enforcement - lower speeds of cars on Main Streets Missing Sidewalks - add a sidewalk along this stretch of 34 Ave NE - sidewalks on both sides of 36 ave ne - when I go to work in Foothills & other industrial areas - often there are no sidewalks AT ALL when I get off the bus Snow and Ice Control - enforce bylaws requiring houses and businesses to remove snow and ice - better maintenance and snow clearing on busy routes - why do we plow snow from roads onto sidewalks? Summary 5 Car Parking - require underground parking more, limit surface parking - surface parking -> promote flexible uses -> food truck, "food court" pop-up market - parked car buffer Re-development - more infilling - engage with community associations and do walk audits, etc. - take a "pedestrian lens" to transportation & development projects Street Furniture - have park benches along streets such as 90th Avenue - more garbage bins - benches for the elderly Shared Public Areas - flat/level sidewalk/at grade pedestrian avenues like Stephen Ave. - remove curbs and create a shared space on 9A St - pedestrian realm for all social brackets…wealthy, homeless… Signals & Signs - audible pedestrian signals at all traffic lights - better light timing in Beltline to support pedestrians - frequency - more light changes so that more pedestrians feel like walking Feeling secure - must target ZERO fatalities. Too many people are being hit by cars and it is unacceptable - traffic calming in residential areas - keep sidewalks for pedestrians, not cyclists