Functional Planning Study – Interchange Highways 11 & 16 – Award of Contract Recommendation That the Standing Policy Committee on Transportation recommend to City Council: 1. That the City enter into an agreement with ISL Engineering and Land Services Ltd. for the provision of engineering services to complete a Functional Planning Study of the interchange at the junction of Highways 11 & 16 at a total cost of $160,183 (including taxes); and 2. That the City Solicitor be requested to prepare the appropriate agreement and that His Worship the Mayor and the City Clerk be authorized to execute the agreement under the Corporate Seal. Topic and Purpose The purpose of this report is to obtain approval to enter into a contract with ISL Engineering and Land Services Ltd. for the provision of engineering services to complete a Functional Planning Study of the interchange at the junction of Highways 11& 16. The contract will complete the engineering evaluation of the existing and future interchange requirements at a total cost of $160,183 (including taxes). Report Highlights 1. Over the past 5 years 39 collisions have occurred within the existing interchange; additionally, 1 to 3 collisions involving the structure and over-height loads occur in a typical year. 2. The focus of this review is a detailed engineering study of the existing and future traffic demands at this junction and the geometric improvements required to improve the safety and operation of this interchange. 3. A contract awarded to ISL Engineering and Land Services Ltd. is recommended for engineering services to complete a Functional Planning Study of the interchange at the junction of Highways 11 & 16 at a total cost of $160,183 (including taxes). Strategic Goals This report supports the Strategic Goal of Moving Around by providing safer roads for all road users, and optimizing the flow of people and goods in and around the city. Background The junction of Highways 11 & 16 in southeast Saskatoon is currently operating as a 1960’s era cloverleaf interchange. Both highways are considered National and Provincial primary routes and any future interchange will require a system-level interchange function and need to be flexible for conversion to an urban service-level interchange in the future. ROUTING: Transportation & Utilities Dept. – SPC on Transportation – City Council DELEGATION: n/a June 13, 2016 – File No. CK 6000-1 and TS 6332-1 Page 1 of 5 Functional Planning Study – Interchange Highways 11 & 16 – Award of Contract The Stonebridge partial interchange, scheduled for completion in the fall of 2016, will attract additional traffic through the cloverleaf interchange. This project was approved in the 2016 Capital Budget under Capital Project #2434 – TU Highway 11 & Highway 16 Cloverleaf. Report Collision Statistics In 2014, the average annual daily traffic for Circle Drive north of the existing interchange was 37,700 vehicles per day; on Highway 11 to the south was 19,500 vehicles per day and Highway 16 to the east was 27,100 vehicles per day. Some individual loops and ramps in the interchange had turning movement volumes greater than 10,000 vehicles per day. Over the past 5 years, 39 collisions have been reported within the existing cloverleaf from 2010 to 2014 with no report of injuries or fatalities. A “typical” collision involves two vehicles and about $10,000 in damages. The most frequent collision location is at the divergent connection between Highway 11 northbound and the loop to Highway 16 westbound, which is about 25% of collisions. A similar concern, but with less frequency, exists at the divergent connection between Highway 16 eastbound and the loop to Highway 11 northbound. These collisions are possibly a result of high traffic volumes and too short of roadway length causing weaving conflicts between upstream loop traffic attempting to enter the major roadway, and traffic on the major roadway attempting to exit. This type of conflict leads to risk taking and subsequent collisions. At this location, daylight, road conditions and road surface do not appear to be contributing factors to the majority of collisions. More than half of the collisions are lost- control and rear-end configurations. In addition, the structures have a very high rate of collisions from over-sized loads (typically 1 to 3 per year), which most are superficial damage requiring partial closure and an inspection; however, in 2016 there were two impacts with substantial damage. The northbound vertical clearance is 4.7 metres, which is the lowest structure on the high speed road network. Scope of Functional Planning Study This project involves a functional planning study for improvements to the existing interchange and/or replacement structures to improve safety and function of the interchange. The objectives of a Functional Planning Study are to: Improve overall traffic operations at this junction Reduce collisions (improve safety) Add capacity for critical movements Page 2 of 5 Functional Planning Study – Interchange Highways 11 & 16 – Award of Contract Facilitate good interconnections between the two provincial highways Minimize environmental impacts Minimize right-of-way acquisition and impacts Optimize costs and benefits The study will include connecting roads, the interchange, and the nearest upstream and/or downstream interchanges or intersections in the analysis (no significant changes will be considered at Preston Avenue, Taylor Street, Boychuk Drive and Vic Boulevard). The Functional Planning Study for the replacement structures of this interchange will include a budget and staging plan, to guide the future detailed design and construction planning. Mandatory components of the study include: 1. Stakeholder consultation with adjacent neighbourhoods, the RM of Corman Park, the Ministry of Highways and Infrastructure and regional trucking groups. 2. Public involvement in the form of two public meetings. 3. Analysis of existing conditions and recommendations for short-term operations and safety improvements. 4. Future system design and operational considerations. 5. Development and evaluation of alternatives. 6. Selection and recommendation of a preferred alternative. 7. Summarize the engineering report to present the recommendations and the preferred alternative at the Standing Policy Committee on Transportation meeting and a City Council meeting. An optional noise study has been included within this project to evaluate the potential noise impacts of the preferred alternative, with the intention to include a recommended noise mitigation plan in the final product. Contract with ISL Engineering and Land Services Ltd. In March 2016, the Administration posted a Request for Proposal on the SaskTenders website to identify proponents interested and capable of completing this work. The following ten proposals were received: AECOM Canada Ltd., Saskatoon, SK All North Consultants Ltd., Saskatoon, SK Associated Engineering, Saskatoon, SK CIMA+ Canada Inc., Saskatoon, SK Dillon Consulting, Saskatoon, SK ISL Engineering and Land Services Ltd., Saskatoon, SK McElhanney Consulting Services Ltd., Edmonton, AB MMM Group Limited, Saskatoon, SK Stantec, Saskatoon, SK Tetra Tech EBA Inc., Calgary, AB Based on the evaluation criteria included in the Request for Proposal, the Administration is recommending that the City enter into an agreement with ISL Engineering and Land Page 3 of 5 Functional Planning Study – Interchange Highways 11 & 16 – Award of Contract Services Ltd. to complete a Functional Planning Study of the interchange at the junction of Highways 11 & 16. The Administration is not recommending that this functional planning study be completed in-house in consideration of the following: This project requires a suite of sub-consultants to provide highly specialized input on geotechnical, archaeological, wildlife, and communications components. Ideally this work is completed in conjunction with the functional plan to minimize modifications during detailed design stages. The Transportation Engineering section does not have the resources to undertake this project in-house without delaying work and projects planned for 2016 and 2017. The preferred consultant has significant experience in the functional design of sophisticated interchanges. ISL Engineering and Land Services Ltd. were the Owner’s Engineer for Edmonton’s Ring Road, Calgary’s engineer for the first Diverging Diamond Interchange type in Canada, and they also designed and delivered the unique 37th Street southwest/Glenmore Trail interchange in Calgary. This experience provides great value to the City of Saskatoon in determining how to retro-fit the cloverleaf interchange to maximize traffic operations and safety, in a cost-effective manner. In 2015, the existing bridge structures were rehabilitated. This planning project is independent of this previous work, as the main objective is to generate a long-term solution to improve the safety and operating conditions at this location. There is no construction planned in the near term, and the benefit of having a long-term plan in place allows the City to incrementally stage improvements while considering construction plans moving forward. Public and/or Stakeholder Involvement Stakeholder consultation is the responsibility of the consultant during this project. Communication Plan Communication material will be developed by the consultant during this project and will be reviewed by the Administration prior to any public and/or stakeholder communication. Additional communication