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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCAO-11-009 - Regional Rapid Transit - City Impacts_ Staff Re orb r KITCHEI~TE~ SAO s 4~ce w~ww.kitehenerco REPORT TO: Council DATE OF MEETING: May 26, 2011 SUBMITTED BY: Carl Ladd, Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) PREPARED BY: Rod Regier, Executive Director of Economic Development Jeff Willmer, Deputy CAO, Community Services Department WARD(S) INVOLVED: All DATE OF REPORT: May 11, 2011 REPORT NO.: CAO-11-009 SUBJECT: REGIONAL RAPID TRANSIT PROJECT -CITY IMPACTS RECOMMENDATION: That Chief Administrator's Office report CAO-11-009, regarding the Regional Rapid Transit Project, be received for discussion, and That the City of Kitchener request a formal agreement with the Region for moving or replacing underground services including water, storm water, sanitary sewer, gas and hydro facilities to accommodate the rapid transit project, and That the City of Kitchener request design consideration be given to minimizing the impact of rapid transit infrastructure on fire service operations. BACKGROUND: In 2003, the Regional Municipality of Waterloo adopted its Growth Management Strategy (RGMS). The RGMS was a ground breaking document in the Ontario context and set out the policy framework to achieve a more compact, sustainable and livable urban form in the Waterloo Region over the subsequent planning period. One of the most important instruments in achieving the objectives of the RGMS and subsequent Regional Official Plans was the development of an efficient transit system. An improved transit system with a high frequency rapid transit service in the central transit corridor would encourage more people to shift from single occupancy vehicles to alternative modes of transportation in the journey to work. This, in combination with supportive land use policies and incentives would result in the development of amore pedestrian friendly and attractive environment with resulting public benefits such as improved public health, a better protected environment, more equitable provision of transportation services, and more efficient utilization of public infrastructure such as roads, water and sanitary services. In 2004, Regional staff began work on a plan for rapid transit to support the objectives of the RGMS. The initial concept was presented to Regional Council in 2005 and a detailed feasibility study and environmental assessment process commenced. In 2009, Regional Council approved the proposed Light Rapid Transit (LRT) model for the central transit corridor from Conestoga Mall to a multi-modal station connecting the system to VIA Rail and GO Transit, and from there -1- Staff Report CA~sOffi~e www.kitchener ca to Fairview Mall, with Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) running from Fairview Mall to Ainsley Terminal in Galt. In 2010, the provincial and federal governments committed $300 million and $265 million respectively to the $800 million in construction costs of the project. Following the municipal election in November 2010, Regional staff was asked to conduct a comprehensive review of the rapid transit options, identifying the cost implications of each and making a recommendation on the preferred option. This analysis has been the subject of extensive public consultation over the past 3 months, the outcome of which, and a peer review by an external expert panel, are summarized in Region of Waterloo Report E-11-044 (http://rapidtransit.region.waterloo.on.ca/pdfs/April 12 PW Report.pdf). In June 2011, the Council of the Regional Municipality of Waterloo will make a decision regarding the technology and extent of rapid transit to be constructed in Waterloo Region. The Region's decision will determine whether, and to what extent, the project will be a Light Rail Transit or Bus Rapid Transit project. An analysis of 11 options has been conducted. The options include a "business as usual" option which does not have a rapid transit component; a full BRT option, a full LRT option and eight combination LRT/BRT options which vary by the extent of each. The recommended option is known as Option L3a, which envisions an LRT solution from Conestoga Mall to Fairview Mall, and adapted Bus Rapid Transit service extending from Fairview Mall to the Ainsley Street Transit Terminal in Cambridge. This option is presented as the first phase in a 2 or 3 phase strategy to extend LRT from the north end of Waterloo through the central transit corridor to Galt. The purpose of this report is to identify the potential effect of the recommended option on City of Kitchener operations, capital budget as well as implications for corporate strategy including the implementation of Kitchener Growth Management Strategy and Official Plan policies, the Economic Development Strategy and the Strategic Plan for the Environment. REPORT: The Regional Rapid Transit project will have a profound effect on the future shape and operation of the city. The project will affect 1) implementation of the City's economic development strategy, 2) land use, 3) transportation system, 4) underground infrastructure, 5) accessibility of city services and 6) Strategic Plan for the Environment. The project can also be evaluated against its alignment with the City of Kitchener Corporate Strategic Plan. Economic Development In 2004, the City of Kitchener shifted its economic development strategy from a focus on the development and marketing of suburban industrial land to the development of knowledge intensive clusters in the downtown. The new strategy was supported by the Economic Development Investment Fund and bolstered by an array of downtown and brownfield incentives. That strategy has resulted in unprecedented public, institutional and private sector investment. The identity of Kitchener's downtown is changing profoundly and an entirely new group of young knowledge workers and residents is being attracted by university facilities, companies like Desire2Learn, Communitech and Google, and new residential projects such as the Kaufman Lofts and City Centre Condominiums. Some of these projects have been conceptualized during the rapid transit planning process, and expeditious development will be contingent on the implementation of rapid transit. -2- Staff Report CA~sOffi~e www.kitchener ca Technology Companies According to Communitech, at any given time, technology companies have posted 2,000 job openings in Waterloo Region. The region's high growth companies are competing for talent with global companies in highly desirable locations around the world. Waterloo Region and City of Kitchener must be able to deliver the quality of life demanded by young knowledge workers or risk losing high growth companies to other more competitive cities. The region's high-tech companies also draw knowledge workers from a wide labour market area. RIM, Open Text and others are currently busing staff from the Greater Toronto Area. These companies are actively supporting the implementation of two-way commuter service from Toronto to Waterloo Region - a service which only makes sense functionally if combined with a rapid transit service anchored at a multi-modal station. A recent survey of Communitech companies identified that: • Overwhelmingly, respondents think public transit is important • 70% responded that LRT would benefit the region • More than 87% responded that LRT was very or somewhat important to their company and coworkers • Most felt LRT would improve parking conditions • More than half of respondents would themselves take LRT • Only half of respondents felt well-informed about LRT • 60% felt the opportunity could be compromised if LRT is not undertaken now In summary, Communitech members feel that LRT will be an important factor in building the type of community which is able to attract and retain the talent that they need to compete in the global marketplace. For the Kitchener's high-growth technology companies -those companies that the city will rely on to provide employment and income growth in the 21St Century -the LRT and its efficient access to expanded GO Transit services may be the most important municipal investment that can be made to support their success and future investment in this community. High Density Urban Residential, Office and Mixed-Use Development Another one of the key arguments for LRT over BRT is its ability to attract high density reurbanization in the station locations. The City of Kitchener has 11 stations along the proposed LRT route. Each of those station locations is characterized by large under-utilized parcels which would support significant reurbanization without extensive land assembly or the disruption of mature neighbourhoods. The City of Kitchener already has significant developer interest in the downtown with a number of projects on-going. Vacant parcels in Downtown Kitchener have the potential to host an additional 1.5 million square feet of office or research space (housing an additional 7500 workers) and over 3000 additional residential units or 5,400 new residents. A decision to proceed with LRT could be expected to accelerate sales for those projects and result in a more rapid development process for projects that are currently in the planning process. The preferred LRT option is therefore closely aligned with the City of Kitchener Economic Development Strategy and will help position this city and region to compete for capital and talent in the global market place. -3- Staff Report CA~sOffi~e www.kitchener ca Land Use Planning The Province's Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe came into effect on June 16, 2006. The Growth Plan contains policies, strategies and targets to manage expected high levels of growth in the Greater Golden Horseshoe which includes the Region of Waterloo. One element of the Plan is to mandate compact development by requiring municipalities to comply with intensification and density targets. A key target is that by 2015 and every year after, at least 40% of all new growth must be accommodated within existing built up areas. More specific density targets are set for Downtown Kitchener which is identified as an Urban Growth Centre. The Region of Waterloo and City of Kitchener have aligned their growth management and land use planning policies to conform with Provincial policy in this regard. Rapid transit supports the City's growth management objectives. The central transit corridor that would be serviced by LRT or BRT, includes the city's primary focal point (downtown/urban growth centre) and three other significant intensification areas (King Street West corridor, King Street East corridor and Fairway Road). Rapid transit enables more compact development that is less auto-dependent. Rapid Transit, especially light rail service, will transform and upgrade transit from the current "hub and spoke" system to a system of interconnecting cross corridors (grid pattern as much as possible). The cross corridor pattern supports Kitchener's emerging urban structure of nodes and corridors, development of which is a key planning objective of the current draft Kitchener Official Plan. Nodes are key focal points that help achieve the concepts of complete communities and intensification. Across corridor transit system would ensure that all nodes are interconnected by either a mixed use corridor and/or a transit corridor. The LRT is therefore a key tool to achieve the urban structure that is the objective of Kitchener's new official plan. Ample documentation (see Waterloo Rapid Transit Implementation Options: Peer Review Summary Report referred to above) confirms that light rail service appeals to more demographic groups than buses. The most noteworthy contrast is among professionals and business persons that much prefer light rail to buses, and are more likely to use LRT for lifestyle rather than affordability reasons. As a result, LRT is considered a more potent tool for encouraging the development of a compact, pedestrian-oriented and sustainable urban form than BRT. Transportation Planning and Infrastructure The City of Kitchener is currently developing a new Transportation Master Plan (TMP). The Master Plan is a key tool in continuing to build a healthy, vibrant and sustainable city, helping to provide direction for the development of better pedestrian, cycling, transit and roadway infrastructure. The City of Kitchener has also recently developed a Transportation Demand Management (TDM) Strategy and a Cycling Master Plan. All of these documents are highly supportive of, and to some extent contingent on improved regional transit services. They share the common objective of increasing alternative transportation use including transit, cycling, car pooling, and walking. These strategies are aligned with the Kitchener Growth Management Strategy and are expected to be supported strongly in the new Kitchener Official Plan. As part of the Regional Transportation Master Plan, up to 45% of commuters are expected to travel to Kitchener's Downtown core using alternative transportation methods. This reflects the growing density of development that is expected over the next 20 years but also the demand for access to and through the central core. While some roadway improvements are planned -4- Staff Report CA~sOffi~e www.kitchener ca (widening of Weber St. to 4 lanes, underpass of the mainline railway), a significant portion of the capacity will be satisfied by a rapid transit system, which along with cycling and other TDM measures, will provide alternate travel choices for many. This approach will help to reduce the traffic impact on many parallel corridors such as Park St or Margaret Ave by providing the transit capacity on King St. and Charles St.. Without a rapid transit system, more intrusion into neighbourhoods would be expected as the road network reaches capacity and pressure will be exerted to satisfy that demand by widening City roads or accept increased delays to the detriment of established residential neighbourhoods. As part of the rapid transit implementation, other changes to the broader transit network will also take place. These will include a redesign of the radial network where all transit routes come to the Downtown Terminal, to more of a grid system that will provide better connections to other areas of the City including the rapid transit corridor at key station locations. This will provide far more flexibility and opportunity for the public to take advantage of transit than has occurred in the past and will help to temper the growing demand for more road capacity. The Region's population and ridership forecasts indicate that a BRT solution will be operating at capacity in 20 years or less, whereas the preferred LRT option would operate within capacity for the foreseeable future. The extent to which the LRT reduces the need for additional system changes (i.e. upgrading from BRT to LRT to accommodate system demand growth in the future), LRT will reduce community impacts and system disruption that would occur during a major system upgrade. Fire Protection Services City of Kitchener Fire Stations are located to provide an optimum response time across the city. Current traffic congestion and traffic calming measures are already showing an increase in response times. LRT infrastructure and design has the potential to further affect fire operations. Access to all side streets is imperative to maintain fire response capabilities. Raised curbs will affect fire vehicles crossing the LRT route and increase response times. On the other hand, if rapid transit is able to slow increases in traffic congestion there is a potential slowing of increased response times for fire as the city grows over time. Fire operations on rapid transit routes will affect transit operations if the response to a significant fire requires closure of a complete street. An LRT system has the potential to affect to fire operations where overhead power lines may cause difficulties in fire suppression or rescue utilizing aerial devices. The City of Kitchener should seek to minimize the potentially adverse effect of rapid transit design, whether BRT or LRT, on fire protection services. Underground Infrastructure The City of Kitchener and its utilities own, and are responsible for maintaining, underground services within the road right-of-way on which the proposed LRT will be constructed. There is a requirement to renew and, in some cases, relocate these services to the portion beneath the vehicular roadway as the construction proceeds. Infrastructure relocation will be required to ensure that the City can access the infrastructure to maintain and replace it in the future. This relocation will based on the requirements of the city and not the region. While some of this work is anticipated in the 10 year capital budget, much of it is not. This represents a potentially significant cost to the City, Kitchener Utilities and Kitchener Hydro. -5- Staff Report CA~sOffi~e www.kitchener ca However, the Region has indicated that for sections of LRT where the replacement of underground services was previously planned for in the 10 year capital forecast, the City of Kitchener would be asked to reprioritize the work to coincide with the construction schedule of the LRT. In cases where the relocation or renewal of the infrastructure was not in the 10 year capital forecast, the Region would absorb the cost of replacing and relocating the services as required. The Region has assumed that private utilities (including K-W Hydro and Kitchener Utilities - gas,etc.) would be responsible for the cost to relocate their underground services as required to accommodate LRT on the following cost sharing basis: 50% of labour and labour saving devices and 100% of materials. The Region would therefore be responsible for the other 50% of the labour and labour saving devices associated with relocating the City-owned plant. Where the infrastructure is less than 5 years old, the Region would pay 100% of all costs of relocation. This cost sharing arrangement is consistent with public utilities works on municipal right of ways. Kitchener Utilities and KW Hydro are currently scoping out the capital cost of these relocations for Kitchener Utilities. No provision has currently been made in the capital forecast for this work. Kitchener Utilities' is also concerned with the potential of stray DC current affecting cathodic protection of City-owned gas mains. This potential would also add to the expense of maintaining City of Kitchener gas infrastructure. As these items represent a significant potential cost to the City of Kitchener, the approach to managing it should be confirmed in the form of a formal agreement. Accessibility of City of Kitchener Public Services High quality, accessible and affordable transit services are important to providing Kitchener citizens with a way to get to work, recreation and leisure activities and personal services such as medical and food retail. The Corporate Strategic Plan, the previous Plan for a Healthy Kitchener and the new Kitchener Community Priorities and Strategic Directions all support the provision of cost-effective public services that are accessible to Kitchener residents with effective transit services. To the extent that the preferred LRT option provides superior connectivity and residential development adjacent to transit stations, it supports improved accessibility to public services. Strategic Plan for the Environment The City of Kitchener's Strategic Plan for the Environment establishes the mission: To ensure an environment that is ecologically sound and supportive of the health, safety and well-being of its residents by identifying and implementing policies and practices which reflect community values and impact positively on the environment. The Strategy indicates that the City will work in partnership with both public and private interests within the community in order to achieve the maximum benefit to the environment; encourage and support citizens and groups who wish to become involved in taking direct action toward the betterment of the environment; will work towards the mission together with all orders of government, and within the framework of federal and provincial legislation and regional government; and speak on behalf of achieving the best possible environment for Kitchener to all who have a role in reaching that goal. More specifically, the Strategy identifies 3 priority areas which are potentially relevant to an evaluation of the proposed LRT system: Air Quality, Land Resource and Growth Management, -6- Staff Report CA~sOffi~e www.kitchener ca and Energy Systems. Land use and growth management have already been addressed above. However it is worth identifying the impact of the Strategy analysis and priorities in the area of air quality and energy systems. Regarding air quality, the Strategy indicates that emissions produced through the combustion of fossil fuels for industry, transportation, space heating and power generation degrade air quality, contribute to climate change, and can adversely affect human health. To effectively improve air quality in Kitchener, emissions reduction will need to come from all sectors. Program priorities in this regard include: 1) To lead by example, build public awareness, educate and encourage the community to implement measures to reduce polluting emissions in cooperation with all orders of government and all appropriate partner organizations; and 2) to contribute to reduced emissions from major Kitchener sources within the regional area including motor vehicles, non-residential (industrial, commercial, institutional) sources and emissions from whole urban communities. Regarding energy systems, the Strategy observes that as Kitchener grows and concerns increase regarding the effect of poor air quality, greenhouse gases, climate change and energy security, citizens have identified a need to examine how we use energy. A growing population requires the City to explore alternatives for transporting people and goods, heating the spaces in which we live and work, and generating electricity to run the ever-increasing array of household appliances and machinery used in commercial, industrial and institutional settings. In this, Kitchener is no different than any other jurisdiction across Ontario, Canada and around the world. It notes that Kitchener's citizens have identified a desire for action with respect to energy use. For example, the Who Are You Kitchener? survey in A Plan fora Healthy Kitchener (2007 - 2027) demonstrated that 70 per cent of citizens in Kitchener want the City to invest in innovative transit systems and bike trails, whereas only 28 per cent are looking for an innovative network of roads. As the preferred LRT option has the greatest potential to reduce the use of single occupancy vehicles in the journey to work, promote development of walkable, mixed-use neighbourhoods, it therefore has the greatest potential to reduce fossil fuel consumption in the Waterloo Region. In addition, because the LRT is powered by electricity, and Ontario's electricity system -already a relatively low-carbon system - is moving dramatically toward renewable sources of power generation, the LRT option has the greatest potential to promote utilization of alternative, low- carbon energy sources. As a result, the proposed LRT option can be seen as strongly aligned with and supportive of Kitchener's Strategic Plan for the Environment. ALIGNMENT WITH CITY OF KITCHENER STRATEGIC PLAN: The previous sections indicate that the Region's preferred LRT option is well aligned with not only the City of Kitchener Strategic Plan, but the City's Official Plan, Growth Management Strategy, the Economic Development Strategy, and the Strategic Plan for the Environment. The project poses the greatest potential challenges to the provision of underground city services and the report recommends that a formal agreement with the Region for moving or replacing underground services be developed to protect the City's financial interests in this regard. It also recommends that consideration be given to the impact of LRT infrastructure design on fire service operations. -7- Staff Report CA~sOffi~e www.kitchener ca FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS: A reprioritization of the 10 year capital budget may be required to adjust timing of infrastructure replacement in the ten-year forecast in line with the Region's rapid transit timelines. The project may also expose the City to additional costs for service relocation in the case of the gas and hydro utilities. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: This report is provided to inform the May 26, 2011 public discussion on the potential impact of the preferred LRT option on the City of Kitchener's corporate and community strategies, operations, capital program and finances. CONCLUSION: The Region's phase 1 preferred LRT solution is characterized by two service types: a LRT service running down the central transit corridor from Conestoga Mall to the University of Waterloo's North Campus and Research Park, Uptown Waterloo, Grand River Hospital to the Multi-Modal Station through downtown Kitchener to the Kitchener Market and beyond to Fairview Mall; and an adjusted BRT system from Fairview Mall to the Ainsley Terminal in Cambridge. This project strongly reinforces City of Kitchener corporate strategy and policy in the areas of land use, economic development, transportation planning, community services and environmental strategy. The project does pose some potential risk to the medium term capital budgets depending on the approach taken by the Region and the City to mitigate unplanned replacement costs for underground services. If this issue is adequately addressed, the project can be seen as strongly supportive of the City of Kitchener's strategic direction. ACKNOWLEDGED BY: Carla Ladd -8-