HomeMy WebLinkAboutINS-19-010 - Year-Round Maintenance on Trails & Pathways around SchoolsREPORT TO: Community & Infrastructure Services Committee
DATE OF MEETING:June 17, 2019
SUBMITTED BY: Niall Lobley,Director Parks and Cemeteries,519-741-2600, 4518
PREPARED BY: Liz Christensen, Trails Project Manager,519-741-2600, 4032
WARD (S) INVOLVED:6- All
DATE OF REPORT:May 23, 2019
REPORT NO.:INS-19-010
SUBJECT:Year-Round Maintenance of Trails & Pathways Around Schools - Pilot
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RECOMMENDATION:
That staff be directed to continue to winter maintain trails in the Country Hills West
neighbourhood and the annual operating funding of $14,000 be added to the 2020
budget to reflect this permanent service level; and,
That staff be directed to continue to explore opportunities for coordination and
efficiencies of winter maintenance activities with school boards; and,
That staff be directed to use the results of the Country Hills West neighbourhood trail
pilot to inform the winter trail maintenance priorities of the Cycling and Trails Master
Plan (in development).
BACKGROUND:
In 2015, staff were directed by Council (INS-15-074) to undertake improvement to
approximately 2.5km of trail around Glencairn PublicSchoolin the Country Hills West
neighbourhood, to provide winter maintenance to these trails, and to use this as a pilot project
to inform later work.
The request for the pilot was a response to Council’s direction to provide feedback on
transportation priorities between the City of Kitchener and local area school boards.The trails
in the Country Hills West neighbourhood, providing access to GlencairnPublic School,were
identified as a high priority trailnetwork that isutilized as well used routes to school. These
trails are primarily of granular material and are not winter maintained. Due to overwhelming
support within the neighbourhood and the Glencairn Public School community, the trails in the
Country HillsWest neighbourhood were identified as the preferred candidate for a pilot
program to assess trail usage, financial impact, and community feedback.
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REPORT:
The trails in the Country Hills West neighbourhood provide valuable recreational amenities to
residents and serve as a key transportation route to Glencairn Public School. In 2016, 2.5 km
of trails were upgraded from granular surface to asphaltto facilitate year-round maintenance of
the trails. Appendix1 provides a map of the trails that were improved andmaintained through
the duration of the pilot study. The trails were maintained throughout the winters of
2016/2017; 2017/2018; and 2018/2019 to ensure a representative winter was experienced and
evaluated. This report, INS19-010 provides a summary of the data collected, an analysis of
results and identifies potential future investment related to increased service levels for trails
that serve as an important transportation route to students.
Data Collection Methodology
Data collection included summary of costs, trail counts, and user engagement. Staff have
collected and analysed data from a range of sources to determine what impact upgrades to
facilitiesand year round maintenance has on active transportation (means other than
vehicular) to and from the school. This data has been collected:
Quantitatively: Through counts of students using trails to get too and from school both
manually and by using electronic counters
Qualitatively: Through in person discussions and via survey tools such as the City’s
Engage platform
In addition, Student Transportation Services of Waterloo Region (STSWR)providedvaluable
information related to transportation data for schools across the City and provided feedback
through the pilot study.
Summary of Costs
In 2016, the City invested approximately $230,000 into trails around the Glencairn Public
School, upgrading existing granular/stone dust trails to an asphalt surface.
The City added these trails to its winter maintenance programs in 2016/17, 2017/18 and
2018/19. In each of these winters, approximately $14,000 was directly spent (excluding
overhead costs such as downtime, supervisory time etc.) on winter maintenance activities.
Trail Counters
Automated counters were located in strategic locationson the trail(at Erinbrook Greenway and
Erinbrook Drive, and the trail intersection at RittenhouseRoad) and provided daily count data
between 8am and 10am and 3pm and 5pm to specifically account for school based access.
Counters were able to differentiate and establish traffic flow toward the school, and away from
the school. As might be expected, the majority of access was taken within the period
immediately before 9am and after 3pm.
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Table 1: Average Trail Use at RittenhouseRoad
MonthAverage Average Number of winter/extreme
Morning - InAfternoon – cold days
Out
October 201830460
November 201830341 snow
December 201829360
January 201927302 snow 1 extreme cold
February 201923242 snow
March 201929410
April 201928410
Table 2: Average Trail Use at ErinbrookDrive
MonthAverage Average Number of winter/extreme
Morning - InAfternoon – cold days
Out
October 201834420
November 201826381 snow
December 201828380
January 201922322 snow 1 extreme cold
February 201920292 snow
March 201921390
April 201929390
Note: Figures show thenumber of passes of the automated trail counter. These numbers do
not directly relate to individuals. A single ‘count’ can include a small group passing a counter at
one time, for example, an adult and 1 – 2 children may be a single count as they pass a
counter as a cluster. The data should therefore be considered as indicative and comparable,
but not reflective of a total number of individual users of the trail.
User Engagement Pre-Implementationof the pilot (2015):
Staff met with the local neighbourhood association and hosted a broader public information
gathering session in Ward 6. A significant focus of this discussion was on GlencairnPublic
School, but it was not exclusively the target for discussion in these sessions.
Feedback obtained through the engagement indicates that the trails around Glencairn Public
School arewell used as an access to the school and their value is that they create a shorter
route to the school than following the road based sidewalks. Feedback was provided that
sidewalk routes are typically 3-4 times longer than using the trail and a 30 minute sidewalk
walk can be shortened to 10 minutes orless using the trails. Feedback alsosuggestedthat
seasonal variation (weather and/or maintenance) impactedtrail usemeaning that residents
were not able/willing to use trails consistently through the year.
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User Engagement Post-Implementationof the pilot (2019):
Staff implemented an Engage Kitchener online survey for 4 weeks between early February and
early March. This was well promotedthrough the following means:
Accessible to all Engage Kitchener subscribers
Targeted Facebook advertising (to parents within 1.6km of the school)
Signs were installed along the trail seeking feedback
An afternoon of direct staff engagement; 11 staff from Parks & Cemeteries and
Transportation were available on site after school handing out contact cards
encouraging users of the trails to make comments via the Engage platform.
In total, 39 responses were received. Overall, these results recorded that:
94% of trail users use the trail throughout the year, including winter
o 52% of people use the trail daily to walk to school
o 31% of users use the trail 3-5 times a week
5% of respondents indicated they neveruse the trail system
In spring andfall, walking was significantly the highest mode of transport used by
respondents. Cycling and single family driving were the next most popular options, with
car pooling and bus use being significantly less used modes oftransport.
In winter, walking was the most regularly used mode of transport used by respondents.
Single family car use was the next most popular with car pooling and cycling, followed
by bus transportation being least favoured options
Note: there is likelysome bias to these results. While the survey was accessible to all, the
focus of attention was in gauging existing user feedback. On site promotion of the survey was
undertaken on a cold, but sunny, dry day where trails were largely bare and dry.
Thesurvey also provided a forum for written comments and responses. The highlights of these
are:
Trails continue to serve a similar value as reported in 2015; they provide a shorter
commute to school than using the sidewalks
That the paving of part of the trail has lead to inconsistency where the paved portion
and maintenance stops;
o Access across school property from the south was inconsistently available due to
a different maintenance schedule on the part of the school; this meant a slightly
longer walk to access the school from the front rather than back of the building,
or crossing through snow
o The trail system is not maintainedto access the Country Hills Community Centre
leading to some dissatisfaction to in lack of continuity of maintenance
o That trails are not always maintained prior to school starting and this is a
significant impediment to regular use
That drifting snow in open areas is a concern
Overallthe comments were extremely supportive of winter maintenance and the paved nature
of the trail. Several respondents indicated that beyond accessing the school, the trail system
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provides for regular daily use (in some case 4 or more uses a day, every day) associated with
leisure activities such as dog walking.
Interpretation of Data
Use of the trails as a means to access the school remains largely consistent, regardless of
weather conditions. Seasonal and monthly deviations in use remain consistent; dailyuse
patterns are largely the same throughout the 4 month period, which includes months of no
winter, and months with significant winter impacts. There is slightly higher variability in use
during February, but overall average use remains consistent with other months.
This would suggest that people that access and use the trails as a means of accessing the
school are doing so regardless of weather conditions.
It appears that the EngageKitchenerresults support the data results collectedby the trail
counters – that trail use is consistent through the seasons, and provides the daily most
convenient and accessible means to access the school.
A significant number of respondents used walking as their most frequent mode of use of the
trails. During the spring/summer/fall, cycling is a mode of use that a smaller proportion of trail
users use to access the school. This drops off significantly in the winter, with an increase in
single car use.
Results
Several findings are becoming clear from this work:
The Country Hills West neighbourhood trail system around GlencairnPublic Schoolis
much valued by local residents and is a key transportation route to the school. This
value seems significant both before the improvements and after them.
The value of the trails (both pre-improvement and today) is very largely based on the
fact that they provide a more direct, quicker route to access the school.
Many of the responses and much of the feedback indicated that using the trails was the
primary form of transportation, and in some cases, the only way of getting between
home and school. More than 81% of the enrolled students are considered to be within
walking distance (defined by the school board as within 1.6km of the school).
There is evidence to suggest that the consistency of use of the trail, throughout the year
and throughout winter has increasedyear round use of the trails; i.e. people that may
have used the trails except for winter, now use them year round.
Walking is significantly the primary mode of transportused on the trails. Alternative
modes of transport for trail users is by bike. When not using the trail, single family car
and car pooling are options.
During winter, single family car is more popular than bike; this might suggest that
cycling to school is disproportionately impacted by winter.
While the focus was on school based transportation, comments often cited the much
wider community and recreational benefits of both the paving of the trail and the winter
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maintenance with several respondents stating that they use the trails multiple times
each day for activities such as errands and dog walking.
Trail users desire additional year-round connection to destinations such as the Country
Hills Community Centre.
The improvements to the trail and the winter maintenance are comprehensively welcomed.
However, these improvements have given rise to areas of concern related to the level of
service in winter maintenance including:
That it is not consistently undertaken in time for school in the mornings
That during the day, wind blows snow back onto the trail which is not quickly cleared
That the application of salt draws vocal criticism (albeit perhaps from a small audience)
in respect to environmental concerns
That not all the trails that are in the area are cleared at the same time, leading to an
inconsistent trail experience
The school is responsible for clearing snow on school property. The trails, which
approach the school from the rear, have no single clearly defined access to the school
property, and in the absence of snow, pupils make their way onto school property at
multiple points along the trail. The school has undertaken ad hoc maintenance of a
pathway to the school from the rear. This drew some negative feedback that the City
stopped maintaining the trail to the school; and highlighted the need for a more
coordinated approach between school and City to ensure a consistent level of service
onto school property.
Future Considerations for CitywideImplementation
Staff have evaluated thepotential implications of undertaking similar trail improvements and
enhancements within other communities in the City. Working with the School Travel Planning
Supervisor at STSWR, schools with a high proportion ofstudents(greater than 81%)within
walking distance (defined by the school board as within 1.6km of the school) were identified
and are illustrated onthe map in Appendix 2. In addition to Glencairn Public School, twelve
additional schools were identified.
Trails located throughout the City are also providedon the map in Appendix 2 and are
identified based on the following types:
o Paved, not winter maintained
o Not Paved, not winter maintained
o Paved and winter maintained
Based on the findings of the work at GlencairnPublic School, staff believe that the greatest
opportunity to support consistent year round access to schools would be in areas where there
is likely an existing base of active transportation occurring.
An analysis of the length of trails and associatedcapital improvementand annual operating
costs was completedfor trailswithin a 1.6 km radius of schools with high proportion of
students. A total of 131.9 km of trail islocated within the 1.6 km radius with 34.8 km already
paved and winter maintained therefore requiring nochange to service level. There is 45.5 km
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of trail that is currently paved and not winter maintained. Additional operating funding of
$255,000 would be required to provide winter maintenance on the trails that are already paved.
There is 51.6 km of trail that consists of granular material and would require capital investment
of $11M to upgrade the trail surface to asphalt and annual operating funding of $290,000 to
provide winter maintenance service.A summary of this analysis is in Table 3.
Table 3: Trails within a 1.6 km Radius of Schools with Highest Proportion of Walking Students
Type of TrailLength (km)Capital Cost Operating Cost
EstimateEstimate
Paved, no winter maintained45.5n/a$255,000
Not Paved, not winter maintained51.6$11M$290,000
Paved, winter maintained34.8n/an/a
Total131.9$11M$545,000
The abovecosts are provided indicatively;they are order of magnitude costs based on recent
work, including this pilot and are subject to detailed design and contingency.
Staff recommend that the prioritization and timing of trail investments are provided through the
Cycling and Trails Master Plan. The Cycling and Trails Master Plan will create a multi-year
implementation plan to allow for phased implementation in areas that achieve the greatest
benefit to cycling and trail goals. For example, undertaking enhancements to trails that could
support access to more than one school would likely deliver greatervalue than trails servicing
one school. Therefore, targeting any work in areas of a higher school density, where there is
an existing basis of use and where there is a high trail density, would likely be the greatest
impact to school active transportation.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT:
INFORM
This report has been posted to the City’s website with the agenda in advance of the council /
committee meeting.
CONSULT
This report has relied on extensive consultation with members of the Waterloo Region District
School Board as well as members of the community at Glencairn Public School and the
surroundingneighbourhoods. This has included both direct communication, public and
neighbourhood community meetings, 1-on-1 discussions and surveys via the Engage
Kitchener platform.
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FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS:
The annual operating impact to continue to winter maintain the trails in the Country Hills West
community is $14,000.Both the capital and operating costs of the pilot project were were
funded through the trails capital program and therefore it is recommended that annual
operating funding of $14,000 be added to the 2020 budget to reflect this permanent service
level.
Future investment of trails in school areas are recommended to be considered through the
Cycling and Trails Master Plan and identified in future annual budget processes.
CONCLUSION:
Overall, it is worth noting that the driver for trail use has not changed through the paving and
winter maintenance; users continue to report that the trails add value because they provide for
a non-motorised route of access to the school that is quicker than using the sidewalk network.
Therefore, staff believe that the success of any future project must be based on the presence
of an existing trail network, or the potential to develop a new trail network that offers routes
which are at least as direct, andpreferably more direct/quicker, than the existing sidewalk
network. Assuming that this ‘test’ is met;
Paving and winter maintaining the trails appears to have increased consistency of use
of the trail system and provided for more people being able to usethe trails more
regularly and consistently throughout the year
Paving and winter maintaining the trails has been welcomed by the community. The
nature of the trails and school layout in this area make the trails a critical mode of
transportation to the school with several people indicating that walking and trail use is
their only means to access the school; saving as much as a 45 minute walk if the trails
were not present.
It is not clear if overall use has increased, or whether the same level of use is being
made, just over more days, weeks, months than prior to works.
It is also worth noting that while the improvements were comprehensively welcomed, and
supported an increased consistency in use through the seasons, City staff were not able to
meet expectations around level of service by users through the winter season.
ACKNOWLEDGED BY: Denise McGoldrick – General Manager, Infrastructure Services
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Appendix 1: Country Hills West Neighbourhood Trail Pilot Area
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Appendix 2: City-wide Map of Trails and Schools
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