Item - 2017.PW21.9

The Public Works and Infrastructure Committee:

1.  Directed the General Manager, Transportation Services to complete a further phase of design work including:

a.  a comprehensive review of options to implement cycling facilities on Doris Avenue and/or Beecroft Road and Willowdale Avenue from Bishop Avenue to Steeles Avenue;

b.  additional project development to determine an option for a secondary preferred alternative;

c.  traffic modelling work to assess the new design option(s);

d.  30 percent design of a secondary preferred alternative; and

e.  additional stakeholder consultation, including wider business consultation;
and report to the Public Works and Infrastructure Committee in the fourth quarter of 2017 with the outcome of this work.

2.  In accordance with Section 71-11.1 C of the City of Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 71 (Financial Code by-law), granted authority to amend Purchase Order No. 6043078 with MMM Group Limited, awarded under RFP # 9119-16-7015 for engineering and consultant services pertaining to the Yonge Street (Sheppard Avenue to the Finch Hydro Corridor) Environmental Assessment (EA) Study, by an additional amount of $750,000, net of all taxes, revising the current total value from $1,320,438 to $2,070,438, net of all taxes to be funded from the 2017-2026 Budget Capital Budget and Plan for Transportation Services, including a 50 percent contribution from the federal Public Transit Infrastructure Fund.

 
3.  Authorized extension of Purchase Order No. 6043078 with MMM Group Limited for engineering and consultant services pertaining to the Yonge Street (Sheppard Avenue to the Finch Hydro Corridor) Environmental Assessment (EA) Study to April 1, 2018.

Yonge Street from south of Sheppard Avenue to north of Finch Avenue is in the heart of North York Centre - one of four dynamic mixed-use Centres in Toronto focused on growth of commercial office and residential uses existing side by side.  Centres with a healthy mix of uses help take pressure off public transit infrastructure and roads as they encourage people to live, work and play within a centralized geography. 

Yonge Street is envisioned as a Complete Street that provides many transportation options and safe passage to the many destinations in this vibrant, growing neighbourhood. Improving Centres outside the core is critical to balanced growth and prosperity across the City and it is also key to the affordability of City services since new employment uses have a positive impact on City finances.

Yonge Street is also at the end of its lifecycle - the roadway was last reconstructed in 1975 with roadway resurfacing occurring in 1994. Roadway reconstruction is needed on an approximately 50 year basis, with full reconstruction for Yonge Street required within five to ten years.

Today, the area has numerous challenges including inconsistent sidewalk widths and treatment of the public realm, boulevards that have deteriorated to such a degree that full reconstruction is necessary, a lack of pedestrian crossings and medians, and a lack of dedicated cycling facilities as well as concerns over traffic movement.

A recent review of citywide collision data identified Yonge Street between Sheppard Avenue and Steeles Avenue, as a priority safety concern. Over a five (5) year period (2010 – 2015), there were six (6) collisions involving fatalities or serious injuries on Yonge Street within the project focus area. It is imperative that investment in North York Centre's transportation spine address these deficiencies and reflect Yonge Street's importance in this major urban centre.

Transportation Services is carrying out a Municipal Class Environmental Assessment (EA), referred to as "REimagining Yonge," that aims to modernize the street at the time of reconstruction through confirmation of a preferred design from Florence Avenue / Avondale Avenue to Hendon Avenue / Bishop Avenue.  This report is intended to serve as an interim project status update.

The overarching goals of the "REimagining Yonge" project are to provide consistency and vibrancy to the public realm in keeping with the economic importance of North York Centre, address state-of-good repair issues along the corridor, provide key cycling infrastructure connectivity, improve pedestrian amenity, and facilitate efficient traffic movement through better utilization of the surrounding road network.

The EA process to date has identified the "Transform" alternative (generally shown in Attachment 1) as the preliminary preferred alternative involving full reconstruction of Yonge Street within the City’s existing right-of-way to include:

-    Between Sheppard Avenue and Hendon Avenue/Bishop Avenue (north of Finch Avenue), the preferred design (option 4B) including a reduction of Yonge Street from six (6) to four (4) lanes, cycle tracks, a centre landscaped median and wider boulevards.

 
-    Between Florence Avenue / Avondale Avenue and Sheppard Avenue, the preferred design (option 4A) including six (6) lanes, cycle tracks, a centre landscaped median and wider boulevards, where feasible.
 

In February 2017, Council directed that further review be undertaken to assess the installation of cycling facilities on Doris Avenue and/or Beecroft Road, rather than on Yonge Street.  Staff had previously reviewed the feasibility of implementing bicycle lanes on Doris Avenue and Beecroft Road, but had only assessed options that would accommodate painted bicycle lanes within the existing pavement width of these roads, without impacting the number of travel lanes. Accommodating bicycle lanes on both Doris Avenue and/or Beecroft Road could be possible through widening of the existing pavement width, relocation of curbs, and/or the removal of travel lanes. As directed by Council, a more comprehensive review of options to implement cycling facilities on Doris Avenue and/or Beecroft Road will need to be completed as part of the next phase of work.  

In addition, there are unresolved concerns about certain elements of the preliminary preferred alternative including potential impacts to traffic capacity on Yonge Street and to on-street parking, and the need for wider consultation on the project, particularly with local businesses.

This report proposes that a further phase of work be undertaken on this EA Study including:

-  a comprehensive review of design options to implement cycling facilities on Doris Avenue and/or Beecroft Road and Willowdale Avenue from Bishop Avenue to Steeles Avenue;

-  additional project development to determine an option for a secondary preferred alternative that does not reduce traffic capacity on Yonge Street;

-  traffic modelling work to assess the new design option(s);

-  30 percent design of a secondary preferred alternative; and

-  additional stakeholder consultation, including wider business consultation.

 
This report seeks authority to amend the contract with MMM Group Limited for the provision of Yonge Street (Sheppard Avenue to the Finch Hydro Corridor) Environmental Assessment Study to accommodate the above phase of work.

The total amendment to Purchase Order No. 6043078 being requested is $750,000 net of all taxes and charges ($763,200 net of HST recoveries) revising the contract value from  $1,320,438 net of all taxes ($1,343,678 net of HST recoveries) to $2,070,438 net of all taxes ($2,106,878 net of HST recoveries).

A report would be brought forward to the Public Works and Infrastructure Committee in the fourth quarter of 2017 with the outcome of this work.

Additional options for moving the design work forward will ensure that full road reconstruction and public realm improvements can still move forward quickly. The detailed design stage of this work could be advanced through leveraging the $2.0 million of available Public Transit Infrastructure Funds (PTIF) for detailed design beginning in 2017. To be eligible to use PTIF funding, the design must be completed no later than March 2018.