Weekly newsletter: August 1, 2023

Good afternoon and welcome to August already! 

Among suburban wards in the city, Barrhaven East is unique in that it’s practically built out with little growth opportunity. 

The oldest homes in the ward were built in the late-1970s with the majority built in the 1990s and early 2000s (Hearts Desire and Rideau Glen have older homes, but those communities are on unserviced lands and are categorised separately). 

So it’s a stable community, and I’m grateful to not have the same development-related workload as most of my Council colleagues. 

You know there’s always a “but…” 

BUT, the time period in which the community was built means the streets were mostly built to prioritise traffic conveyance. It makes sense for our arterial roads like Fallowfield and Woodroffe, but not for residential streets. 

Chief among the concerns shared with me over the last year or so is the speeding and general behaviour of motorists on residential streets, including near parks and schools, around corners, and at unsignalized intersections. 

Most residents shared the want for better action to combat excessive speeding in our communities. I suggested speed humps mostly, but I received mostly opposition as they are uncomfortable. 

New streets are built to slower standards, which means traffic calming is a catch-up exercise for older communities like ours. This is reflected in my workplan for the next three years — three-quarters relates to traffic and traffic calming. 

To date, the City has used mostly temporary measures to calm traffic over the summer months, primarily flex stakes and extra signage. I’m not sold on their effectiveness, since any moderately-skilled motorist can thread themselves through the flex stakes and signs are effective only if they are seen and read. 

I spent most of this year requesting traffic assessments from staff with the hope of moving on to permanent solutions to traffic calming starting next year. Currently, most of my strategy is focused on speed tables. 

Unlike speed humps, speed tables are trapezoidal and feature a gentle rise, a flat top, then a gentle descent, similar to raised crosswalks (pictured above). 

Vehicles travelling up to 40 km/h will experience a gentle bump, as they are designed to target excessive speeding. The closest example is on the Queen Elizabeth Driveway near Dow’s Lake, although that one is a few inches higher than the current design standard. 

Speed tables will also reduce the impact on heavier vehicles like buses and firetrucks to ensure the vertical deflection does not affect ride comfort or response times. 

Over the summer and into the early-autumn, I am creating a comprehensive plan to deploy speed tables and other permanent solutions at strategic locations starting next year. 

Each ward’s annual traffic calming budget is very limited. This is why most Councillors have opted for temporary measures, as it maximises the reach of their budget. But permanent measures, especially in older communities is a one-and-done investment. 

That and the ward-wide need means the deployment of these speed tables may appear to be random and uncoordinated, such as one random table on a street, but areas where entire streets need these measures will be eventually filled in as the budget replenishes each year. 

The decision to deploy speed tables is still in a mid-planning stage, but I believe speed tables balance the need for better traffic calming and the need for streets to remain generally comfortable. I’d be interested to hear your feedback! 

I had hoped to start my community outreach much earlier in the year, but it took me a bit longer than expected to settle into a routine in terms of workload and scheduling, but I am starting soon, going into mid-autumn, to chat about your issues - anything and everything city.

If I miss you (or if you’re busy or don’t want to talk), I will leave a card with some contact information. Looking forward to chatting! 

Enjoy your week and the upcoming long weekend!

-Wilson