Car-Free Streets

[ys11]

I think these areas would work well:
- 104 street from Jasper ave all the way to Rogers place. Especially Oilers home games and large events at rogers place. And on weekends.
- All of rice Howard way.
- Perhaps Jasper ave around 109st, where there is a lot of bars and nightclubs, on Fridays and Saturdays after 8pm (Sundays on long weekends too) ?
- Whyte Ave on the weekends after 8pm (similar to Granville street) in two separate sections such as 103 (gateway) to 104 street (Calgary trail) and 104st (Calgary trail) to 105st. (kind of creating two blocks). Allowing Gateway and Calgary trail traffic to flow normally as there are scramble crosswalks on both intersections which allow for easy crossing between the two blocks.

 

[IanO]

A good read.

Lessons From the Rise and Fall of the Pedestrian Mall

Car-free shopping streets swept many U.S. cities in the 1960s and ’70s, but few examples survived. Those that did could be models for today’s “open streets.”

www.bloomberg.com

 

[erudyk_29]

Somewhat of a side note:

If downtown is going to start to get a bunch of new pedestrian only streets (which I hope it does). I wonder what that will end up looking like.

I'd like the city to take the Montreal approach, maybe just straight up slap some bollards around it to start, then eventually, convert the street to a more permanent pedestrian style street. For those more permanent arrangements, I'd like to see a more creative approach than we've seen up to this point. Maybe a competition, open to the public with the goal of getting proposals and submissions for street redesigns from anyone from architects, planners and designers, to artists and maybe even just ordinary people who want to throw their hat into the ring. I'd love to see the type of crazy, innovative new ideas could come out of something like that. I'm thinking cool street art (meaning art done directly on the street), sculptures, public art.

I also recognize that a street is only as good as the urban fabric around it. I would hope that these types of projects would become centres of commercial development.

 

[Gronk!]

Councillors are set to revisit a report on closed and shared streets downtown at the urban planning committee meeting on Feb. 6. This discussion was postponed in both December and January. The city said it is working to create the conditions for car-free spaces and is looking for more opportunities for temporary city-supported closures in priority areas like Rice Howard Way and 104 Street.

On the agenda: Wîhkwêntôwin, esports, airport link

Council is back to meeting but will do so virtually. This shift follows a week when the city cancelled all public meetings in the wake of the Jan. 23 attack on city hall. The building will be closed to the public indefinitely.

edmonton.taproot.news

 

[fromyeg]

Not 102nd St. But 83rd Ave may be closed to vehicles.

 

[trevorhayden]

Where is this from?

 

[fromyeg]

Where is this from?

https://www.edmonton.ca/sites/default/files/public-files/Old-Strathcona-Public-Realm-Strategy.pdf?cb=1708716989

Old Strathcona Public Realm Strategy, just published today.

 

[David A]

I do actually use 83 Avenue occasionally and find it convenient as a driver, but it is one street I really wonder why it is not pedestrian only. It probably should be.

 

[IanO]

As with other options, perhaps pedestrian only from say Friday at 3pm until Monday at 7am?

I believe and see value in it being as such for those period, but very little value and perhaps even a net loss if 24-7.

 

[trevorhayden]

It will only be safe and successful if fully and permanently open to people only, not cars.

 

[IanO]

Huh? Lots of cities pedestrianize areas on busy nights/weekends and then see reason and logic to open them back up to shared spaces other days of the week.

Don't be silly.

 

[trevorhayden]

I just don't understand why your opening offer is a paltry 2 days per week.

 

[IanO]

It's not. It's flexible based on need and opportunity. During the summer month, perhaps far more; especially during festival season.

But is a bit of a waste or misuse if 7 days a week without the need.

 

[TAS]

We're about to see several more blocks of 102 Ave closed to vehicles for a few years and I wonder what kind of traffic impacts we will see on other streets in the area. My guess is minimal.

There are several lane closures on SP Road and 104 Ave and I haven't noticed any problems as a result on Jasper Ave, 100 Ave, 107 or 111 Ave.

 

[Greenspace]

Most businesses affected won't complain publicly, and the public that can't get around construction just won't bother coming Downtown. That said, having the Valley Line open has helped if you're coming from the SE.

We can't have these conversations in a vacuum. We need to know all the facts and make intelligent decisions, including our aspirations to look at what temporary and permanent road closures make sense, and how construction may effect sales, desirability of the area, safety, etc. There's both a Temp Road Closure report and Downtown Pedestrianization Plan that speak to this in a nuanced way.