BC Transit HandyDART Traffic Impact Study - Attachment 2

1.2 EXISTING CONDITIONS

VEHICULAR NETWORK

The existing Highway 1 westbound off-ramp at Burnside Road West is stop-controlled with Burnside Road West operating free-flow. The outside lane of Burnside Road West northbound is reserved for right-turn movements at Watkiss Way. The Burnside Road West and Watkiss Way intersection is an All-Way Stop-Controlled (AWSC) intersection. The posted speeds are 50 km/h on Burnside Road West and 40 km/h on Watkiss Way. There are two school zones immediately to the north and to the east of the study intersection.

PEDESTRIAN AND CYCLIST FACILITIES

The following pedestrian facilities are provided adjacent to the site: — Bike lanes on both sides on Watkiss Way; — Bike lanes on both sides on Burnside Road West north of Watkiss Way; — Sidewalk on the south side of Watkiss Way west of Burnside Road West; — Sidewalk on the north side of Watkiss Way east of Burnside Road West; — Sidewalks on both sides on Burnside Road West north of Watkiss Way; — Pathway on the south side of Watkiss Way west of Burnside Road West; and, — Galloping Goose Trail south of Watkiss Way.

TRANSIT FACILITIES

The following routes were identified adjacent to the site: — No. 22 | Vic General / Hillside Mall Eastbound on Watkiss Way from 6:12 a.m. – 7:35 p.m. — No. 39 | Westhills / Camosun / Royal Oak / UVic Westbound on Watkiss Way from 7:01 a.m. – 6:31 p.m.

Figure 2 illustrates a snapshot of the existing bus routes adjacent to the proposed site.

Figure 2 | Existing Bus Routes

2 TRIP GENERATION

2.1 TRIP GENERATION

Typically, the Institute of Transportation Engineering (ITE) Trip Generation Manual (Manual) is used to determine the trips any particular land use will generated; however, an operations and maintenance facility is not a predefined land use and no projection were available. For the purpose of this study, the new trips were estimated using the information provided by BC Transit based on the number of buses as well as anticipated employees and shifts, outlined in Section 1.1. Since there are no active transportation facilities provided south of Watkiss Way (sidewalks, trails, or bike lanes) connecting to the site, the trips generated by this development were assumed to be all vehicular trips. Tables 1 and 2 present the estimated trip generated by this site at Opening Day and Full Build-Out scenarios, respectively.

It should be noted that there are typically no buses entering the facility during the morning peak hour demand. For conservative estimates, a total of 5 buses was included to account for breakdown / services. In addition, the evening shift employees start between 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m., and were not included in the trip generation in the afternoon peak hour.

Table 1 | New Trips at Opening Day (2022)

Table 2 | New Trips at Full Build-out (2035)

2.2 TRIP DISTRIBUTION AND ASSIGNMENT

The anticipated site-generated traffic volumes were applied to the study intersections based on an assessment of how buses / employees would enter or exit the site. The new traffic volumes were distributed to the intersections using a comparison of existing traffic patterns obtained from the traffic data, and the location of the facility in relation to the Town and Greater Victoria area.

Tables 3 and 4 present the trip distribution for the Opening Day and Full Build-out scenarios, respectively.

Table 3 | Trip Distribution and Assignment at Opening Day (2022)

Table 4 | Trip Distribution and Assignment for Full Build-Out (2035)

Figures 3 and 4 illustrate the new trips generated by the site development at Opening Day and Full Build-out, respectively.

Figure 3 | OPENING DAY (2022) TOTAL NEW TRIPS (Map showing projected new trip movements at study intersections for Opening Day)

Figure 4 | FULL BUILD-OUT (2035) TOTAL NEW TRIPS (Map showing projected new trip movements at study intersections for Full Build-Out)

3 TRAFFIC INFORMATION

3.1 EXISTING VOLUMES

Existing turning movement counts at the Burnside Road West and Watkiss Way intersection were collected on Tuesday September 12, 2017 during the morning (7:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.) and afternoon (3:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.) peak periods to capture typical commuter traffic. The morning peak hour for this intersection occurred between 7:45 a.m. and 8:45 a.m. and the afternoon peak hour between 4:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m.

The traffic volumes for the Highway 1 Westbound Off-ramp at Burnside Road West were derived from BC Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure counters located in the adjacent areas, attached in Appendix A. The morning and afternoon peak hour volumes were assumed to be 10% of the daily traffic volumes. No traffic data was provided for the Burnside Road West and Access Road intersection. For the purpose of this study, minimal traffic volumes (5 vehicles per direction) were assigned to the turning movement volumes for the Access Road. It should be noted that where no traffic data were collected, volumes along Burnside Road West were derived from the Watkiss Way intersection as well as the Highway 1 westbound off-ramp intersection.

Figure 5 illustrates the existing traffic volumes at the study intersections during the morning and afternoon peak hour.

3.2 BACKGROUND FORECAST VOLUMES

The background forecast traffic scenario is a projection of the traffic volumes anticipated without the demand from the proposed development. An annual 2% growth was applied to the study intersections to determine the background traffic volumes for the 2022 and 2035 horizon years. Figures 6 and 7 illustrate the 2022 and 2035 background forecast traffic volumes at the study intersections during the morning and afternoon peak hour volumes, respectively.

3.3 TOTAL FORECAST VOLUMES

Total forecast volumes associated with the proposed development are obtained by combining the background traffic growth with the new trips associated with the development. Figures 8 and 9 illustrate the Opening Day (2022) and Full Build-Out (2035) total forecast traffic volumes at the study intersections during the morning and afternoon peak hour volumes, respectively.

Figure 5 | EXISTING MORNING AND AFTERNOON PEAK HOUR VOLUMES (Map showing existing traffic volume counts at study intersections)

Figure 6 | OPENING DAY (2022) BACKGROUND FORECAST PEAK HOUR VOLUMES (Map showing projected background volumes for 2022 without development)

Figure 7 | FULL BUILD-OUT (2035) BACKGROUND FORECAST PEAK HOUR VOLUMES (Map showing projected background volumes for 2035 without development)

Figure 8 | OPENING DAY (2022) TOTAL FORECAST PEAK HOUR VOLUMES (Map showing combined background and site-generated volumes for 2022)

Figure 9 | FULL BUILD-OUT (2035) TOTAL FORECAST PEAK HOUR VOLUMES (Map showing combined background and site-generated volumes for 2035)

4 TRAFFIC OPERATIONS

Existing, background and total forecast volumes have been assessed using Synchro 9.0 (industry-standard traffic analysis software). For stop-controlled intersection, Highway Capacity Manual (HCM) 2010 was used to conduct the capacity analysis. The study intersections were assessed during the morning and afternoon peak hour with no additional turning lanes or changes applied. Due to the proximity between the access point and the Watkiss Way intersection, individual peak hour factor was applied to each movement to estimate the worst case scenarios for the queuing and delay. Since there was no data collection at the access point, the percent heavy vehicles were based on the ratios of the buses using the access identified in the trip generation. It should be noted the buses are typically two axles possibly with double rear wheels. As such, the percent heavy vehicle applied in the analysis is a conservative assumption.

Tables 5 and 6 present the analysis results for the morning and afternoon peak hour for existing, background and total forecast scenarios.

Level of service (LOS) analysis assesses the effectiveness of a transportation system alphabetically from A to F, with LOS A equating to the best operating conditions with little delay and LOS F representing the failure of a movement or intersection with long delays. LOS E is typically considered the limit of acceptable operation for left-turn movements at a two-way stop-control intersection.

The volume-to-capacity (v/c) ratio is representative of congestion and available capacity, and may be used to identify a movement’s ability to accommodate fluctuations in traffic flow. V/C values of 0.90 or greater typically indicate a system that has reached its limit of operational effectiveness. The 95th percentile queue length, determined using SimTraffic, represents the maximum length of a queue a movement may experience with 95th percentile traffic volumes.

BURNSIDE ROAD WEST AND WATKISS WAY INTERSECTION

Existing Conditions | Capacity analysis indicates that the northbound movements fail (LOS F) during and morning peak hour and the shared through / left-turn lane experiences significant delays (LOS D) during the afternoon peak hour. The southbound approach operates with acceptable delays (LOS C) during the morning peak hour and fails (LOS F) during the afternoon peak. It was identified that Watkiss Way westbound (east leg) operates at constrained conditions during the morning peak hour and is approaching its effective capacity.

Background Forecast | Traffic operations on the northbound and southbound approaches are expected to continue to decline during the morning and afternoon peak hour for the 2022 and 2035 forecast horizons. In addition, the westbound approach is expected to reach LOS E during the morning peak hour for the 2022 forecast horizon and continue to decline during both peaks for the 2035 forecast horizon. The westbound approach is anticipated to operate at- or over-capacity (v/c > 1.0) during both peak hours for the 2035 forecast horizon. The eastbound approach is expected to operate at LOS E during the morning peak hour for the 2035 forecast horizon. The 95th percentile queue length on the northbound approach is expected to extend past the intersections to the south during the morning peak hour for the 2035 forecast horizon, interfering with traffic operations at the proposed access as well as Highway 1 westbound off-ramp.

Total Forecast | The overall intersection operation is expected to continue to deteriorate for both peak hours. Similarly, the westbound approach is anticipated to continue to decline during both peak hours for the 2035 forecast horizon. It was identified that the queuing pattern on the northbound approach is expected to overflow and impact the intersections to the south during the morning peak hour for the 2035 forecast horizon.

BURNSIDE ROAD WEST AND ACCESS ROAD INTERSECTION

Existing Condition | Overall intersection operates acceptably during the morning and afternoon peak hour with minimal queue lengths.

Background Forecast | Overall intersection is anticipated to continue to operate at acceptable conditions during the morning and afternoon peak hour for the 2022 forecast horizon. The westbound approach is expected to operate at LOS D or better with v/c less than 0.10 for the 2035 forecast horizon due to high traffic demand on Burnside Road, resulting in less gaps for the westbound traffic. As noted, the overflowing queue from the northbound approach at the Watkiss Way intersection is expected to impact traffic operations at the Access Road, resulting in excessive queuing for the northbound approach during the morning peak hour for the 2035 forecast horizon.

Total Forecast | Burnside Road West is expected to operate acceptably while the Access Road is anticipated to operate at LOS F during both peak hours with acceptable queue lengths. With the existing northbound shared through / right-turn lane, there are minimal queuing on the northbound approach during the morning peak hour for the 2022 forecast horizon. As noted above, the overflowing queue of the northbound approach at the Watkiss Way intersection is expected to impact traffic operations at the Access Road, resulting in excessive queuing for the westbound and northbound approaches.

BURNSIDE ROAD WEST AND HIGWAY 1 WB OFF-RAMP INTERSECTION

Existing Condition | the Highway 1 Westbound off-ramp operates at LOS A/B during both peak hours with acceptable queue length (approximately 2 vehicles queuing) while Burnside Road West free-flows.

Background Forecast | the Highway 1 Westbound off-ramp is expected to operate acceptably during both peak hours for the 2022 forecast horizon. As noted, the overflowing queue on the northbound approach from the Watkiss Way intersection is expected to extend pass the Highway 1 westbound off-ramp, resulting in excessive queuing on the ramp and the Burnside Road West northbound.

Total Forecast | the Highway 1 Westbound off-ramp is expected to continue to operate acceptably during both peak hours with acceptable 95th percentile queue lengths for the 2022 forecast horizon. As noted, the overflowing queue on the northbound approach from the Watkiss Way intersection is expected to extend pass the Highway 1 westbound off-ramp, resulting in excessive queuing on the ramp and the Burnside Road West northbound.

Table 5 | Morning Peak Hour LOS Results for Existing, Background, and Total Forecast Scenarios

Table 6 | Afternoon Peak Hour LOS Results for Existing, Background, and Total Forecast Scenarios

5 ROAD NETWORK IMPACTS

Without the proposed development, the Burnside Road West and Watkiss Way intersection operates poorly during both peak hours for the existing traffic volumes and is expected to continue to decline in the 2022 and 2035 forecast scenarios.

TRAFFIC SIGNAL WARRANT ANALYSIS

Warrant for traffic signal was completed using the Transportation Association of Canada (TAC) Traffic Signal Warrant, attached in Appendix B. It should be noted that the warrant requires a 6-hour traffic volumes. Since the traffic data provided does not include the midday volumes, a sensitivity assessment was completed to determine the volume threshold where the intersection will meet the signal warrant requirement of 100 points. It was identified that a signal is warranted at the Burnside Road West and Watkiss Way intersection if the midday traffic volumes are as low as 40% of the afternoon peak hour volumes. As the midday peak period peak period traffic volumes are expected to exceed this threshold, traffic signals are assumed to be warranted at the existing volumes. A summary of the capacity analysis for the signalized Burnside Road West and Watkiss Way intersection is presented in Table 7.

Table 7 | LOS Results for Signalized Intersection for Existing, Background, and Total Forecast Volumes

With the provision of a traffic signal, operations at the Burnside Road West and Watkiss Way intersection is expected to improve to LOS C or better during both peak hours for the existing and all 2022 forecast horizons (background and Opening Day) with the current intersection configurations. However, the northbound shared left-turn / through and westbound approaches are expected to operate over its effective capacity (v/c > 0.9) with LOS D/E during both peaks for the 2035 background forecast scenarios. The 95th percentile queue lengths are between 110m and 130m on the northbound approach during both peaks and will block the proposed access intersection.

Based on the volumes anticipated in the 2035 background forecast, capacity analysis indicates that a left-turn lane on the eastbound and westbound approaches will be required to improve intersection delays and queue lengths. With the northbound shared left-turn / through lane approaching its effective capacity, additional through lane may be considered by converting the existing northbound right-turn lane into a shared through / right-turn lane. Table 8 summarizes the traffic operations for the modified Burnside Road West and Watkiss Way intersection.

Table 8 | LOS Results for the Modified Intersection for the 2035 Forecast Horizons

LEFT-TURN LANE WARRANT ANALYSIS

BC Transit has received the approval from the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure that will allow left-turn and right-turn movement out of the access. A left-turn warrant analysis was completed using the Ministry of Transportation and Highways Left-turn Lane Warrants at the Burnside Road West and access point intersection. The MOTI approval letter and left-turn warrant are presented in Appendix C. The warrant analysis was completed for both morning and afternoon peak hour volumes for the 2022 total forecast scenarios. It was identified that a southbound left-turn lane on Burnside Road West onto the Access Road is warranted at the 2022 total forecast horizon. The recommended storage length is 15 metres.

Table 9 summarizes the capacity analysis for the Burnside Road West and Access Road intersection, with the addition of a southbound left-turn bay on Burnside Road West. As noted, HandyDART buses are typically two axles, but possibly with double rear wheels. As such, the percent heavy vehicle used in the analysis would result in a more conservative level of service than the typical mix of heavy vehicles on the road network. Burnside Road West is anticipated to continue to operate at optimal conditions. Although the access point is expected to operate with delays for exiting traffic, it is considered acceptable since there is minimal site generated traffic (approx. 1 veh/min or less exiting during the peak hours) while maintaining free-flowing traffic on Burnside Road West. A westbound right-turn lane may be considered to minimize delays at the site access.

Table 9 | LOS Results for Modified Intersection for the Total Forecast Volumes

ACTIVE MODES NETWORK

Since the proposed development is a special door-to-door service, it is anticipated that there will be minimal site generated traffic added to the adjacent road network. The maximum site generated traffic utilizing the Burnside Road West and Watkiss Way intersection is expected to occur during the morning peak hour with a total of 46 trips for the 2035 forecast. With less than one vehicle per minute added to the intersection, the impacts generated by the proposed development on pedestrians and cyclists are anticipated to be minimal. In addition, with the signalization of the Burnside Road West and Watkiss Way intersection, overall pedestrian and cyclist safety and operations is expected to improve.

An additional access is proposed on Watkiss Way for emergency purposes, should Burnside Road West be closed. The access will be gated during typical day-to-day operations, and flagged during use. Although the proposed access will cross Galloping Goose Trail, there are no major conflicts anticipated. There are currently no connections between the Galloping Goose Trail and the proposed facility. While there were minimal pedestrians / cyclists activities observed between the site and the adjacent areas, the provision of the access will encourage employees to use alternative modes to travel to work.

SIGHTLINE ASSESSMENT

A sightline assessment was completed for the proposed access point using the TAC Geometric Design Guide, as presented in Figure 12. A Combination Truck (WB-19 and WB-20) vehicle type was used in place of a bus and to determine the maximum sightline required. With an eye height of 1.8 m and object height of 0.6 m, the TAC Geometric Design Guide requires 190 m sightline visibility for heavy vehicles on a 60 km/h design speed roadway. Figures 10 and 11 illustrate the required sight distance for left- and right-turn from a stop.

Due to the limited survey data completed for the preliminary design stage, approximately 130 m of sightline visibility can be identified for both directions on Burnside Road West. However, additional field investigation was completed to determine the vertical sightline visibility and was identified that the 190 m required sightline is provided for both directions. Removal of vegetation will be required to improve visibility and should be further investigated in the detailed design stage. The field investigation summary is provided in Appendix D.

Figure 10 | Intersection Sight Distance – Left-Turn from Stop

Figure 11 | Intersection Sight Distance – Right-turn from Stop

Figure 12 | HandyDART Facility Departure Sightline Assessments

6 PARKING REQUIREMENTS AND CIRCULATION

Typically, the number of required parking spaces is identified based on the zoning district using the Town of View Royal Zoning Bylaw (No. 900); however, the proposed site is to be developed for a unique use and no parking requirements were provided. The proposed development is currently zoned as a P-3 Zone | Parks and Recreation, as per Town of View Royal Zoning Map Schedule B (January 2017). It was identified that a request for rezoning has been submitted and an appropriate zone may be created for this particular use.

For the purpose of this study, parking requirements were estimated based on the actual anticipated demand. Based on the information provided, presented in Appendix E, the facility is expected to have the following: — Opening Day (2022) | a total of 112 employees daily, consisting of 32 on-site employees and 80 bus drivers. — Full Build-Out (2035) | a total of 153 employees daily, comprises of 38 on-site employees and 115 drivers.

Since the facility hours of operation begins at 4:30 a.m., the estimation of total parking demand was completed for on-site employees and the bus drivers. The following assumptions were made: — On-site Employees | assuming 85% of the employees will work the morning shift with an occupancy rate of 1.2 passengers / vehicle. — Bus Drivers | assuming 10% of drivers during the initial dispatch (5:00 a.m. – 6:00 a.m.) for conservative estimates. It is expected that employees will utilize the bus parking areas once the allotted staff parking spaces are full, as a portion of the fleet will be operating during the day. Examples of shared employees and bus parking on other BC Transit sites are presented in Appendix E. — Visitors (10 per day) | assuming 40% of daily visitors will visit the site at the same time.

Table 10 summarizes the parking requirements based on the anticipated demand.

Table 10 | Parking Requirements for employees and visitors

The British Columbia Building Code indicates that where parking requirements exceed 50 stalls, accessible parking stalls should be provided in the ratio of 1 for every 100 or part thereof (Building Access Handbook 2014 Sec. 3.8.3.4 (2)). Since the total parking requirement was estimated to be less than 50 stalls for both planning horizons, one accessible stall should be provided.

The site plan indicates that in addition to the 115 bus parking spaces, there is a total of 19 regular stalls and 8 accessible-sized stalls (black lines) provided, as illustrated in Figure 13. The site plan also indicates that there is additional capacity on site available for expansions (red lines) to meet the parking demand, if required. Depending on the actual demand, these expansions may be implemented.

Figure 13 | HandyDART Facility Parking Layout

7 RECOMMENDATIONS

The Traffic Impact Study (TIS) was conducted by quantifying the traffic generated by the proposed HandyDART View Royal Operational and Maintenance Facility as well as determine the impact of proposed development on the adjacent transportation network. The following recommendations have resulted from the completion of the study:

— Without the proposed HandyDART development, the analysis completed within this TIS identifies existing capacity issues at the Burnside Road West and Watkiss Way intersection that will become more constrained in the forecast scenarios.

— A traffic signal is warranted for the existing volumes at the Burnside Road West and Watkiss Way intersection. The provision of a traffic signal is anticipated to improve the Level of Service (LOS) from LOS F to LOS C or better for the existing and 2022 forecast scenarios (Background and Opening Day).

— Even with signalization, the westbound and northbound approaches are expected to operate over its effective capacity (volume-to-capacity, v/c > 0.90) during both peaks for the 2035 background forecast volumes with the current intersection configurations. Capacity analysis indicates that a left-turn lane on the eastbound and westbound approaches will be required to improve intersection operations. In addition, the northbound shared left-turn / through lane is expected to approach its effective capacity. An additional through lane should be considered to improve capacity by converting the existing right-turn lane into a shared through / right-turn lane.

— A southbound left-turn bay is warranted on Burnside Road West at the access point with a minimum of 15 m storage length.

— Burnside Road West at the intersection with the access point is expected to operate at optimal conditions (LOS A/B). Although traffic exiting the site is expected to experience longer than desirable delays, it is considered acceptable since there is minimal site generated traffic (approx. 1 vehicle/min or less exiting during the peak hours) relative to the free-flowing higher volume of traffic on Burnside Road West. A westbound right-turn lane may be considered to minimize delays at the site access. Though not recommended, the next level of traffic control available at the site access would be all-way stop or traffic signals

— Although the emergency access will cross the Galloping Goose Trail, no major impact is anticipated on the pathway trail since the access will be gated for day-to-day operations and flagged during use.

— A review of active modes facilities in the adjacent area indicated that sidewalks / pathways and bike lanes are provided north of the site. There is no connection between the Galloping Goose Trail and the site at existing conditions.

— Although there were very few cyclists (traveling north/south on the east leg) observed during the data collection, consideration should be given to providing access between the Galloping Goose Trail and the site to accommodate employees who may wish to cycle to work. In addition, the access between the trail and the proposed facility will also encourage employees to use alternate modes of transportation.

— The maximum site generated traffic added to the Burnside Road West and Watkiss Way intersection is expected to be 46 vehicles (less than 1 vehicle/min) during the morning peak hour for the Full Build-Out horizon. As such, it is expected there will be minimal impacts on pedestrians and cyclists. In addition, with the signalization of the Watkiss Way intersection, pedestrian and cyclist safety and operations are expected to improve.

— Based on the survey data and field investigation, the sightline at the access point is acceptable. Some vegetation will need to be removed to improve sight visibility and should be included as part of the detailed design process.

— Since there are no predefined rates for the parking requirements for this type of development in the bylaws, the parking demand was estimated based on the anticipated day to day use. BC Transit provided information on the number of employees daily and the initial dispatch. It is anticipated that a total of 35 spaces will be required for the Opening Day and 42 spaces for the Full Build-Out, with one accessible stall. From other BC Transit sites, employees typically utilize the empty bus stalls during the day. As such, it was proposed that 19 standard spaces and 8 accessible spaces will be provided.

— The parking layout indicates that there is additional capacity available on site, if required. Depending on the demand, the expansion could be implemented.