Staff Report - Traffic Concerns on Rudyard Road and Stormont Road

TOWN OF VIEW ROYAL COUNCIL REPORT

TO: Council
DATE: December 13, 2016
FROM: John Rosenberg
MEETING DATE: January 17, 2017

Traffic Concerns on Rudyard Road and Stormont Road

RECOMMENDATION:

THAT Council adopts Option 6 “Leave the Existing Conditions as Agreed in spring of 2015” is adopted.

CHIEF ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER’S COMMENTS:

I concur with the recommendation.

PURPOSE OF REPORT:

To present options for consideration to address the concern of vehicles taking the shortcut from Helmcken Road to Island Highway via Rudyard Road and Stormont Road; as well as the issues created by school drop off and pick up.

BACKGROUND:

The history of traffic issues in the Rudyard Road and Stormont Road area has resulted in several enhancements previous to the work completed in 2015 to the area:

• Diverter and traffic island structures removed
• Installation of raised crosswalk on Rudyard
• Installation of speed tables on Rudyard
• Upgrading of the intersection of Stormont and Island Highway to a fully signalized intersection
• Installation of “no left turn signs on Helmcken

In the spring of 2015 the residents of the Rudyard Road and Stormont Road expressed concerns with traffic issues in the area due to illegal left turns, and school parking issues. At that time council held an open house soliciting solutions as well as presenting options to the public. A subsequent survey was sent by staff to all the residents affected by the issues and the potential solutions to the concerns. As a result of the public engagement several mitigation measures were completed:

• The existing speed hump on Stormont Road was relocated to a more effective location and an additional speed hump on Stormont Road was installed (approx. $15,000);
• Solar signs that light up to highlight the illegal left turn onto Rudyard Road were installed (approx. $7,300);
• A protected left turn movement was installed at the Helmcken Road/Island Highway traffic signal (approx. $11,000).

In addition, staff met with the Principal of View Royal Elementary School to discuss options, including an option to create an extra entrance within the school parking lot for a loop to allow parents to drive in and out utilizing separate entrances. An additional solution that will be explored is to provide additional parking spaces on Helmcken Road where the buses currently utilize. It was noted that the school currently only has 1 bus arriving daily to the school. A follow-up meeting is scheduled with the Director of Facilities of the School District to discuss alternatives.

In addition to engaging the public a traffic consultant, Boulevard Consulting, was hired to perform a traffic study. The report from Boulevard provided comment on the concerns in question at that time. The report stated that for the most part speed is not a problem on Rudyard Road, nor is there a significant volume of total daily traffic compared to a typical local road. The report confirmed that a typical local road classification would allow for as many as 1,000 vehicles per day. They also provided a general comment as follows:

It is evident that the “perfect” solution does not exist and that the ability to eliminate cut thru traffic is problematic for several reasons. Any potential solution that actually has an effect will likely impact other local roads (Stormont Road, Pheasant Lane, Burnett Road, and Jedburgh Road) detrimentally. It should be noted that currently only Burnett Road has speed humps. The attempt to alleviate the problem has the potential to create a similar type of difficulty on these local streets.

In reviewing options, there are a number of issues to consider, including but not limited to:

• The use of Rudyard Road and Stormont Road by local residents;
• The use of Rudyard Road by many parents to drop off/pick up children for school;
• Westshore residents for their own commuting and daily tasks;
• How any changes considered will impact surrounding roadways and neighbourhoods.

There are several options available – as listed below:

1. Install Control Gates on Rudyard Road at the West End ($31,500)

This is the option that is currently being requested for installation by the neighbourhood. The gates would be timed to only activate during the weekday restricted hours for left turns (right turns would be prevented as well) from Helmcken Road onto Rudyard Road. This would impact local traffic significantly while the gates are down. The installation would require conduit installation, as well as a service connection to hydro. Logistically it would be difficult to give fobs to emergency service providers; it is therefore anticipated that emergency services would just “knock down” the barrier in the event of an emergency. Although the complete details have not been submitted based on the quote submitted as part of the information package the following expense is an approximation of the costs:

• Supply of gate system $15,000
• Concrete pads for mounting gates $1,500
• Asphalt work including installation of conduit $5,000
• BC Hydro service drop $7,500
• 50 fobs for various entities $2,500

2. Make Rudyard Road a One-Way Road & Create Parking ($25,000)

This option would utilize signage to convert Rudyard Road into a one-way road westbound (i.e. towards Helmcken Road). The travel road width would be narrowed to create a single lane for pull off parking on the north side of Rudyard Road; as well the narrow lane would reinforce the one-way restriction for the eastbound traffic. This solution would prevent left and right turns from Helmcken entering onto Rudyard Road. The issues created from school activities would be restricted to one way traffic and could create problems accessing the school site.

3. Full Closure of Rudyard Road at Stormont Road ($20,000)

This option would physically close Rudyard Road at Stormont Road. All traffic for View Royal Elementary School and the residences on Rudyard Road would only be able to utilize Rudyard Road from Helmcken Road, and all traffic for Glenairlie Drive, Suzanne Place, Abinger Place and Brian Place would only be able to utilize Stormont Road. This would increase traffic on Stormont Road significantly and would inconvenience all the residents on the streets referenced previously. In addition if parents continued to utilize Rudyard Road for drop-offs/pickups the situation would be exacerbated as vehicles would need to turn around to leave.

4. Install a Median on Helmcken Road at the “T” Intersection at Rudyard Road ($15,000)

The installation of a concrete median at the intersection would physically prevent the left turn movement from Helmcken Road. This option would increase traffic on Stormont Road, as well as potentially impact several other streets as vehicles maneuver to access Rudyard Road. This solution would also likely create a “U turn” situation where vehicles would travel past the median at turn left into the first available driveway on Helmcken and then turn right onto Rudyard Road.

5. Install No Parking/No Stopping Signs ($13,700)

The cost to install signs along the north side of Rudyard Road would be approximately $1,200. This would allow four signs to be placed approximately 50 metres apart on the roadway. Additionally, if a physical restriction was desired concrete barriers could be placed on the north shoulder. The cost for the barriers would be approximately $125 per linear metre of installation; 100 metres should provide adequate restriction area. Staff contacted the commissionaire’s office and received a quote to enforce the parking/stopping issues. It should be noted that the commissionaire’s would not help to solve the cut-through traffic issues. The commissionaire’s provided two options for enforcement of a one hour morning 8-9am and afternoon 2:30-3:30 pm patrol: