November 24, 1998

To:Toronto Community Council

From:A. Koropeski, Director, Transportation Services District 1, Works and Emergency Services

Subject:The intersection of Lawlor Avenue and the west branch of Swanwick Avenue - Removal of the northbound and southbound "Stop" signs (East Toronto)

Purpose:

To improve traffic operation on Lawlor Avenue in the vicinity of the off-set intersections of Lawlor/Swanwick (west branch) and Lawlor/Swanwick (east branch).

Funding Sources, Financial Implications and Impact Statement:

The funds necessary to remove the existing northbound and southbound "Stop" signs and install advisory signage in the estimated amount of $650.00 are contained in the Transportation Services Division 1998 Current Budget.

Recommendations:

(1)That the northbound and southbound "Stop" sign on Lawlor Avenue at the west branch of Swanwick Avenue, be removed;

(2)That the operation of this intersection be reviewed in 6 months' time; and

(3)That the appropriate City Officials be authorized and directed to take the necessary action to implement the foregoing, including the introduction in Council of any Bills that might be required.

Comments:

At the request of Councillor Tom Jakobek and in consultation with Councillor Sandra Bussin, staff of Works and Emergency Services have investigated the removal of the northbound and southbound "Stop" signs at the intersection of Lawlor Avenue and the west branch of Swanwick Avenue for a trial period to effect an operational improvement as described below.

Lawlor Avenue and Swanwick Avenue form two T-type intersections off-set by about 50 metres with Lawlor Avenue being the through street. Both Swanwick Avenue and Lawlor Avenue are residential streets with two-way traffic operation. Both intersections of Swanwick/Lawlor have all-way "Stop" sign control.

Staff have conducted "Stop" sign observance surveys at these intersections. The data collected indicated that the compliance with the "Stop" sign control on Lawlor Avenue at the north intersection was poor with only 5% of the vehicles recorded coming to a complete stop. Nearly 94% of the vehicles recorded made "rolling stops" while 1% failed to observe the "Stop" sign and rolled through the intersection at a moderate rate of speed. Compliance characteristics were similar at the south intersection where 3.5% of the vehicles recorded made a complete stop, 95.5% made a "rolling stop" and 1% rolled through the intersection.

The northbound and southbound "Stop" signs at the intersection of Lawlor Avenue and the west branch of Swanwick Avenue (the most northerly T-intersection) were implemented in 1991 to address residents' concerns about safety at this location. Although the installation warrants established by the Ministry of Transportation for all-way "Stop" sign control were not satisfied at this intersection, the less stringent guidelines adopted by the former City of Toronto Council for such measures were satisfied (1 accident deemed preventable by all-way "Stop" sign control had been reported in the previous 3 years and the majority of nearby intersections had all-way "Stop" sign control). Notwithstanding, the distance between this intersection and the intersection of Lawlor Avenue and the east branch of Swanwick Avenue is very short (about 50 metres as noted above) and the provision of two northbound and two southbound "Stop" signs in this short distance could be contributing to the poor level of compliance by motorists at both intersections.

As a means of comparison, a similar alignment of intersections exists one block east at the intersections of Scarborough Road with the east and west branches of Swanwick Avenue. However, only the intersection of the Scarborough Road and the west branch of Swanwick Avenue has all-way "Stop" sign control while the intersection of Scarborough Road and the east branch of Swanwick Avenue has partial "Stop" sign control (westbound only). Observations at the intersection of Scarborough Road and the west branch of Swanwick Avenue by Works staff have revealed that there is considerably better compliance with the northbound/southbound compulsory stop regulation on Scarborough Road than on Lawlor Avenue. This would seem to support the view that the close proximity of the "Stop" sign controls on Lawlor Avenue has a negative impact on motorists' compliance.

In view of the above, I suggest removing the "Stop" signs on Lawlor Avenue at the west branch of Swanwick Avenue, for a trial period initially, and that additional studies be conducted to see what impact this has on compliance with the "Stop" signs at the intersection of Lawlor Avenue and the east branch of Swanwick Avenue.

Contact Name and Telephone Number:

David G. Dignard, 392-7771

Traffic Investigator

Director

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