Pedestrian Crossing Protection and Bus Shelter

on Birchmount Road and Merryfield Drive

Wards 14 and 15 - Scarborough Wexford and

Scarborough City Centre

The Scarborough Community Council recommends the adoption of the following report (March 16, 1998) from the Director, Road and Traffic Services, Scarborough:

Purpose:

To address the concerns of petitioners relating to pedestrian crossing assistance and a northbound bus shelter on Birchmount Road at Merryfield Drive.

Funding Sources:

Not Applicable.

Recommendations:

It is recommended that:

(1) traffic control signals or a pedestrian crossover not be installed on Birchmount Road at Merryfield Drive;

(2) a bus shelter not be installed at the northbound bus stop on Birchmount Road and Merryfield Drive; and

(3) staff continue to review the on-passenger usage at the northbound bus stop for possible installation of a bus shelter in the future.

Background:

Road and Traffic Services received a 61 signature petition, on behalf of Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) patrons, requesting the installation of a "pedestrian crosswalk signal and bus shelter" at the intersection of Birchmount Road and Merryfield Drive. Road and Traffic Services investigated both of these issues.

Discussion:

The intersection of Birchmount Road and Merryfield Drive is located between Ellesmere Road and Lawrence Avenue. The west side of the road is industrial while the east side of the road is residential. Traffic control signals exist 410 metres to the north at Laura Secord Drive and 480 metres to the south at Lawrence Avenue. A bus stop exists on both sides of the road and a bus shelter is located on the west side for southbound buses.

Traffic Control Warrants

The justification for the installation of traffic control signals (TCS) and pedestrian crossovers (PXO) is based on technical warrants established by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (MTO). The analysis of these warrants is based on data compiled from an eight-hour traffic study.

On Thursday, January 22, 1998, staff conducted an eight-hour traffic study at the intersection of Birchmount Road and Merryfield Drive. This study, to effectively monitor vehicular and pedestrian movements, was conducted from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Application of the required eight-hour study data to the respective MTO Warrants revealed that the minimum traffic volume requirements for the installation of either traffic control signals or a pedestrian crossover are not presently satisfied. A brief summary of our findings as they pertain to each of these Warrants is as follows:

Traffic Control Signal Warrant

To warrant the installation of traffic control signals, compliance levels of 100% are required in one of the above categories or 80% in each.

These findings indicate that there is insufficient vehicular traffic entering the intersection on the minor road, Merryfield Drive and No. 1406 Birchmount Road driveway, to satisfy the Traffic Control Signal Warrant at this time.

Pedestrian Crossover Warrant

To warrant the installation of a pedestrian crossover, compliance levels of 100% are required in both of the above categories.

The PXO Warrant provides an adjustment factor for senior citizens, unassisted children and handicapped pedestrians. However, during our eight-hour study, only adults or youths crossed Birchmount Road in this area.

Our study results revealed that out of these 60 pedestrians crossing Birchmount Road, 80% or 48 pedestrians were generated by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) bus stops located at this intersection. The majority of these pedestrians (40) crossed between 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. from the east side of the road to the west side.

Investigation staff specifically noted that with good sight lines of approaching vehicles and adequate gaps in the traffic flow on Birchmount Road, most pedestrians did not experience any difficulties in crossing Birchmount Road in this area.

Collision History

A three-year review of the reported collision history at the intersection of Birchmount Road and Merryfield Drive reveals the following statistics:

Note: Collisions preventable by traffic control signals are those involving traffic which, under signalized conditions, would otherwise move on completely separate signal phases, and theoretically would not conflict.

Bus Shelter

Currently, new bus shelter locations are determined by on-passenger counts supplied by the TTC. Our Bus Shelter Program requires an on-passenger count of 50 or more people per day at a location before it will be considered for a bus shelter.

The most recent count information received from the TTC indicates that the bus stop located at the intersection of Birchmount Road & Merryfield Drive for northbound travel does not meet this requirement. An on-passenger count conducted on Wednesday, April 30, 1997, revealed a total of only 11 people boarding buses at this bus stop. We observed similar on-passenger usage during our January 22, 1998 pedestrian crossover study.

Therefore, based on this low on-passenger count, a bus shelter is not warranted at this location.

Conclusions:

In summary, based on the results of our investigations, neither traffic control signals nor a pedestrian crossover is warranted at the intersection of Birchmount Road & Merryfield Drive at this time.

Please note that many other similar locations exist throughout Toronto that do not meet the minimum requirements for the installation of additional traffic controls. Therefore, at these locations, we can only encourage motorists and pedestrians to wait until a suitable safe gap occurs in the traffic flow to safely enter or cross the major road.

A bus shelter for northbound travel at this intersection is not warranted at this time. However, we will review the on-passenger updates as we receive them from the TTC.

Contact Name:

Gary H. Welsh

Director, Road and Traffic Services, Works and Environment, Scarborough District

Telephone: 396-5061

Fax: 396-5681

E-mail: welsh@city.scarborough.on.ca