July 21, 1999

To:Toronto Community Council

From:Andrew Koropeski, Director, Transportation Services, District 1

Subject:Bay Street and Lake Shore Boulevard West - Proposed lane designation and right-turn-on-red prohibition for southbound traffic (Downtown)

Purpose:

To designate the two westerly- most southbound lanes as right-turn lanes and to prohibit right-turns on red for the southbound approach on Bay Street to Lake Shore Boulevard West in order to reduce delays.

Funding Sources, Financial Implications and Impact Statement:

Funds to undertake the necessary signage, pavement marking and traffic signal indication adjustments in the estimated amount of $7,000.00 are contained in the Transportation Services Division 1999 Current Budget.

Recommendations:

(1)That the existing regulation designating the westerly, most southbound, lane on Bay Street for right-turning vehicles only (except buses), from Lake Shore Boulevard West to a point 30.5 metres north thereof, be rescinded;

(2)That the two westerly-most southbound lanes on Bay Street be designated for right-turning vehicles only, from Lake Shore Boulevard West to a point 60 metres north thereof;

(3)That southbound right-turns-on-red be prohibited at all times at the intersection of Bay Street and Lake Shore Boulevard West; and

(4).That the appropriate City Officials be requested to take whatever action is necessary to give effect to the foregoing, including the introduction in Council of any Bills that may be required.

Comments:

In response to public requests, Transportation Services reviewed the operation of the southbound right-turn movement at the above-noted intersection. The inquirers' main concerns were dual southbound right turns and the delay that southbound right turns encounter at this intersection.

The intersection of Bay Street and Lake Shore Boulevard West is controlled by traffic signals. During the busiest eight-hour period of a typical weekday approximately 25,000 motorists, 5000 pedestrians and 150 cyclists use this intersection. The southbound approach on Bay Street to Lake Shore Boulevard West is comprised of a right-turn lane (buses excepted) and a through lane. Traffic control signals at this intersection operate under the SCOOT (Split Cycle Offset Optimization Technique) system, whereby signal timings are automatically adjusted in response to changing traffic patterns by analyzing traffic flow data obtained from sensors embedded in the roadways.

Due to significant conflicts between southbound right-turning motorists and pedestrians crossing the west leg of this intersection, in 1994 we subdivided the southbound green time into two phases. During the first phase southbound through vehicles and pedestrians crossing the west leg of the intersection are permitted to move. During the second phase, only southbound through and right-turning vehicles are permitted to move and no pedestrian crossings on the west leg are permitted. This modification reduced the pedestrian/vehicular conflict in this area and it also increased the capacity of the southbound right-turn movement.

During the busiest eight-hour period of a typical weekday, approximately 3,500 pedestrians cross the west leg of this intersection and approximately 3,000 southbound right turns are made at this intersection. This movement experiences minimal delays during the weekday morning peak period and the off-peak period. However, during the weekday afternoon peak period significant delays occur and the queues in the southbound curb lane often extend to Front Street West. As a result, some frustrated southbound motorists perform illegal, dual right turns from the through lane and thus compromise the safety of pedestrians and motorists at this intersection. Similar situations occur after events at the Air Canada Centre. The following table summarizes the southbound right-turn movement (vehicles per hour) during each time period of a typical weekday:

Unfortunately, congestion at this intersection is typical of many downtown locations during the weekday afternoon period. Because of the high concentration of office/business/retail activities in the downtown core and the limited amount of available road space, there is a high demand for the existing road capacity during the weekday afternoon peak period. This creates congestion at many downtown intersections, particularly on southbound routes such as Bay Street, York Street and Spadina Avenue that lead to Lake Shore Boulevard West and/or the Gardiner Expressway.

Existing regulatory and guidance signs, pavement markings and traffic signal indications conform to the provincial standards and provide clear direction and guidance to southbound motorists. Recently, a major construction project and lane closures on York Street, between Front Street West and Lake Shore Boulevard West, had a significant impact in this area by displacing north-south traffic to adjacent routes such as Bay Street. After this project was completed on July 9, 1999, we reviewed signal timings at the intersection of Bay Street and Lake Shore Boulevard West in hopes of decreasing delays for southbound right-turning motorists during the weekday afternoon peak period. In a field test, we modified some of the parameters in the SCOOT system and delays to southbound right-turning motorists were reduced. However, since the green time was reallocated from the westbound direction, increased delays were experienced by westbound motorists approaching this intersection. Therefore, we did not retain this signal timing modification because westbound volume is significantly higher than the southbound right-turn volume (approximately 1900 vehicles per hour vs. 520 vehicles per hour) during this time period.

As an alternate, we reviewed the existing pavement markings and the pavement width of Bay Street near Lake Shore Boulevard West. By adjusting pavement markings, a second southbound right-turn lane can be accommodated, while maintaining other north-south traffic lanes, within the existing pavement width of Bay Street. This modification will increase the capacity and decrease delays for the southbound right-turn movement at this intersection. A TTC southbound bus stop on Bay Street is located approximately 90 metres north of Lake Shore Boulevard West. As a result, buses are currently exempted from the right-turn lane designation for the curb lane. We have consulted with TTC staff and they indicated that they already have operational concerns with this stop. As a result, they will either relocate this stop to the south side of Lake Shore Boulevard West or they will remove the stop. In either case their southbound buses will proceed from the through lane and they no longer have to be exempted from the right-turn lane designation.

Currently, a minimal number of southbound right-turns on red are completed. This movement should be prohibited based on safety concerns for pedestrians and motorists. Firstly, some southbound right-turning motorists still proceed during the exclusive pedestrian crossing phase share on the west leg of the intersection creating safety concerns for pedestrians. Secondly, sightlines between southbound right-turning motorists and westbound through motorists are limited due to one of the Gardiner Expressway pillars on the north-east corner of the intersection. These concerns would only be exacerbated with dual southbound right-turns. Taking into account the addition of a second southbound right-turn lane, this prohibition will have negligible impacts on capacity. To reflect the above-noted modifications we will also modify the location of the southbound right-turn and through signal indications in order to provide motorists better direction and guidance.

A review of the Toronto Police Services collision records over a five-year period ending December 31, 1998 did not disclose any collisions that involved dual southbound right-turning vehicles or pedestrian crossing the west leg of the intersection. However, the above-noted modifications would be a preventative safety measure which would also increase capacity at this intersection.

Contact Name and Telephone Number:

Danny Budimirovic, P.Eng.

Traffic Engineer, District 1 - Central Area

416-392-5209

Director.

DB/bm

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