Traffic Operations on Bayview Avenue between
Balliol Street and Soudan Avenue (Toronto)
and between St. Cuthberts Road and
Parkhurst Boulevard (East York)
The East York Community Council recommends that:
(a)the regulation which prohibits parking on the east side of Bayview Avenue, between St. Cuthberts Road and
Parkhurst Boulevard, between 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m., Monday to Friday, be rescinded;
(b)the times of the parking meter operation be amended to include the 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. period, Monday to
Friday; and
(c)the appropriate City officials be authorized and directed to take the necessary action to give effect thereto,
including the introduction of the necessary Bill in Council.
The East York Community Council submits the following report (July 3, 1999) from the Director, Transportation
Services, District 1:
Purpose:
To report on the impacts to traffic operations of allowing parking on Bayview Avenue between Balliol Street/St. Cuthberts
Road and Soudan Avenue/Parkhurst Boulevard:
(a)during the weekday afternoon peak period on the west side of Bayview Avenue; and
(b)during the weekday morning peak period on the east side of Bayview Avenue.
Recommendation:
It is recommended that:
- the East York Community Council recommend that:
(a)the regulation which prohibits parking on the east side of Bayview Avenue, between Balliol Street/St. Cuthberts Road
and Soudan Avenue/Parkhurst Boulevard, between 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m., Monday to Friday, be rescinded;
(b)the times of the parking meter operation be amended to include the 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. period, Monday to Friday;
(c)the appropriate City officials be authorized and directed to take whatever action is necessary to give effect thereto,
including the introduction of the necessary Bill in Council; and
(2)this report be received for the information of Toronto Community Council.
Background:
City Council, at its meeting on July 8, 9 and 10, 1998, adopted, as amended, Clause No. 11 of Report No. 8 of The Urban
Environment and Development Committee, and in doing so allowed parking during the afternoon peak period (4:00 p.m. to
6:00 p.m.) in the off-peak travel direction (southbound/west side) of Bayview Avenue from Soudan Avenue/Parkhurst
Boulevard to Balliol Street/St. Cuthberts Road. Both the East York and Toronto Community Councils supported this
measure at their respective meetings on May 6, 1998. In addition, the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) and
Transportation staff were requested to report after six months on the effects of this change on TTC buses and traffic
operations on this section of Bayview Avenue.
Subsequently, the East York Community Council, at its meeting on May 11, 1999, considered a parking survey conducted
by Councillor Jane Pitfield, with respect to implementation of customer parking on the east side of Bayview Avenue,
between Balliol Street and Soudan Avenue, from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m., in addition to the existing hours allowed, and
requested the Commissioner of Works and Emergency Services to submit a report with respect to the feasibility of
conducting a pilot study with respect thereto. (Clause No. 8(r) of Report No. 5 of the East York Community Council).
This report summarizes the details of our findings for both items.
Comments:
Review of Afternoon Peak Period Parking on the West Side of Bayview Avenue
between Balliol Street and Soudan Avenue
In July, 1998, in response to concerns from local merchants on Bayview Avenue that there was an insufficient supply of
parking to serve the needs of patrons to the area, the parking prohibition on the west side of Bayview Avenue was amended
to allow parking between Balliol Street and Soudan Avenue during the weekday afternoon peak period.
Currently, a "No Stopping" prohibition exists on the west side of Bayview Avenue between 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m.,
Monday to Friday. At other times, parking meters operate from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on weekdays and from 8:00 a.m. to
6:00 p.m. on Saturdays.
Staff anticipated that the amendment to allow afternoon peak period parking on the west side of Bayview Avenue would
significantly increase delays for motorists on Bayview Avenue and lead to an increase in traffic infiltration in the Leaside
and South Eglinton communities, to circumvent these delays.
The follow-up studies conducted by staff in March of this year indicate that congestion has increased for southbound
motorists on Bayview Avenue during the afternoon peak period. Studies confirm that there has been a 10-25 per cent
increase in queue lengths at the signalized intersections on Bayview Avenue and a corresponding increase in the
volume/capacity ratio. The average queue length prior to the change was 14.2 vehicles. This has increased to 17.2 vehicles
since parking was allowed on the west side of Bayview Avenue during the afternoon peak period.
The signalized intersections on this section of Bayview Avenue are controlled by the Split Cycle Offset Optimization
Technique (SCOOT) traffic control system. SCOOT is a traffic control system in which the volumes of traffic approaching
a traffic signal from different directions are continuously detected and the system automatically adjusts the duration of the
green displays to best suit the requirements of the oncoming traffic. The left-turn priority features, if any, may also be
adjusted in duration depending on demand.
In this case, SCOOT has compensated somewhat for the reduction in capacity on Bayview Avenue by increasing the cycle
lengths and providing more north/south green time for motorists on Bayview Avenue. Conversely, there has been a
reduction in the amount of green time provided for east/west motorists accessing Bayview Avenue from the side streets at
signalized intersections thereby increasing the delays experienced by these motorists.
To this date staff have not received any concerns from local area residents with respect to increased delays in accessing
Bayview Avenue.
The follow-up studies have confirmed the anticipated increase in congestion on Bayview Avenue and adjacent local streets
as a result of allowing parking during the afternoon peak period. Given, however, that the SCOOT system has somewhat
mitigated the congestion and that local area residents have not expressed any concerns regarding increased delays in
accessing Bayview Avenue, staff do not recommend the rescission of the afternoon peak period parking on the west side of
Bayview Avenue at this time. Transportation staff will continue to monitor the traffic operations on Bayview Avenue and
the surrounding area and report, as necessary, on any changes required to mitigate operational concerns.
Toronto Transit Commission Comments:
Mr. Mitch Stambler, in a May 28, 1999 letter wrote the following:
"In the Fall of 1998, on-street parking was introduced on the west side of this portion of Bayview Avenue during the
afternoon peak period. At its meeting of July 8, 9 and 10, 1998, City Council, in addition to approving this change,
requested the TTC 'To submit a report to the Urban Environment and Development Committee, in six months' time, on
the effects of this change on TTC buses operating on this section of Bayview Avenue.' We expect to be submitting this
report to our Commission shortly. This memo provides you with a preliminary assessment of the introduction of parking.
We are disturbed by what seems to be an emerging trend of allowing changes to streets within the City of Toronto, such as
additional parking which result in transit service being slower, less attractive, and less competitive with the car. The TTC is
working very hard to make transit the mode of choice for people travelling in Toronto. We are working on virtually every
front to improve the quality and attractiveness of our service: from the reliability and cleanliness of our vehicles, to traffic
signals which give priority to transit vehicles, to improved safety and reliability of subway service, to continuing cost
reductions in order to keep fares at an attractive level despite government cutbacks. In order for our efforts to be effective,
we need strong municipal support for the advancement of public transit.
The introduction of on-street parking on the west side of Bayview Avenue during the afternoon peak period, has, as
expected, resulted in a significant delay increase to our southbound 11 BAYVIEW service. On the section of Bayview
Avenue where parking has been allowed, bus travel times increased by an average of 16 percent, compared to 'before'
conditions, with increases as high as 70 percent observed. In our upcoming report to the Commission, we will be including
a recommendation to request Council to rescind this parking.
Mr. Peter Bartos of your staff has advised us of an initiative by East York Community Council to consider parking on the
east side of Bayview Avenue during the morning peak period. In light of the public transit concerns highlighted above, we
oppose such a measure."
Proposed Morning Peak Period Parking on the East Side of Bayview Avenue
between St. Cuthberts Road and Parkhurst Boulevard:
The current parking regulations on the east side of Bayview Avenue, between St. Cuthberts Road and Parkhurst Boulevard,
prohibit parking during the 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. period and stopping during the 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. period on
weekdays. At other times, parking meters operate from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on weekdays and from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00
p.m. on Saturdays. Approximately 15,000 northbound vehicles use Bayview Avenue daily, of which 800 occur during the
morning peak hour. This section of Bayview Avenue has a commercial land use.
Similar to the documented impacts noted in the previous section, if the majority of parking spaces are occupied,
northbound capacity on Bayview Avenue during the morning peak period will be reduced and congestion and delays on
Bayview Avenue and local streets accessing Bayview Avenue will increase. The SCOOT system will compensate for the
reduction in capacity by increasing the cycle lengths and providing more north/south green time (taken from the east/west
direction) for Bayview Avenue motorists. Consequently, side street traffic will experience an increase in delays and queues
which could increasingly frustrate motorists wishing to access Bayview Avenue.
These impacts will be especially prominent if the parking is heavily utilized on Bayview Avenue during the morning peak
period. Given the low number of businesses, however, which are open during the morning peak period (mainly cafes and
restaurants) not all the parking spaces may by occupied.
At this time, staff conclude that the impact of allowing parking in the off-peak direction in the morning peak period will be
similar, if not somewhat less than the existing situation in the afternoon peak period. If these impacts are deemed to be
acceptable, morning peak period parking could be allowed on the east side of Bayview Avenue. We will monitor the
impacts and report on any changes required, as necessary.
Contact Name:
Vince Suppa, Coordinator - Traffic Investigations
District 1 - East Area
416-397-5436
