Thoughts on Traffic Circles

It looks like traffic circles might be coming to Grande Prairie. Last week a reposrt was presented at the Public Works committee showing the plan for the east & west couplet projects.


The intent of the couplet is to move westbound traffic off off 100 Ave and up to 101 Ave. The idea is that this should create a better flow for traffic going through downtown to the west side f the city and at the same time allow 100 Ave to have two way traffic which would improve access to downtown stores. One of the challenges had been how to handle the transitions ... so the suggestion of traffic circles came up.

After the report was released there was of course some initial feedback including a letter to the editor which was dead set against traffic circles (you can read it here). But there have also started to be some positive coments like this email that was sent to council:

Dear City Aldermen

I read on Wednesday’s edition in the DHT that the city is considering adding traffic circles in the downtown area. Congratulation! That is a great step towards solving the traffic problems with in the city. I only hope that other parts of the city would also be considered for the traffic circles as well. For example, I think that the corner of Resources Road and 84th Avenue would work, and the corner of 68th Avenue and Poplar Drive would also be a great fit.

I recently spent 3 weeks in Great Britain and found that roundabouts were a perfect way of sorting traffic without the hassle of dealing with traffic lights. A true traffic circle doesn’t have lights and I hope that is the type that is being considered.

As well as freeing up the traffic they are friendlier on the environment, no stopping and starting, and no idling waiting for the lights to change. Not to mention the saving on the power and upkeep which goes to the traffic lights. You will also find that there will be no traffic running the lights before they change like they currently do, cutting down on the number of accidents in town thus cutting down on the number of responses by Police and Fire Departments, a further savings.

I lived in Peace River for 10 years and they had a five way intersection that no one liked, a couple of years ago Alberta Transportation changed the 5 way intersection to a traffic circle and friends of mine that still live there have said it has sped up traffic. I also phoned Town of Peace River and they told me they never received a single complaint about the change over.
I have lived here in Grande Prairie for over 50 years and this is the one thing that has me enthused enough to write to the council to voice my whole hearted approval.

Yours Truly
Randy Montgomery

Randy mentions Peace River and actually the experience there offers some tips on what to do as we move forward - things like "pamphlets explaining how to use the roundabout, a portable billboard on the subject and public meetings". Ultimately even after PR's circle was opened there was still some uneasiness from residents.

But, seeming to back up Randy's comments is this letter to the editor in the Peace River Record Gazette that says the traffic circle there is a great improvement over the old five-way intersection they used to have.

I wonder what the impression is from folks in PR is today - is the roundabout working? Have people become accustomed to it?

For more information on exactly what modern roundabouts are like check out the Province of Alberta information page on Roundabouts here

Let me know what you think of the plan.

Two Ideas to Start The New Year

At this afternoon's Environment Committee meeting (pdf agenda) I'll be brining forward two ideas that I'd like to see tried in Grande Prairie. One is a water saving idea and the second could help keep a lid on over flowing trash bins that dirty our city. Both products come from a company I first encountered at the AUMA convention tradeshow.

Water Saving - I love the hanging flower baskets down town in the summer. They add a lot of life to our streetscape and I look forward to them going up every year. One thing I've noticed though is that maintaining them takes a huge amount of time and seems to waste a lot of water. Each day a city truck drives around to spray each basket with water. Unfortunately not all the water makes into the baskets and ends up watering the sidewalk below, quite a bit drains through the mossy bottom of the basket. I kept thinking that there has to be a better way that would take less time and waste less water. Turns out there might just be...
These planters from ALFA have a solid bottom and a built in water reservoir that eliminates the need for daily watering. I imagine that the savings in staff time of not having to water every day could pay for the planters in just a couple of seasons - and we'd stop wasting water!

Litter Bins - There are some spots in the city where regular litter bins just aren't cutting it. The two situations I'm thinking of are were bins are in remote locations and not picked up very often (like on the trails in Muskoseepi) and in places where there is a lot of pedestrian traffic that generates a lot of litter. In either situation the bins fill up to over flowing before being emptied out and after that excess trash gets blown around and makes a mess of the city. Some spots are particularly bad for this, the first that comes to mind is the west parking lot at the leisure centre.

This In-Ground Waste system is basically a 6 or 7 foot tall litter bin, where the majority is buried below ground. Being as big as they are they can handle a lot of trash before needing to be emptied. In remote locations maybe they'd only need to be emptied once or twice a year and in the high volume locations they could probably make it a week or two.

This afternoon I'll be making a motion at the environment committee to ask staff to evaluate at each system. I'd like to see staff provide a report evaluating potential cost savings and a plan on how we could run test projects for each idea.

What do you think - good ideas?

Goats On The Payroll

Just a quick post today to because I know people are going to have questions about this. Ok, if you see a few goats in Muskoseepi park over the next while don't be surprised; they are on the city payroll.

Parks staff are running a test project to see how effective the goats are at controlling certain kinds of noxious weeks in the park. If it works this will give staff a way to control the weeds without having to resort to harsh chemicals. It's a part of what we call integrated pest management.

Check out the city media release below:

"News Release
August 27, 2009

Goats to Eat Noxious Weeds in Muskoseepi Park

The City of Grande Prairie is testing a green approach to controlling the spread of noxious weeds in the Bear Creek Corridor, starting today.

Rocky Ridge Vegetation Control was contracted to work in that area of the community using foraging goats.

“The City wants to determine if foraging goats could be a suitable control method in situations where access and environmental regulations make traditional controls difficult,” says Jim Donnelly, Integrated Pest Management Co-ordinator.

The goats will eat noxious weeds such as Tansy, Toadflax and Thistle flowers. The Weed Control Act directs the City to control noxious weeds.

“The Alberta Environment Code of Practice outlines that we can spray herbicides on a maximum of 10 per cent of any 100-square-metre area in a one to five metre strip from an open body of water,” Donnelly says. “In the location where we are doing this trial, this leaves 90 per cent of the area where I can do only mechanical control. The area above Bear Creek is not accessible to mowers.”

The goats have been used to reduce vegetation at the Nitehawk Ski Hill.

“This is an environmentally friendly way of dealing with weeds, rather than using chemicals,” says Community Services Director Felix Seiler. “It would be great if this trial determines that we can do this on a broader scale.”


Media enquiries may be directed to:
Jim Donnelly
Integrated Pest Management Co-ordinator
Parks Operations
780-513-5226"

In Portland for the 47th Annual IMCL Conference

First off; Happy Mothers Day! Unfortunately I'm not in Grande Prairie to take my mom out for brunch, I'm starting off this Mother's Day in Portland, Oregon - sitting in Peet's Coffee. So, Mom, the best I can say is that I'm thinking of you and I hope the phone call will suffice - thanks for being you!

I'm in Portland for the 47th Annual Making Cities Liveable Conference (IMCL). I hadn't heard of the event until last fall when all of council was emailed an invitation to come. The invite immediately piqued my interest because Portland has a very good reputation for great neighbourhood planning, redevelopment and public transportation. Added to the fact that the host city has a great reputation the conference has a great program - that really strikes home.

In fact, the sessions really seem to speak to a lot of the themes that are coming out in the public consultation process of our Municipal Development Plan review. Here are a few sessions that caught my eye:

• Cities for health & well-being
Urban planning for physical & social health. Active living & the walkable, bikeable city. Planning for
commuting by foot and bike. Land Use principles for the healthy city. Health effects of sprawl. Sprawl, lack of community & social pathology. Dangers of social isolation for the young & the elderly. Psychological effects of the built environment. Making streets work to improve social & physical health.

• Integrating transit and land-use
Make towns - instead of traffic planning & housing development. Evaluating TODs: case studies. Including transit in development review. Environmental justice in transportation planning. Innovative new TOD projects.
(GP's Transit Master Plan is due to be released shortly)

• Regional planning for healthy cities
Sustainable regional transportation & land-use planning. Promoting regional identity. Curbing sprawl. Focusing development in town centers. Achievements in limiting big box retail.

• Nature in the urban environment
Importance of contact with nature for health & well-being. Natural urban places for exercise, adventure, relaxation & stimulation. Natural beauty & well-being. Designing & restoring parks, community gardens, wild areas. Restoring biodiversity.
(GP has a Urban Park Master Plan being developed right now)

So with all those great sessions (and many others) it looks to be a worthwhile week and I'm happy that I chose to come here and forego the FCM conference that happens at the end of the month in Whistler. During the week I'll be posting from the conference, covering the highlights of the sessions. Registration is today at 1pm and I'm looking forward to getting started!

Do Signal Lights Really Matter? (Take the Poll!)

The blue marker shows the intersection where the lights are down

What would happen if we took out all the signal lights in Grande Prairie and instead relied on drivers to work with each other through 4-way stops?

As per the release below, the traffic signals at the intersection of 99th Avenue and Resources Road (the Royal Bank intersection) have been down for a few days now. It's a change for sure and I know that it will take some time for people to get used to - but is it really a bad thing? I haven't found it too difficult to navigate and it seems like traffic is moving pretty efficiently. (let me know what you think by taking the poll on the right side of the blog)

A few years ago a friend pulled me aside to say that he thought that GP had waaaaay to many traffic lights. He implored me to think about finding ways to build safe streets without putting up more lights. At the time I wasn't sure what the alternative was but now looking at how the traffic is behaving with that set of lights down I can see that moving away from standard traffic signals might be possible.

In fact this idea is getting a lot of a attention across the pond in Europe. There they are taking the concept even further, calling it "Shared Space" and taking away all traffic control signs, lights and markings from entire towns and villages! The early results show that accidents have decreased - people are suggesting that drivers pay more attention and drive slower. From Der Spiegel:

"Drivers will force the accelerator down ruthlessly only in situations where everything has been fully regulated. Where the situation is unclear, they're forced to drive more carefully and cautiously."

Read this Entire Article for more and view the basics behind Shared Space here on YouTube.

So, is GP ready to jump on to the Shared Space bandwagon? I'm not so sure about that. But I do think drivers can be more careful, take more responsibility and that we can draw on some of the lessons from Europe as we build our community.

City Media Release on Downed Lights:

Major Intersection Lights Under Repair
Friday, March 13, 2009 2:46:00 PM

Motorists are advised it could take up to two weeks to repair traffic lights at 98 Street and 99 Avenue and the City’s Transportation Services Department urges caution at this busy intersection.

Extensive damage occurred to the signals as a result of a motor vehicle accident on Thursday evening. One of the main poles supporting the lights was completely destroyed and its base needs repair.

The control cabinet was also demolished in the mishap.

“Repairs could take up to two weeks,” says Transportation Field Supervisor Brian Veitch. “A new cabinet and pole will have to be installed. We ask motorists to be patient at this intersection.”

An all-way stop has been established at the intersection.

In Westlock to Learn From Dr. Friedman

I'm in the Best Western, Westlock tonight getting ready for tomorrow's workshop with Dr. Avi Friedman. If you're from Grande Prairie you may have heard Dr. Friedman's name when council sponsored a visit from him last term. I liked what I heard back then and since we are working on a Municipal Development Plan (MDP) review right now I wanted to know more.

The MDP is the overarching document that guides all the other plans that the city does so it's principles have a big impact in how our community develops. In fact it literally shapes the way our neighbourhoods grow, mature and redevelop - so it has a big impact on our quality of life. I'm hoping that Dr. Friedman's workshop will lead to some positive idea that we can include as we rework our MDP.

The Town of Westlock is hosting Dr. Friedman this time and he is running a workshop entitled "Designing Sustainable Communities and Homes: a workshop focusing on the topic of sustainability". The day will consist of six lectures:

Lecture 1: Principles of Sustainable Developments
Lecture 2: Master Planning for Sustainability
Lecture 3: Sustainable and Affordable Neighbourhoods
Lecture 4: Sustainable Dwellings
Lecture 5: Sustainable Downtown Renewal
Lecture 6: Reinventing Communities – Selected Projects

(for a detailed description of the lectures you can check the workshop brochure PDF)

Complete Streets

I've promised that I'd post a little more on the ideas from the Sustainable Transportation workshop so here's one:

Complete Streets

Simply put, a "Complete Street" is one that is useful and accessible for all users. That includes not only cars but also pedestrians and cyclists. The workshop facilitators had us consider streets from three unique perspectives; a senior couple walking, a young girl riding her bike and an adult in a wheelchair.

Some example of the needs of each; the seniors would want a solid, even surface and crossings that give lots of time to get across the street. The girl on her bike needs space to ride safely without having to compete with cars or pedestrians and the adult in the wheelchair needs curbs that are easy to navigate without fear of tipping.

There were many more examples but that gives you and idea. A street that is comfortable and useable for all three is a "Complete Street". There is some great information on the Complete Streets website.

Which brings me to what we see around Grande Prairie....



No wonder people don't walk - it's too much of a hassle!

Of course there are quite a few examples of this kind of thing around the city and there are many reasons why these gaps exist. One part of the issue is our rapid growth - sometimes a neighbourhood springs up and the connections to the older areas just haven't been put in yet. Other times they are what I like to call "sins of the past"; at some point in history we didn't force a new development to put in the infrastructure or it could be that when a development was built our standards didn't call for a sidewalk. Whatever the reason, I think these gaps are exactly the kind of thing that frustrate people and detract from our sense that Grande Prairie is a "nice city". These are exactly the kind of things I want to fix.

Do you have a favourite example of an incomplete street like the one above? If you do mention it in the comments section or email me a picture so I can post it here. My email address is bgiven@cityofgp.com

Wireless City

Yesterday the General Government Services committee which I chair received an update on the city's efforts to pursue a municipal wireless network. So far staff have identified the uses the city would have for such a system, what other community organizations might be interested and then worked with a consultant to determine what we should include for specifications when we do a Request for Proposals. You'll probably see a story about it when the news paper comes out later today.


Media Release, March 26, 2008

City of Grande Prairie Explores Wireless Broadband Options

Grande Prairie became a city 50 years ago last month when district guide and hunter Henry McCullough delivered its charter on horseback. With tribute to Henry’s trusty steed, Diamond, the City has long since surpassed its one horse-town status and is ready to hit the information superhighway at full speed.

A feasibility project has been completed to explore development of a wireless broadband network that would blanket much of the community, providing the municipality, businesses, government agencies, other public sector groups, and schools with high-speed internet access.

The wireless network will be capable of supporting advanced applications, including emergency response and sophisticated transit and automated vehicle monitoring systems.

Other uses could consist of security and camera applications for traffic monitoring. Part of the project may include hot spots throughout public facilities for citizen and visitor use.

“Grande Prairie is already a hub of commerce as a regional trade centre for about 250,000 people and implementing this project would help us become even more competitive by having access to the technological advances that other larger urban centres have,” says Interim City Manager Ken Anderson.

“At this time, high-speed wireless Internet service is fragmented and is concentrated in the business community,” he says.
The City, guided by a committee comprised of staff along with education, health and business sector representatives, is working with KAZAM Technologies, a management consulting firm in Markham, Ontario that provides professional services in the area of broadband and wireless for a study and development of a strategic framework and a Request for Proposal (RFP) document.

The RFP is expected to be released by the end of April 2008. An RFP process will help determine the final solution and schedule. The City’s Information Technology Services department will bring a recommendation to Council after the close of the RFP process and subsequent evaluations.

The implementation of the project will be based on a cost-benefit analysis, improved municipal service delivery and economic development opportunities, the availability of suitable technology, and a sustainable strategy.

“In addition to the enhanced access to information, the advancement would make Grande Prairie more business- and tech-friendly, increasing the opportunity to attract new investment,” says Dawood Khan, Vice-President, Services and a partner with Kazam.

KAZAM and the City are considering a number of business models including private-public partnerships to recoup its investment in the development of the network or leveraging the City’s assets and needs.
Grande Prairie is ideally suited as a consideration for a municipally run wireless network or a partnership arrangement, says Khan.

“The advantage that Grande Prairie has is its mid-size population with a highly tech-savvy and young population eager to adopt new technologies fast,” he says. “The City is also home to a great deal of enterprise activity in need of wireless applications and mobility that can enhance their operations and increase efficiency.”

The success of municipal networks depends on a viable revenue generating model. Advertising and subscriptions are two solutions that have been considered by other municipalities. The main remaining question is how to develop the right pricing model that would attract customers and convince them to sign up for the services.

“Building a citywide network does not guarantee that businesses will be flocking to sign up for it,” says Khan. “It is a matter of having the right vision and implementing the right strategy for Grande Prairie to make the increasing weight of its economic influence felt across Alberta and perhaps become a model for other like-minded cities.”

New Poll: Paper or Plastic

I've added a new poll to the blog in response to a question I received by email:

"Bill, I thought you might enjoy this link. Essentially China is banning free plastic bags commencing June 1, 2008. I know San Francisco has also done this. More cities will follow suit. Wouldn't it be something if Grande Prairie did this as well, beating Edmonton and Calgary to the punch?? There is no real downside.

Sorry for bugging you about a trivial issue, but I thought it was a
great idea."

My reply...

"Thanks for the note and don't every worry about sending anything along! Any ideas are appreciated, even the seemingly little ones.

I actually posted about this on my blog quite a while ago.

I like the idea but to be honest I'm just not sure about pushing it forward here. What do you think, would most people be in favour? The only downside I see is that it can be viewed as council adding costs to businesses. Kind of like if I told you that your office couldn't use BIC pens anymore. I know, I know that's not a great analogy but you know what I mean.

What do you think?"

The two comments I received on the previous post were both positive about banning these single use bags, and now this email. So, I'm asking you all out there - what do you think, is this something the city of GP should pursue?

Let me know what you think by voting and leaving comments.

The poll will close at 12:00am February 1st.

Community Energy Plan

Last night at council ( webcast here - high speed internet recommended) I reported on my visit to Yellowknife for the Prospects North conference.

In my report to council I mentioned that there were some very good ideas at conference and that I would be bringing them forward for use in Grande Prairie. The largest and potentially most important of these ideas is the Community Energy Plan.

The City of Yellowknife had a booth at the conference trade show promoting their Community Energy Plan, which they've been working on for a number of years. I stopped by and had the pleasure of speaking to Mark Henry, who is the Energy Coordinator for the city. He explained the process that the community went through in collecting the data, developing the plan and how they are working on moving forward.

One important key was the broad participation from the community from the very start. Yellowknife's Community Energy Planning Committee was comprised of members representing; City Council (2), Power & Utility Companies (2), Environmental Groups (1), Chamber of Commerce (1), School Board (1), NWT Territorial Government (2), The Public (1).

The thing that struck me most was the poster that he had at the booth, which shows all the energy inputs for Yellowknife and where that energy is used. It's the City's Energy Profile. Mark was nice enough to email me the poster, which you can see below. (click the picture to see it larger)



Looking the poster anyone can very quickly see that:

- 60% of the energy used in Yellowknife comes in the form of Fuel Oil for heating
- The community spends roughly $57m on Fuel Oil yearly
- Fuel Oil is responsible for 71% of the greenhouse gasses produced in the community

Collecting this data is only the first step in developing a plan. The next part is deciding on actions but having these facts so clearly stated means that, wether your interest is in reducing greenhouse gasses or saving money, you know the best place to start is by working to find alternatives to fuel oil.

What would we find out by doing the same work in Grande Prairie?

I can see many ways that this type of information could be useful for the City of Grande Prairie, local businesses and residents. But, first, someone has to get the ball rolling and I'd like to do just that. Unfortunately, last night was our last full council meeting before the election. So, I committing that in the new term I will work to see the City (with community partners) begin the process of developing a Community Energy Plan.

My hope would be that the City would lead the process and invite members of the public, business and environmental groups to participate. The funding for the development of the plan would come in large part from grants like FCM's Green Municipal Fund with a smaller portion coming from the City of GP.

Bio-Diesel for the City Fleet?

I spoke to a resident over the weekend who would like to see the city move towards using Bio-Diesel in our fleet of vehicles. He sent me an email:

" ...

In response to the Province's "Alberta's Climate Change" initiative that is underway, I would like to offer a suggestion to this Committee so the City of Grande Prairie can continue to be a leading community in this Province.

Provide the City's fleet of vehicles, including buses, heavy machinery, service trucks, protective and enforcement vehicles, with renewable fuels. Running the City's fleets on Bio-diesel and Ethanol-blended gasoline will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and also provide a cleaner fuel to burn.

.."

I told him that I'd bring it up on the Public Works committee agenda for discussion. I'm aware of concerns about bio-diesel but it might be another tool in reducing the environmental footprint of the city. Other cities have been using the technology and we should be able to learn from them and see if it can be adapted for use in GP. Saskatoon, just sent out a media release today that covers some of the benefits they've realized using Bio-Diesel:

"- reduced fuel consumption (average of 3%); cost savings (just under 1 cent/litre based on current fuel costs);

- approximately 20% less engine wear, which has the potential to extend the lifespan of an engine, as well as decrease maintenance costs; and

- reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by an average of 7%."

full release

Paper or ... well, paper I guess.

Ok, this isn't in GP but I do think it's a cool idea. Leaf Rapids, Manitoba has banned "one time use" plastic bags in the community.

"As of April 2nd, By-Law 462 states that retailers will no longer be permitted to give away or sell plastic shopping bags that are intended for single use; only multi-use, reusable bags will be accepted. Anyone who contravenes this By-Law is guilty of an offence and could face a fine of not more than $1000.00."

If you're like me you have a bunch of these stuffed under the sink or in a drawer somewhere. I take them out to the recycling bins when they pile up but I still find them annoying. It's especially sad to see them stuck up in a tree blowing in the wind - yep that's what we're adding to the planet. You're welcome.

So, could an idea like this work in a city like Grande Prairie?

It's already happening in California.