The Chronicle Herald (Provincial)
HRM transportation projects at a glance
As Halifax Regional Municipality grows, so, too, does the need for more options of how people will get from point A to point B.
The municipality has long catered to people driving vehicles, but there’s a growing push to make the city more accessible for pedestrians, cyclists and people taking public transit.
HRM is eyeing a number of active transportation and transit projects to add multiuse pathways, bikeways, bus lanes, sidewalks and ferry routes. Some of these projects align with the larger Halifact plan, which aims to shift the municipality to a low-carbon economy by 2050.
Here’s a breakdown of some of the major projects to keep an eye out for.
IMPROVING THE MACDONALD BRIDGE BIKEWAY
The Macdonald Bridge Bikeway provides a key connection for cyclists between Halifax and Dartmouth, but steep climbs and busy roads on the way to the bridge have long made getting to the bikeway difficult for some.
In an effort to improve access to the bikeway for people of all ages and abilities, HRM recently released a tender to kick off the Macdonald Bridge Bikeway Connectors project.
The project entails construction of lanes from west of Boland Road to Thistle Street “with curb and sidewalk relocations and lane marking adjustments,” construction of a three-metre wide multi-use pathway, as well as a raised bicycle facility from west of Boland Road to Thistle Street.
Traffic signals will be installed or modifications will be made to existing signals at the intersections at Wyse and Bolland roads, Wyse Road and Nantucket Avenue, and Wyse Road and Thistle Street. Pedestrian ramps at each intersection will also be reconstructed.
The project is funded partly through contributions from the provincial government and the federal government through the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program.
The tender for the project closes at 2 p.m. on May 21.
RAPID TRANSIT STRATEGY
TO ADD FASTER FERRY, BUS ROUTES
In May 2020, Halifax regional council voted unanimously in support of the Rapid Transit Strategy, an ambitious $780-million transit plan.
The strategy calls for a rapid transit network that would get people where they want to go, when they want to go, faster and more frequently around HRM.
Two types of transit are part of the strategy — a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system and a new ferry service to offer a fast, direct connection to downtown Halifax using vessels capable of higher speeds than the current ferries that are available.
The BRT system would provide all-day bus service along key corridors with faster travel times. The proposed BRT network consists of four routes:
• A purple line that connects Clayton Park with North Dartmouth and Dartmouth Crossing;
• The green line that connects Clayton Park with the southern peninsula via Lacewood Drive and Robie Street;
• The yellow line that connects Armdale and Spryfield with downtown Halifax; and
• The red line that connects Portland Street with downtown Dartmouth and downtown Halifax.
As for the new ferry service, there are three potential routes being considered: Mill Cove, Larry Uteck and Shannon Park.
One of the main goals of the plan is to have new development align with the Rapid Transit Network.
HRM hopes to have the Rapid Transit Strategy in place by 2028.
WINDSOR STREET EXCHANGE
TO BE REDESIGNED
The bottleneck that is the Windsor Street Exchange is no stranger to most Haligonians, as nearly 50,000 vehicles travel through the intersection per day.
The design process is still underway, but HRM says it will be focused to meet the demands of “the movement of people and goods in cars, trucks, buses, and on bikes, on foot, and using mobility devices.”
Recently, people were able to weigh in on potential design elements and learn more about the project at a virtual open house. A second public engagement session is to take place in the fall, when draft designs are expected to be presented.
Construction is scheduled to begin in 2025 and is anticipated to take two to three years.
The project is to receive $23.5 million from Transport Canada’s National Trade Corridors Fund, while HRM, the province of Nova Scotia and the Port of Halifax will also provide funding.
MAKING ROOM ALONG THE BEDFORD HIGHWAY
The Bedford Highway provides a direct link for roughly 12 kilometres between the Halifax regional centre and suburbs along the west and north sides of the Bedford Basin.
It accommodates between 16,000 and 35,000 vehicles per day and nine Halifax Transit routes, but consists of limited cycling infrastructure and disconnected sidewalks.
Instead of widening the highway to four lanes as previously planned, HRM is taking a fresh look at a “new multimodal vision for the corridor” that aims to move people, rather than just cars.
To make way for pedestrians and cyclists, a multi-use path will run along the basin between south of Sherbrook Drive to Southgate Drive, with a sidewalk bordering the south-bound side of the Bedford Highway. Between Sherbrook Drive and Kearney Lake Road, one of the four lanes will be dedicated to Halifax Transit for inbound routes.
Most will remain unchanged in the Larry Uteck and Southgate drives area, except for the continuation of the multi-use path. Meanwhile, bike lanes will be added in both directions from Convoy Run to Dartmouth Road.
The multi-year plan, unveiled and passed by Halifax regional council in spring 2020, is projected to cost roughly $41 million.
COGSWELL INTERCHANGE REVAMP
The Cogswell Interchange is a network of overpasses built in the late 1960s as part of a waterfront freeway plan that was later abandoned.
HRM is planning to build a new neighbourhood in place of the interchange to connect Halifax’s downtown with the north end and the waterfront.
Urban design firm Gehl says the overhaul of the downtown area will dedicate nearly half of its space to open areas, like a neighbourhood park or courtyard, and shift the focus from car-oriented to active transportation friendly.
Some of the main features of the plan include four key connections to the waterfront with "enhanced entrances, plazas and pedestrian linkages,” a pedestrian greenway, with separated bike lanes, that connects to existing active transportation routes and a transit hub that will have a dedicated bus lane along with heated bus shelters, bus bays and wider sidewalks for pedestrians.
Council approved the 90 per cent construction design in February 2019 and a construction tender was released to three pre-approved bidders earlier this year. The tender is expected to be awarded by the end of summer 2021, with construction of the large-scale Cogswell District Redevelopment project anticipated to begin in the fall of 2021.
HRM LOOKS TO IMPROVE ACCESS TO AFRICVILLE
There is no formally designated way for someone walking, cycling or rolling to access Africville in a legal way.
To make access to the national historic site easier and safer for everyone, HRM is looking to determine the most feasible connections between Africville and the rest of the Halifax peninsula with the Africville Active Transportation Project.
HRM staff want to identify preliminary routes for walking and cycling connections and preferred routes for people of all ages and abilities. There are three options being considered:
• Extending the sidewalk or a multi-use pathway to the Africville Museum from Barrington Street where it now ends at Glebe Street, as well as improving connectivity between Glebe Street and Niobe Gate Bridge with a three- to four-metre multi-use pathway;
• Improving connection to the museum from the Africville Lookoff Park and Novalea Drive using a three- to fourmetre wide multi-use pathway; and
• Connecting Africville Lookoff Park with the former rail corridor that begins on Kempt Road and runs parallel to Memorial Drive, until it ends at the Mackay Bridge ramp. A multi-use pathway would then connect down to the Africville Museum.
Each option is meant to improve pedestrian connectivity to existing transit services.
Next, staff will put together functional design drawings to present to Halifax regional council for approval. If approved, more detailed design work will be done to prepare for the eventual construction of the connection, projected for 2024-2025.
OVERHAUL OF HERRING COVE ROAD
Those who have driven on Herring Cove Road during peak commute times during the week are no stranger to its traffic jams.
And those who are walking, biking or using other modes of active transportation find themselves out of options at times along the long road, but the Herring Cove Road functional plan hopes to fix that.
The functional plan, which was initially completed in September 2019, has been revamped to address the “complicated nature” between the Armdale Roundabout and Cowie Hill Road, in addition to the Rapid Transit Strategy, which recommends transitonly lanes between Greystone Drive and the roundabout.
Now, Halifax regional council’s transportation standing committee has two design options in front of them for the section from the Armdale Roundabout to Glenora Avenue.
The first option includes a continuous inbound transit lane, a raised multi-use pathway on one side of the road and a continuous sidewalk on the other and “outbound transit priority measures at the Cowie Hill Road intersection.”
The second option mirrors the first option, but adds an outbound transit lane from south of Purcells Cove Road to Glenora Avenue “due to significant constraints between Armdale Roundabout and Purcells Cove Road.”
With both options, most existing bus stops will remain and be upgraded with concrete pads and a shelter, new retaining walls will be built, the Purcells Cove Road intersection will undergo “some subtle changes” and the curve at Osborne Street will be realigned.
The first option, which is recommended, comes at a cost of roughly $10.2 million, while the second option comes in at $12.1 million. HRM anticipates it will receive some funding from the fed’s investment toward public transit.
In April, the committee deferred on its decision at Coun. Patty Cuttell’s request to allow her and other councillors to have more time before choosing an option.
PLAN AIMS TO MAKE BAYERS LAKE MORE ACCESSIBLE
Business is booming in Bayers Lake, but getting to and from the business park is oftentimes difficult if you don’t have access to a vehicle.
HRM recently sought feedback from people to help draw up a plan that will allow for active transportation to and from the park, connect with Halifax Transit services and travel to surrounding areas for the Bayers Lake Business Park Active Transportation Plan.
A concept design, based on one public engagement session, suggests painted bike lanes along busy roads such as Chain Lake and Washmill Lake drives, multi-use pathways and added crosswalks.
Comments made in the second round of public engagement sessions, as well as an online survey, will be included in the final report, which is to be submitted by summer 2021.
NEW INFRASTRUCURE TO ENHANCE DARTMOUTH COVE
According to HRM’S website, the vision for the community of Dartmouth Cove is “to have a walkable, cycle-friendly area that is well connected to other sections of downtown Dartmouth.”
Six infrastructure projects have been planned accordingly, to “enhance” Dartmouth Cove and the surrounding area towards Sullivan’s Pond.
They include:
• The replacement of Sullivan’s Pond Storm Sewer from just north of Irishtown Road to Dartmouth Cove;
• Major improvements to the Prince Albert Road, Portland Street, Alderney Drive intersection through lane alignment, sidewalks, lighting and traffic signal replacement in order to make the intersection more pedestrian-friendly;
• The potential to expand upon the 2014 Canal Greenway master plan, which imagined a continuous greenway from Sullivan’s Pond to the Portland Street and Prince Albert Road intersection;
• The connection of a new section of the Trans Canada Trail to the existing trail in Sullivan’s Pond Park to Harbourfront Walk. Alignment through Starr Park and to the harbourfront will be extended down Canal Street and/or Alderney Drive to create a continuous active transportation corridor;
• The repair of Alderney Drive from King Street to Prince Albert Road through curb replacement, repaving and the addition of sidewalks on Alderney Drive. As well, the section of Alderney Drive from the new Dundas Street intersection to Prince Albert Road will be reduced to two lanes, to allow space for new sidewalks and daylighting of Sawmill Creek; and
• The re-development of the Dartmouth Cove area. This will feature a new street grid, extending Dundas Street through Alderney Drive and into Dartmouth Cove. The Dundas Street extension will include a bridge over the existing canal.
Halifax Water began the first phase of the storm sewer replacement project in 2018. With the second phase slated to begin in 2021, the municipality aims to co-ordinate its plans on the other projects to “minimize disruption in the area.”