Monday, November 13, 2017
The King Street pilot project has begun: streetcars now have priority; cars are now being forced on to alternate routes. What does that say about the city that we are now?
UTTRI Director Eric Miller was interviewed today on CBC’s Metro Morning in Making transit a priority in Toronto.
According to Professor Miller, we – and not just politicians and council – are thinking differently about who the roads are designed for in Toronto. Miller thinks it reflects a new progressiveness within city staff at Transportation Services; new progressive leadership at the TTC; and a public that’s younger, more transit and active-transportation oriented, and less car-oriented.
Pilot projects like King Street are a good way to try new ideas and see how they work, while remaining sensitive to concerns. As downtown traffic congestion increases, we need to take action to improve traffic flow.
Making streetcars more efficient and effective will ultimately improve downtown traffic conditions for everyone. Also, streetcars as a resource have been underused up until now because they get slowed down in traffic.
Professor Miller said that a successful pilot project would:
- Show an increase in the speed and reliability of streetcars.
- Show an increase in streetcar ridership.
- Identify the extent of impacts on drivers and suggest means to mitigate these.